New term for Spee in the Netherlands

Spee, who was confirmed in office as the only candidate, became president of the KNVB in 2019, succeeding Michael van Praag. In addition to his position within the Dutch national association, the 57-year-old has been a member of UEFA’s Executive Committee since 2021.

In his acceptance speech, Spee placed particular emphasis on the expansion plans for the KNVB Campus in Zeist, as well as the position of the KNVB within the international football community.

Spee said that the Zeist facility currently allowed “our most talented players to benefit from being in close proximity to each other, while staff members of our various teams can easily exchange knowledge.”

He added that an expansion of the campus was crucial “in order to raise the top sports facilities to a higher level for all our 20 national teams in the future.”

Spee explained that discussions have taken place with local residents and stakeholders, and the plan has met with some resistance. “This means we also have to consider a different outcome than the one we want,” he said. “But leaving Zeist is not our preference. Our football has been based there for over 60 years.”

He also emphasised the scale of football within the Netherlands. “There are more than 30,000 matches played every weekend, and 5.5 million people attend professional matches annually. Approximately 400,000 volunteers are active in our clubs. More than 200,000 children participate in school football tournaments. Football is everywhere in our country.”