Dutch Soccer Official Is Killed After Being Attacked During Game
A Dutch linesman has died after he was savagely and viciously attacked by several players during a youth soccer game.
Richard Nieuwenhuizen, who was punched and kicked by the athletes from Amsterdam’s Nieuw Sloten, collapsed and was then rushed to hospital just hours after the incident. Nieuwenhuizen’s club, Buitenboys, revealed that he died on Monday evening, but his exact cause of death has yet to be confirmed.
Three players, aged 15 and 16, have been arrested in connection to the beating that occurred in the town of Almere on Sunday. Edith Schippers, the Dutch Sports Minister, told the national broadcaster, NOS, “It is absolutely terrible that something like can happen on a Dutch sports field.”
Her thoughts were also echoed by Frank De Boer, the current manager of Ajax and a former international player for Holland, who stated, “I’m not aggressive so cannot imagine how such a thing could happen. It makes you wonder about their education. This is too crazy.”
Graham Poll, a retired English referee, commented, “Sometimes you read a story and it shakes you to the core. Having been a match official for 27 years, starting with local football and now managing a boys team I was shocked to read of the death of Richard Nieuwenhuizen. There can be no excuse, mitigation or explanation for such an event. It is tragic.”
A police spokeswoman has confirmed that the alleged assailants are still in custody and that their investigations were ongoing. Nieuw Sloten have banned the players involved and pulled their team out of the league too.
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