The battle for promotion to the Eredivisie is going down to the final team. With ADO Den Haag already having wrapped up the title in the Keuken Kampioen Divisie, and SC Cambuur securing a second-place finish, only one ticket to the Eredivisie remains. That ticket will be handed out in the promotion play-offs, which will see six Keuken Kampioen Divisie teams and one Eredivisie team fight for a spot in the Eredivisie.
There are two ways to qualify for those play-offs. One is through finishing anywhere between third and eighth in the Keuken Kampioen Divisie, and the second is by winning a period title. The Keuken Kampioen Divisie season is divided into four periods, each lasting eight games. The winner of each period is granted a spot in the play-offs, but with one period title yet to be clinched, a peculiar situation has arisen.
Periodical headaches
Willem II are currently in the lead in period 4, with ADO Den Haag following closely. Willem II, third in the overall standings, have already secured their play-off ticket, while ADO Den Haag are naturally set to return to the Eredivisie after winning the title.
In third are Vitesse, who were dead and buried as recently as last September after having their professional licence revoked, but rose from the ashes and fought their way into a favourable promotion position. However, being just two points away from the top spot in period 4 may not be as favourable as it once was.
FC Den Bosch are officially finishing in ninth place in the regular standings, which does not grant them a spot in the play-offs. However, it will get them into the play-offs if two of ADO Den Haag, Willem II, or Almere City FC finish above Vitesse in the fourth-period standings, as all those clubs are already in the play-offs or the Eredivisie.
Since the ticket is not awarded to the team that finishes fourth in the fourth period, it will be given to the highest-ranked team in the regular season: FC Den Bosch. Jong PSV are ineligible for promotion as an Under-21 team.
With FC Den Bosch playing ADO Den Haag in the final regular-season round on Friday and FC Den Bosch needing ADO Den Haag to finish above Vitesse in the fourth period, FC Den Bosch are better off losing Friday's game than winning it, with a loss keeping Vitesse under ADO Den Haag in the fourth-period standings.
To fully wrap up a play-off ticket, FC Den Bosch will need Willem II to beat Dirk Kuyt's 10th-placed FC Dordrecht, and, ideally, Almere City FC to beat VVV-Venlo on Friday.
With Vitesse playing a tricky away game at SC Cambuur, FC Den Bosch are given the unlikeliest of lifelines on the final day of the regular season.
'I don't play football to lose'
While losing to ADO Den Haag would play in their favour, FC Den Bosch are vehemently against the idea of losing on purpose.
"I play to win. I’m a top-level athlete, and I always want to win, even against ADO," FC Den Bosch goalkeeper Pepijn van de Merbel told ESPN. "Vitesse have to win their own match first, away at Cambuur. I think that’ll be a tough game."
FC Den Bosch captain Jeffrey Fortes joins Van de Merbel and takes it even further, stating he won't play if the goal is to lose to ADO: "I understand all that, but I think I’m the last person you should be asking this. I don't play football to lose. That’s my approach to life. So the reality is very simple: then you shouldn’t play me. I don’t know how you go into a match knowing: I’m not allowed to win this one," he told ESPN.
The KNVB, the Dutch football association, has made it clear in a statement that it expects teams to play fairly and as expected. "We expect everyone who takes part in a match to want to win that match. Beyond that, we cannot speculate on this situation."
All games in the final round of the Keuken Kampioen Divisie will kick off at 20.00 CET on Friday, April 24th.