Football coaches and players criticise DBU over promotion block
Friday 3rd July 2026 on 08:15 in
Denmark
Football coaches and players are criticising the Danish Football Association (DBU) after winning teams were denied promotion due to the organisation’s licensing system, reports DR.
Vallensbæk IF’s U14 boys won their league in June, but will not move up to the national division next season. Instead, teams they defeated—all licensed clubs—will take those spots.
“I think it’s really annoying and unfair that it’s like this, now that we’ve won and we have the level for it,” said Villiam Hermansen, a player on Vallensbæk IF’s U14 team.
His coach, Michael Mortensen Heiberg, agreed: “When you win the group, it should lead to promotion. That’s how it would work if we were a senior team. But because we’re a youth team, there are rules that make promotion impossible.”
The DBU’s licensing system awards clubs stars for meeting criteria such as hiring a talent manager or physiotherapist, or providing facilities like a gym. These stars grant access to higher youth leagues, from which non-licensed clubs like Vallensbæk IF are excluded.
Allerød FK has faced the same issue. Last summer, its U14 team won its league, yet six of the 14 players later left to join licensed clubs for higher-level matches.
“The boys are extremely disappointed and probably struggle to understand why,” said Allerød FK coach Stefan Lenskjold Grønbek. “It’s a problem for the local community. Boys lose friends, and volunteer parent coaches disappear. It’s a fellowship that’s being reduced.”
Grønbek acknowledges the system’s intent—to direct talented players to clubs with strong development environments—but argues it forces players into clubs that may not be better, just licensed.
Ole Jacobsen, DBU’s deputy chairman and representative for grassroots football, acknowledges the system can seem unfair but defends it as a way to reward clubs investing heavily in development.
The DBU’s licensing manual is 145 pages long, covering seven main areas. Currently, 44 clubs hold licenses, with FC Nordsjælland, F.C. Copenhagen, and FC Midtjylland at the top.