Do we like them?

Do we like Arjen Robben?

Our score: 7 out of 10. No harmful words or acts turned up, and the one recent blemish is a contested youth-match clash that his club says is closed.

Robben is the Dutch winger who made his name at the top of European football, and GB News still bills him as a Chelsea legend. These days he is in the news for coaching kids, not for goals. Most of what the web has on him lately is one touchline row.

The row: GB News reported in April 2026 that Robben was filmed shoving presenter Wilfred Genee at a Groningen youth game, and shouting at the referee. Genee made allegations about it, and Groningen said Robben did not mistreat the referee. The club said the referee confirmed that and that it considers the matter closed.

It didn't die there. On the Dutch show Vandaag Inside in late May 2026, Johan Derksen said Robben's conduct looked like a pattern, saying “Apparently it's structural.” Genee said he was surprised by the footage. Those are the panellists' views, and Robben's own response wasn't in anything we could open.

On the harm check, we searched for anything he has said or done about LGBTQ+ people, women, migrants, vaccines or the climate and found nothing. We couldn't find any harmful company he keeps either. That is a gap in the record, not a glowing reference, so it's a pass on thin evidence.

On the good stuff, we found little we could verify. There are mentions of charity match-shirt donations and a community role at Groningen, but we couldn't open a solid source for either, so we're not counting them. Coaching a youth team is a nice thing to do, which makes the sideline behaviour all the more awkward.

So: no red flags on people or the planet, one contested clash with a TV presenter, and a club that backs him. We'd support him with a raised eyebrow. If more footage or reporting turns up, this one could move.