Felix Zwayer has broken the silence. The German top referee, who is currently on a break until further notice, is putting on Sky Germany for the first time his story about the threatening reactions he received after the much-discussed game between Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich (2-3). Zwayer made some questionable decisions, after which he was publicly insulted by Jude Bellingham. The referee had a hard time with the criticism.
“I received numerous messages on my work email that were incredibly difficult to deal with,” Zwayer reveals. “I was also informed by the Berlin police that there was a death threat against me on the internet. Those are things I couldn’t keep secret from my wife.” Zwayer decided to take a break ‘until further notice’, the German referees’ association said. “He wants to come to his senses mentally and think about the events after the game in Dortmund,” chief referee Lutz Michael Fröhlich added.
Zwayer initially wanted to resume his work, but his wife’s concerns made him decide otherwise. The impact on the family and the family was huge, says the 40-year-old leader. “What happens if you have to whistle an international game three days later, pack your bag and see your wife burst into tears? Not because she misses me because I’m gone, but because she’s worried about me and maybe her own.” safety at home.”
The riot around Zwayer started with Bellingham’s remarks after the famous match. The midfielder was furious about a penalty kick given by the arbiter. “What else do you expect, when you give Germany’s biggest match to someone who previously did match fixing?” Bellingham reacted in front of the camera of Viaplay. The Englishman was referring to a 2005 match fixing case in which Zwayer was involved. As an assistant referee, he reportedly took 300 euros in bribes, but quickly reported this to the German Football Association. Zwayer was subsequently suspended for six months.
However, the arbitrator denies that he ever took money from anyone. “I was never offered any money,” Zwayer claims. “I was never told about deliberate match fixing. I never received money from Robert (Hoyzer, the first arbitrator at the time, ed.).” Zwayer whistled his last game for the time being on December 9 of last calendar year. Real Sociedad then defeated PSV at home 3-0 in the Europa League.
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