Football referee placed under judicial protection after being threatened during Dortmund match

Europe 1 with AFP / Photo credit: FEDERICO GAMBARINI / DPA / dpa Picture-Alliance via AFP 21:45 p.m., April 30, 2023

The German referee who admitted to having made a mistake during the draw (1-1) of Borussia Dortmund in Bochum Friday in the opening of the 30th day of the German football championship filed a complaint after receiving threats against him and his family. German media say Sascha Stegemann has been placed under judicial protection.

A guest on Sunday on the television show Doppelpass, Stegemann explained that he had no choice but to file a complaint. The referee had acknowledged the day before, after viewing the images of the match, to have made a bad decision by not whistling a penalty in favor of Borussia Dortmund, which lost its place as leader of the Bundesliga to Bayern Munich, winner Sunday of Hertha Berlin (2-0).

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"I understand"

"I fully understand the emotions surrounding what happened on Friday night. But my family and I received very specific threats and after seeing them, I filed a criminal complaint," he said. Stegemann added that he was wondering about whether to "take a break" and get away from the pitches for a while. In a statement on Saturday, the German federation said TV footage showed Stegemann should have awarded a penalty to Borussia after a foul on striker Karim Adeyemi in the Bochum penalty area.

Stegemann, in an interview with the Bild daily on Saturday, admitted his mistake and regretted that the video referee handling VAR had not suggested that he go and see the footage. BVB, who were one point ahead of Bayern at the start of matchday 30, are now second, two points behind the Munich club. There are four days left before the end of the season. Dortmund president Hans-Joachim Watzke stressed on Sunday that "threats and animosity will not be tolerated."