Bundesliga referee Sascha Stegemann says he was under police protection for four weeks after making a serious mistake. The referee had previously denied Borussia Dortmund a legitimate penalty in their match against VfL Bochum at the end of April 2023. The 1-1 draw meant that BVB lost two points in the duel with FC Bayern, who then went on to win the German football championship on the last matchday.
FIFA referee Stegemann had already apologized for his mistake the following day and later made death threats against him public. As the “General-Anzeiger” reports, the 39-year-old from Niederkassel now described further details of the hours and days after the match to other referees at the Cologne Sports University.
“Oh my God, they’re tearing you apart.”
In the dressing room, he found a message from his wife on his cell phone. She wrote to him: “Oh my God, they’re tearing you apart.” Stegemann was sure of his decision on the pitch; the video assistant had not asked him to check. He only began to have doubts after the final whistle due to the reactions of the Dortmund players.
He realized that he had possibly influenced the German championship with a single decision. The referee from the Rhineland said he could not remember the first 30 kilometers of the return journey at all. He had canceled the trip he had promised his son the following day in order to give interviews and take responsibility for his mistake.
Suddenly police officers at the front door
According to the report, Stegemann said that in the evening two police officers rang his doorbell and reported specific death threats against him and his family. He was then accompanied to a television appearance in Munich the following day and protected for four weeks.
His wife encouraged him to stay as a referee. Perhaps he lost some of his passion after refereeing the DFB Cup final between Freiburg and Leipzig in 2022, he admitted. “Maybe I felt invulnerable. But you have to be humble. You make most mistakes when you’re successful.”
© dpa-infocom, dpa:240904-930-222475/1
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