If the German Football Association’s sports court had its way, VfL Bochum would travel to the DFB campus in Frankfurt this Thursday with three relevant witnesses: coach Dieter Hecking, goalkeeper Patrick Drewes and winger Felix Passlack should testify at the oral hearing , what exactly happened and what was said in the 92nd minute of the Bundesliga game on December 14th in the Alten Försterei stadium. A lighter from the 1. FC Union fan block hit the Bochum goalkeeper. Drewes sank to the ground and was substituted. After a long interruption, VfL only continued playing under protest, subsequently lodged an objection against the scoring of the 1-1 draw and is now claiming the full three points in court instead of the one point.
But the season continues at the weekend. VfL Bochum, bottom of the table and in acute danger of relegation, is visiting Mainz on Saturday, and 48 hours before such an important game, the coach cannot miss the whole day because of a court date. But the processing of Köpenick’s lighter throw cannot wait any longer; Due to Christmas and the New Year, 25 days have already passed since the incident. So Hecking and the witness Passlack are allowed to stay in Bochum. They will be connected via video when negotiations take place in Frankfurt from 1:30 p.m.
From the Bochum side, Drewes and team doctor Mark Sandfort will appear at the DFB, as will VfL legal counsel Jonas Schlevogt and legal advisor Joachim Rain from the law firm of sports law expert Christoph Schickhardt. Union managing director Horst Heldt and referee Martin Petersen are also expected to testify as witnesses. The latter had restarted the game for three minutes after an interruption of almost half an hour in order not to create facts by abandoning the game.
If they get three points, Bochum would draw level with Holstein Kiel and come closer to Heidenheim
Paragraph 13.2b of the game regulations states: “Objections against the game scoring can be made based on, among other things, the following objective reasons: weakening of one’s own team due to a circumstance that occurred during the game that was unavoidable and not related to the game and an injury sustained during it The DFB court, headed by chairman Stephan Oberholz, must now decide whether this applies to this case. This raises relevant questions, the answers to which will be difficult to verify in Bochum: How hard did the lighter really hit Drewes? What did VfL player Passlack whisper to the goalkeeper behind closed doors before Drewes went down a second time? Was the hit so severe that Drewes had to be led off the pitch by two men? And was his transport to the hospital really necessary? Couldn’t he have perhaps even continued playing?
All of this is likely to come up in the hearing. Drewes had also received criticism for his behavior, with some accusing him of an exaggerated, tactically motivated reaction. The people of Bochum argue: That’s ultimately not what it’s about. The decisive factor is the hit by the lighter. VfL managing director Ilja Kaenzig said: “That can’t be the benchmark as to whether someone is injured, seriously injured, unconscious or something else.”
For German football, the case has a signal effect in one way or another. If the Bochum court is right in order to demonstrate toughness against fans who are willing to throw throws, then on the other hand, chaotic people are given an influence that can hardly be controlled, then in the future flying objects could influence games, results and ultimately table standings and decisions about promotion, relegation and titles at any time. However, if the game is scored 1-1, as Union captain Christoph Trimmel suggested on Thursday (“My feeling says: Leave it as a draw! I am confident that we will keep the point”), then Bochum could argue, not in a sporting way to have had a fair chance of scoring a winning goal in stoppage time. If Bochum were to be awarded three points, this would have a major impact on the bottom of the table. VfL would then be level on points with second-to-last Holstein Kiel (8) and would be only two points behind third-to-last Heidenheim (10). The verdict will be followed with great interest there too.
Chestnuts and chocolate bars: football precedents with projectiles thrown from the stands
October 20, 1971: Inter Milan’s Roberto Boninsegna is hit by a cola can in the national championship round of 16 at Borussia Mönchengladbach and is substituted (28th). Gladbach wins 7:1. The game is replayed in Berlin and ends 0-0. Gladbach is eliminated.
November 27, 1976: Bottles fly onto the field during the Bundesliga game between 1. FC Kaiserslautern and Fortuna Düsseldorf. In the 76th minute, Munich referee Rudolf Frickel stopped the game with Düsseldorf leading 1-0. The game is scored 2-0 for Düsseldorf.
November 19, 1988: During the Bundesliga game between Karlsruher SC and Borussia Mönchengladbach, Gladbach’s Christian Hochstätter is hit by a lighter and substituted (45th). Karlsruhe wins 3:1. The game is replayed and ends 2:2.
September 11, 1993: In the third round cup game between Borussia Mönchengladbach and Karlsruher SC, KSC goalkeeper Oliver Kahn is hit by a chestnut (47th). But he continues playing and later sees red because of an emergency stop (85th). Gladbach wins 5:3 after extra time. Karlsruhe objects. The game will be repeated in Düsseldorf. Gladbach wins 1-0.
May 9, 1994: During the second division game between Bayer Uerdingen and VfL Bochum, Bochum’s goalkeeper Andreas Wessels is hit by a piece of dry ice and is substituted (48th). Uerdingen wins 3:1. The game is repeated. Uerdingen wins 3-0.
February 7, 1998: During the Bundesliga game between Bayer Leverkusen and Werder Bremen, Werder goalkeeper Oliver Reck is hit by a Snickers (61′). But he continued to play and later received a controversial red card for a foul (82′). Leverkusen wins 4:1. Werder doesn’t object.
April 12, 2000: During the Bundesliga game in Freiburg, Bayern’s goalkeeper Oliver Kahn was hit in the temple by a golf ball shortly before the end and was bleeding profusely. But he continues playing and Bayern wins 2-1.
November 24, 2003: During the second division game between Alemannia Aachen and 1. FC Nürnberg, Nuremberg’s coach Wolfgang Wolf is hit by a coin in the 73rd minute and bleeds. Alemannia wins 1-0. The game is replayed in front of empty stands. Aachen wins 3:2.
March 8, 2022: When linesman Christian Gittelmann is hit by a beer cup during the Bundesliga game between VfL Bochum and Borussia Mönchengladbach (69th), referee Benjamin Cortus stops the game. Gladbach leads 2-0. Later, the game on the green table will be scored in exactly the same way.
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