 Zwayer in 2012 | |||
| Born | 19 May 1981 Berlin, Germany | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Other occupation | Real estate broker | ||
| Domestic | |||
| Years | League | Role | |
| 2004– | DFB | Referee | |
| 2007– | 2. Bundesliga | Referee | |
| 2009– | Bundesliga | Referee | |
| International | |||
| Years | League | Role | |
| 2012– | FIFA listed | Referee | |
Felix Zwayer (born 19 May 1981) is a German football referee who is based in Berlin. He referees for SC Charlottenburg of the Berlin Football Association. He is a FIFA referee, and is ranked as a UEFA elite category referee.
Zwayer began officiating on the DFB level in 2004. In 2007, he was promoted to officiate in the 2. Bundesliga, as well as an assistant referee in the Bundesliga. Two years later, Zwayer was promoted to officiate in the Bundesliga for the 2009–10 season. [1]
In 2005, Zwayer was involved in the match fixing scandal which centered around 2. Bundesliga referee Robert Hoyzer, who took bribes to fix several matches which he officiated. Zwayer assisted him in a match and accepted a bribe of 300 euros to avoid critical scenes for Wuppertaler SV. In January 2005, he and three other high-ranking referees informed the DFB about Hoyzer's match fixing. He was subsequently banned from refereeing for 6 months, a suspension that was kept secret for several years until the German newspaper Die Zeit published a secret file from the German FA. [2]
On 21 February 2016, Bayer Leverkusen manager Roger Schmidt was sent off by Zwayer in a match against Borussia Dortmund after disputing a free kick that led to a goal for Dortmund, the only goal of the game. Schmidt initially refused to leave, causing the referee to suspend the game and lead the players off the field, causing an eight-minute delay, before the game resumed without Schmidt on the field. [3]
On 30 April 2018, Zwayer was selected by FIFA as one of the video assistant referees for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia, the first FIFA World Cup to use the technology. [4]
In December 2021, Zwayer officiated a game between Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund in which he was heavily criticised for not giving Dortmund a penalty and sending off coach Marco Rose. After the game, Dortmund's Jude Bellingham made reference to the Zwayer affair, saying: "You give a referee that has match fixed before the biggest game in Germany, what do you expect?" [5]
After the controversy, Zwayer took a break from refereeing. He returned in February 2022 in a 2. Bundesliga game between Hannover 96 and SV Darmstadt, once more receiving criticism for a decision not to give a penalty. His comeback also brought further coverage of his participation in the 2005 match fixing scandal. [6]
He refereed the 2023 UEFA Nations League Final between Croatia and Spain on 18 June 2023. [7]
Zwayer is a real estate broker and lives in Berlin.
In early 2005, German football was overshadowed by the discovery of a €2 million match fixing scandal centered on second division referee Robert Hoyzer, who confessed to fixing and betting on matches in the 2. Bundesliga, the DFB-Pokal, and the then third division Regionalliga. The scandal has been described as the largest controversy in German football since the Bundesliga scandal of the early 1970s, as numerous players, coaches and officials have been accused of involvement with an organised crime group in the scheme, which came on the eve of Germany playing host to the 2006 World Cup.
Josef "Jupp" Heynckes is a German retired professional footballer and manager. The majority of his player career was as a striker for Borussia Mönchengladbach in its golden era of the 1960s and '70s, when they won many national championships and the DFB-Pokal, as well as the UEFA Cup. During this period the team played in its only European Cup final in 1977, losing to Liverpool. He is the fourth-highest goalscorer in the history of the Bundesliga, with 220 goals. He was a member of the West Germany national team that won the UEFA Euro 1972 and the 1974 FIFA World Cup titles.
Heiko Herrlich is a German football manager and former player who played as a striker.
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The 2010–11 season is the 101st season of competitive football in Germany.
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The 2012–13 Bundesliga was the 50th season of the Bundesliga, Germany's premier football league. The season began on 24 August 2012 with the season opening match at Westfalenstadion involving defending champions Borussia Dortmund and SV Werder Bremen and ended with the last games on 18 May 2013, with a winter break between the weekends around 15 December 2012 and 19 January 2013. Bayern Munich managed to secure the championship of the 2012–13 season after only 28 match days, beating their previous record by two matches.
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The 2018–19 Bayer 04 Leverkusen season was the 115th season in the football club's history and 40th consecutive and overall season in the top flight of German football, the Bundesliga, having been promoted from the 2. Bundesliga Nord in 1979. In addition to the domestic league, Bayer Leverkusen also participated in this season's editions of the domestic cup, the DFB-Pokal, and the second-tier continental cup, the UEFA Europa League. This was the 61st season for Leverkusen in the BayArena, located in Leverkusen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The season covers a period from 1 July 2018 to 30 June 2019.
Nico Cedric Schlotterbeck is a German professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Bundesliga club Borussia Dortmund and the Germany national team.
Jude Victor William Bellingham is an English professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for La Liga club Real Madrid and the England national team. In 2023, he won both major awards for male footballers aged under 21: the Golden Boy, for nominees playing in Europe over the last calendar year, and the Kopa Trophy, for the world's best over the previous season.
Florian Richard Wirtz is a German professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or left winger for Bundesliga club Bayer Leverkusen and the Germany national team. He is regarded as one of the best young players in the world.
The 2021–22 Bundesliga was the 59th season of the Bundesliga, Germany's premier football competition. It began on 13 August 2021 and concluded on 14 May 2022. The fixtures were announced on 25 June 2021.
