Jude Bellingham will have to pay €40,000 after hitting out at a German referee following Borussia Dortmund’s controversial 3-2 defeat to Bayern Munich on Saturday
Jude Bellingham has been slapped with a €40,000 fine by German football officials after he blasted referee Felix Zwayer – but avoided a ban.
The England international’s comments came after Borussia Dortmund lost 3-2 to Bayern Munich on Saturday, with Bellingham hinting that Zwayer’s previous match-fixing involvement factored into decisions against his side.
Bayern won the match via a late Robert Lewandowski penalty which was awarded in controversial circumstances.
Mats Hummels handled the ball inside the area in the 75th minute, with Dortmund having a penalty shout waved away and not checked by the referee just minutes earlier.
Manager Marco Rose was sent off for his complaints as the champions went four points clear of his team at the top of the Bundesliga table.
Post-match, Bellingham had told Viaplay: “You give a referee, that has match fixed before, the biggest game in Germany.
“What do you expect?”
“For me, it wasn’t [a penalty]. He [Hummels] is not even looking at the ball and he’s fighting to get it and it hits him.
“You can look at a lot of the decisions in the game.”
Zwayer, who was banned for sixth months in 2005, gave his side of the story by telling Sky Sports Deutschland: “The situation was a standard corner kick.
“I see in the game that it’s about a touch by Hummels. The question for me was: Is the arm stretched away from the body or not?
“In real time, it was not clear whether his arm was moved towards the ball. I checked it with [VAR officials] in Cologne and then the arm position was checked.
“The video assistant made an assessment for himself and said that Hummels had his arm away from the body in an unnatural position.
“In the end, he clearly deflected the ball with his elbow and I came to the decision that is was a penalty.”
The DFB control committee wrote to Bellingham asking him to comment on his statements “as soon as possible.”
Dortmund sporting director Michael Zorc says the club are “100%” behind the 18-year-old, adding to Ruhr News: “It was a very emotional situation, he was very disappointed and only named known facts.”
Chief executive Hans-Joachim Watzke stated: “To be clear, Jude was not spreading lies, but what happened in the past.
“This statement shouldn’t have been, but I don’t see anything untrue there. I don’t expect that to have any consequences for Jude.”
In a statement following confirmation of the fine, Dortmund said: “The sports court of the German Football Federation has not blocked Borussia Dortmund’s young professional Jude Bellingham (18) for his TV statement about referee Felix Zwayer after the Bundesliga match between Borussia Dortmund and FC Bayern Munich last Saturday.
“Bellingham had reminded out of Zwayer’s misconduct immediately after the whistle in the historical context, which had been punished by the DFB several years ago.
“The sports court considered Bellingham’s statement to be “unsportsmanlike behavior” and sentenced the English national player to a fine.
“Borussia Dortmund and the player accepted the verdict, Jude Bellingham is thus entitled to play in the Bundesliga match next Saturday at VfL Bochum.”
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