If you do everything right, nobody talks about you. But alas, they make a mistake. Then football Germany discussed for days about the referees of the Bundesliga. What does this criticism do to you? What is your everyday life like? And: What and how do you talk to the players during a game in front of 80,000 fans?
Answers to these questions are given in the new five-part documentary “Impartial – Germany’s elite referee”, which can be seen in the ARD media center from August 11 (five episodes of 25 to 33 minutes each). One of the main actors is Deniz Aytekin. 45 years old, entrepreneur from Oberasbach near Nuremberg.
The camera accompanies him in the opening game of last season between Frankfurt and Bayern (1: 6). She is present in the referee’s cabin before kick-off, at half-time and after the final whistle. And also during the game: The viewer hears how Aytekin talks to his assistants and the pros.
In the direction of his men on the line, he says shortly after the start: “Now join in, boys! All boot up. Express opinion. Are you all there now?” Shortly afterwards he pamped Bayern national player Jamal Musiala (20): “That’s far too little. He touches you above, but that’s not a penalty! Continue to play! You don’t have to.”
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And in the direction of Thomas Müller (33) he says when he is standing next to him: “Kiss my ass, ey! That’s brutal. Musiala takes 70 meters off me with a ball in a 100-meter sprint. This is unbeliveable. That makes you feel stupid.” Shortly before the break, Bayern ended the first half 5-0, he moaned in his assistant’s ear at Munich’s superiority: “Dude, Bayern won’t stop. That is sick.”
“Refereeing is a sport in its own right”
But the documentary also shows how the referees prepare for the season, which tests they have to complete in order to be allowed to referee in the Bundesliga. The DFB rule expert Lutz Wagner (60) said in a lecture to the referees: “We can only get ahead with honesty. Only if we clearly state mistakes to the public – even if it hurts.” And referee Patrick Ittrich (44) states: “Refereeing is a sport in its own right.”
A team of women also accompany the cameras. During the Wolfsburg game against Bayern (2-1), you can hear assistant Daniela Göttlinger (31) calling out to her colleague Silke Fritz (33), who raised the flag, after an offside goal by Alexandra Popp (32): “And Silke brings the stadium to boo.” Answer Fritz: “So cool! Hopefully there won’t be a beer mug.”
“Were you also in the tanning salon?” Sonny Kittel and referee Sven Jablonski
Source: picture alliance/Eibner-Pressefoto/Marcel von Fehrn
They almost fly in Hamburger SV’s second division derby against FC St. Pauli (4:3). In focus: Sven Jablonski (33), a Bremen resident, who leads the Hamburg city duel. On the way to the stadium, he reveals that he always goes to the hairdresser and tanning salon before the game. He also lets HSV star Sonny Kittel (30) know, asks him between a foul and a free kick: “Were you also in the tanning salon?” Or he folds the St. Pauli professional Eric Smith (26), a Swede, together : “You don’t understand the rules! If you ask for yellow, you get yellow. You can also have it in English if you want.”
The viewer also hears the referee communicating with the video assistant (VAR) in the Cologne basement. What commands are there? How the referee buys time on the field so that the VAR can view the TV images.
Two police officers in Sascha Stegemann’s house
The threats against Sascha Stegemann (38) as a result of a penalty not given in the game Bochum against Dortmund (1: 1) are also a topic in the documentary. As a result, he was placed under police protection. The referee says: “The doorbell rang. Two police officers, we were just having dinner. The kids at home. When the police were standing in our living room, the first reaction was: ‘Dad, are they taking you away because you were in trouble at work?’ Those are the moments when you wonder if it’s worth it all.”
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And then there is Daniel Siebert (39), geography teacher from Berlin. He was Germany’s only referee at the World Cup in Qatar and officiated the cup final between Leipzig and Frankfurt (2-0). When DFB referee chief Lutz Michael Fröhlich (65) informed him on the phone, he was on “baby watch”, as he calls it. Siebert’s reaction to the home game in his home town: “Nice! Thank you very much. Awesome thing. I am happy that the moment is now.”
During the game in the Olympic Stadium, the spectator hears Siebert singing the national anthem. As he rebukes Willi Orban (30) and Randal Kolo Muani (24) after they wrestle a bit: “I don’t like it at all! Leave yourselves alone. Willi, stop that shit!” Shortly before the end, he takes on Leipzig again when he wants to play for time: “If you do that again, I have to give a yellow card. Stop that shit! Be a man!”
This entertaining documentary shows what a strenuous job the referees have. Week after week. How they have to make decisions within fractions of a second. Whether on the field or in the video cellar. Unfortunately, in most cases it doesn’t show what players and coaches say. And too often the DFB officials blame the media for criticism after wrong decisions.
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