An the weekend before the Christmas break, the German referees had to endure more than usual. Hertha coach Stefan Leitl even doubted whether the game manager knew the rules (“I don’t know if he knows them”). The criticism from national player David Raum in Leipzig was similarly blatant: “The game was too big for the referee.” Or the rant at FC Augsburg: “Absolute joke”, “insolence”, “I wonder what they saw again…”.
Aiko Tanaka
Aiko Tanaka is a combat sports journalist and general sports reporter at Archysport. A former competitive judoka who represented Japan at the Asian Games, Aiko brings firsthand athletic experience to her coverage of judo, martial arts, and Olympic sports. Beyond combat sports, Aiko covers breaking sports news, major international events, and the stories that cut across disciplines — from doping scandals to governance issues to the business side of global sport. She is passionate about elevating the profile of underrepresented sports and athletes.
