Soccer betting scandal 2005

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As a football betting scandal are manipulation of football matches which have in the course of the investigation against the German football referee Robert Hoyzer was announced in January of 2005.

The soccer betting scandal in 2005 is considered to be the biggest affair in German soccer since the Bundesliga scandal in the 1970/71 season, when numerous players, coaches and officials were involved in postponing matches.

Overview

Hoyzer admitted to having postponed games in the 2nd Bundesliga , DFB Cup and Regional Football League so that the desired results (which were previously bet on) came out. Games from the Bundesliga were not affected. In addition, Hoyzer accused other referees and players of being involved in the scandal.

The second division referee Dominik Marks received a pre- suspension . The DFB saw it as proven that Marks manipulated two games from the Regionalliga and the 2nd Bundesliga. Hoyzer had incriminated Marks during his interrogations. According to Hoyzer, Marks postponed the games and received 6,000 euros from Croatian clients. The regional league game Hertha BSC Amateure against Arminia Bielefeld Amateure, led by Marks, was repeated (see below).

The confessed Hoyzer, who temporarily because of absconding remand was sitting, was sentenced to a prison term of two years and five months without parole on 17 November 2005 by the District Court of Berlin. Since he is said to have carried out the bets together with three Croatian accomplices, he was accused of gang and commercial fraud .

history

Exposure of the scandal

The four referees Lutz Michael Fröhlich , Olaf Blumenstein , Manuel Gräfe and Felix Zwayer spoke to the leaders of the DFB at the beginning of January 2005 about suspicions against Robert Hoyzer.

After the allegations became known, Robert Hoyzer resigned from his office as a referee. Robert Hoyzer's lawyer Stephan Holthoff-Pförtner criticized the investigation methods of the DFB and challenged Robert Hoyzer's declaration of resignation at the DFB. He stated that his client has not yet effectively left the Hertha BSC club and will not do so either. Robert Hoyzer wants to continue working as an arbitrator.

Hoyzer had been on the DFB referee list since the beginning of the 2002/2003 season and until his resignation he headed twelve games in the 2nd Bundesliga, as well as matches in the DFB Cup and the Regional League (see list below) .

Immediately after the confession, newspapers reported that Hoyzer had regular contact with the Croatian mafia . DFB press chief Harald Stenger confirmed that there were indications that there were connections to a Croatian betting mafia in Berlin. The suspicion was in the room that organized crime was behind it. Several games were systematically manipulated. After Hoyzer had made a detailed confession, four objects in Berlin were searched on January 28, 2005 and three suspects were provisionally arrested. Investigators of the police searched u. a. the Café King in Berlin-Charlottenburg . The Berlin public prosecutor's office was investigating fraud and corruption . Three of the provisionally arrested were in custody taken.

Former FIFA football referee Hellmut Krug , head of the DFB referee department, criticized the association's control system because the DFB had known for some time that Robert Hoyzer had made dubious decisions. In the DFB Cup game between Paderborn and Hamburg, not even a referee observer was in the stadium. “The first round in the cup is never filled. Only in the Bundesliga are there observers who prepare written reports for every game, ”said Krug.

The suspicion of fraud against three Hertha BSC players from the Bundesliga could not be substantiated. Milan S. arrested on January 29, 2005 and his brother Philip S. had incriminated the players Alexander Madlung , Nando Rafael and Josip Šimunić . They would be the guests of the run by Milan S. sports betting Café King belongs. The cup game between Hertha BSC and the then regional league club Eintracht Braunschweig on September 22, 2004 moved into the center of attention, as Rafael, Šimunić and Madlung came into play in the second round game in Braunschweig and the Berliners surprisingly lost 3-2. The decisive goal for Braunschweig came from an own goal in the 80th minute - by Madlung, who had been substituted on four minutes earlier. However, Hertha BSC took its three players under protection.

Consequences for Hoyzer

Despite the first statements of innocence, Hoyzer surprisingly made a confession on January 27, 2005: The allegations were essentially correct. However, since his membership at Hertha BSC had not yet been terminated, he was still subject to criminal penalties by the DFB. The DFB control committee applied to the sports court to impose an immediate pre-suspension against Robert Hoyzer. Hoyzer joined the Essen club Sportfreunde Steele 09 and announced that he wanted to face the judgment of the DFB sports court. At the same time it became known that the DFB was considering waiving the originally requested fine of 50,000 euros because of Hoyzer's willingness to cooperate.

Robert Hoyzer was banned for life by the DFB on April 28, 2005. He is not allowed to act as referee, coach, player or youth supervisor at the DFB. Hoyzer accepted the association's internal judgment, which became final. The criminal conviction for aiding and abetting gang fraud to a prison sentence of 2 years and 5 months without parole was made by the Berlin Regional Court. The judgment has been final since the Federal Court of Justice rejected the appeal on December 15, 2006, so that Hoyzer finally had to begin his prison sentence on May 18, 2007.

Consequences for other referees

Torsten Koop was banned for three months because he was late in reporting an attempt to recruit Robert Hoyzer to the DFB.

Felix Zwayer was banned for six months because he did not report the match manipulation by Hoyzer known to him and had accepted 300 euros from Hoyzer before a game between Wuppertaler SV and Werder Bremen's second team in order to work as an assistant referee in critical situations for Wuppertaler SV to avoid.

Compensation and reruns

The suspicion of manipulation initially concerned the cup game of the first round on August 21, 2004 between SC Paderborn 07 and Hamburger SV , which surprisingly ended 4-2 after two very controversial penalties and a controversial expulsion from HSV would have. The then coach of Hamburger SV Klaus Toppmöller lost his coaching job almost two months after the defeat and in a later interview made the lost game against Paderborn partly responsible for it. The club had subsequently lodged a protest against the rating of this game and the red card imposed by Hoyzer against Emile Mpenza . On February 11, 2005, the DFB Sports Committee decided that there could be no replay, as two more rounds in the DFB Cup had already been played. As compensation, Hamburger SV was awarded 500,000 euros and the income of around 1.5 million euros from an international match for the German national team that was played in the Hamburg Volksparkstadion . The suspension of HSV striker Mpenza after his red card in the corresponding game was canceled because the referee insulted Hoyzer's manipulation.

The game from the second division between LR Ahlen and Wacker Burghausen , which Hoyzer had directed and postponed, was played again. For the first time in the history of German football, the sports court of the DFB started repeating a game against a criminal background by allowing Burghausen's objection.

Effects

Reactions from the association

The DFB control committee responded to the problem with sports betting with an extensive catalog of measures:

  • In the beginning, it was even planned to appoint the referees two days (previously four days) before the date of a match , as is customary with UEFA games. However, this new regulation was later rejected for reasons of practicality.
  • Referees who are newly promoted to the second division are observed during their games in the regional league for three years .
  • The games in the DFB-Pokal, which have not been observed so far, will in future be manned by a referee observer. This fourth official should be a seasoned first division referee who, if necessary, can step in at short notice as the game director.
  • Two referee teams should be able to be swapped on the day of the match.
  • The video evidence is to be introduced comprehensively.
  • Everyone involved in the event should be subject to a betting ban and the “ Betradar ” early warning system should take effect immediately.

Other points, including the question of whether the DFL should be responsible for appointing referees, should be worked out in detail by experts. On February 13, 2005, the executive committee of the DFB constituted a committee for the problem of match fixing. The commission included the then President Zwanziger , League President Hackmann, Treasurer Schmidhuber and Secretary General Schmidt.

According to its President Werner Hackmann, the DFL considered the use of professional referees conceivable in the future because of the referee scandal. The former chairman of the board of the Bundesliga club Hamburger SV said that if full-time referees earn more money, the inhibition threshold for manipulation attempts would rise. According to Hackmann, the DFB also considered expanding referee observation to include the regional soccer league after some matches from the third division led by Hoyzer had fallen into twilight. Franz Beckenbauer spoke out against professional referees, because the semi-profit, as it exists in Germany, is very good. In the case of professional referees, the performance is no better, because the training at the DFB is excellent, claimed Beckenbauer.

The German Football Association filed a complaint with the Berlin public prosecutor. It should be clarified which people had placed high bets on Hoyzer's games and whether there were connections to referees.

The DFB took the Berlin referees Lutz Michael Fröhlich and Manuel Gräfe out of responsibility for the first Bundesliga matchday after Hoyzer's admission . The two were among the witnesses who informed the Referees Committee of the Hoyzer fraud. For they were Franz-Xaver Wack and Thorsten Kinhöfer used. The DFB said that the duty of care requires Gräfe and Fröhlich to pause for safety reasons. All nine football referees on the 19th matchday were completely rescheduled one day before the matches.

At the DFB Bundestag on April 28, 2005, a number of points were passed in response to the betting scandal: All 256 delegates unanimously decided to ban football players, football officials and football referees . The ban will be incorporated into the employment contracts of football players and referees, as well as into the release guidelines signed by the national team players. Furthermore, the legal and procedural rules were changed, so that after June 30, 2005 no more requests to repeat the game are possible due to the betting scandal. The DFB intended to offer its own sports betting from the 2006/07 soccer season.

Damage to image before the World Cup

Since German football was in the center of the global public before the 2006 World Cup , it was feared that the scandal could have had far-reaching consequences for the image of the largest football association in the world. Organizing Committee President Franz Beckenbauer feared that the scandal would damage the image of the 2006 World Cup.

The federal government , on the other hand, did not see Germany's reputation at risk. On January 28, 2005, the then vice-government spokesman Thomas Steg welcomed the efforts for a “relentless and consistent investigation”. The Ministry of the Interior , which is responsible for sports, also warned of general suspicion and excessive mistrust. At the moment there is a case that should not be overrated in view of hundreds of games over a weekend. A black sheep should not generally discredit football. In addition, the matter shows that the self-regulatory powers of the sport functioned excellently and allegations of this kind are being seriously investigated.

The Federal Minister of the Interior at the time, Otto Schily , called for the allegations to be clarified quickly and completely after the allegations of manipulation. So far, German referees have had an excellent international reputation. They shouldn't put that at risk. The former federal minister warned: "All referees of the football leagues must support the DFB and the public prosecutor's office to clarify the suspected cases quickly." However, he is convinced that the vast majority of referees work honestly and highly professional. A general suspicion against everyone is unfair.

International response

Just before the 2006 World Cup, the host Germany and German football were exposed to worldwide public media interest.

The New York Times wrote on January 27, 2005: "One year before the World Cup in Germany, the country is stumbling into the biggest soccer scandal in more than 30 years."

The reaction of the Italian sports newspaper La Gazzetta dello Sport was similar : “The confession of a referee casts a huge shadow over German football - and that one year before the World Cup. Bundesliga and FIFA are shocked. "

The Spanish sports magazine AS wrote: “A scandal is shaking Germany. Who would have thought that possible in the country of the next World Cup? Hoyzer admits everything and stands in front of the prison door. "

In the Netherlands, the Algemeen Dagblad wrote : “Hoyzer's confession shakes Germany. It is to be feared that it was only the tip of the iceberg. "

The English newspaper The Independent : "Germany has been caught in the biggest soccer scandal for more than 30 years."

On the whole, however, the international press treated the events rather marginally.

Legal consequences

On suspicion of fraud , the Braunschweig public prosecutor responsible for Hoyzer's place of residence, Salzgitter , had initially started investigations, but handed the case to Berlin a little later because the possibly manipulated soccer games had taken place before Hoyzer's move from Berlin to Salzgitter. In Berlin, the DFB also filed its own criminal complaint. Since the jurisdiction was not immediately clarified, important time may have been lost to secure evidence, has been criticized.

On May 27, 2005, Hoyzer was sentenced by default in a civil lawsuit before the Salzgitter District Court to replace betting income. After his objection , the process was continued. On October 18, 2005, the criminal proceedings against the former arbitrator and five co-defendants for fraud and other offenses began before the Berlin Regional Court . The proceedings against another 19 suspects had previously been separated because investigations were still ongoing.

On November 17, 2005, Hoyzer was sentenced to a prison term of two years and five months in six cases before the Berlin Regional Court for aiding and abetting fraud. The 5th Criminal Senate of the Federal Court of Justice dismissed his appeal on December 15, 2006 because placing bets on manipulated football matches represented a deception. The responsible federal prosecutor, Chief Public Prosecutor Hartmut Schneider, saw it differently at the hearing and therefore requested acquittals .

The revision of the Croatian mastermind of the betting scandal, Ante Sapina , who received a prison sentence of two years and eleven months for fraud in ten cases, was also rejected. Former referee Dominik Marks , who was co-accused , received one year and six months probation. Milan S. who was involved received one year and four months in prison, his brother Filip S. one year in prison.

Referee Jürgen Jansen , who was initially also suspected of match manipulation and who the DFB suspended on February 2, 2005, was rehabilitated. The public prosecutor closed its investigation on July 29, 2005; At the beginning of 2006, the DFB paid compensation of around 30,000 euros for the lost Bundesliga games. Jansen led his last game in the Bundesliga on December 11, 2004 (Mainz 05 against 1. FC Nürnberg). Because he did not pass the mandatory fitness test for the Bundesliga, Jansen, who operates as an independent financial advisor, whistles in the district league today.

Affected Games

List of games run by Hoyzer

The game marked in bold was repeated because actual influence and manipulation by Robert Hoyzer was found. The other games were dealt with before the DFB sports court, but were not repeated for various reasons.

2004/2005 season

  • DFB Cup
    August 21, 2004: SC Paderborn 07 - Hamburger SV 4: 2 (The game was not repeated because several rounds had already been played in the DFB Cup. However, HSV received compensation of 500,000 euros and was allowed to play an international match in Hamburg worth approx EUR 1.5 million. HSV striker Emile Mpenza was pardoned by the DFB for being sent off for insulting the referee, as the "reason for the insult" had been the obvious manipulation of Hoyzer.)
    September 21, 2004: 1. FC Nürnberg - LR Ahlen 2: 3 n. V. (manipulation could not be determined. There was no repetition of the game.)
  • 2nd Bundesliga
    August 27, 2004: Rot-Weiss Essen - Rot-Weiss Erfurt 0-0 (manipulation could not be determined. There was no repetition of the game.)
    September 26, 2004: MSV Duisburg - SpVgg Greuther Fürth 1-0 (SpVgg Greuther Fürth had lodged an objection against the valuation of the game. The DFB decided not to repeat the game, as the manipulation agreement could be confirmed, but no actual influence on the game was established.)
    October 22, 2004: LR Ahlen - Wacker Burghausen 1-0 (The game was repeated in the current 2004/05 season on April 27, 2005, because Hoyzer had admitted the manipulation and had given a questionable penalty to Ahlen. Due to the renewed sporting There is no possibility of compensation for damages. The replay ended 1: 3.)
    November 28, 2004: SpVgg Unterhaching - 1. FC Saarbrücken 1: 3 (The manipulation attempt in favor of SpVgg Unterhaching failed. A questionable penalty for a possible 2: 2 equalization was missed. Therefore, the game will not be repeated, according to the DFB Sports Committee.)
  • Regionalliga North
    August 11, 2004: VfL Wolfsburg Amateure - Fortuna Düsseldorf 1: 1 (manipulation could not be determined. There was no repetition of the game.)
    August 14, 2004: FC St. Pauli - VfL Osnabrück 2: 3 (Specific facts about a manipulation agreement were not presented in the game directed by Robert Hoyzer, so there was no repetition.)
    November 6, 2004: KFC Uerdingen 05 - VfL Osnabrück 1: 4 (manipulation could not be determined. There was no repetition of the game.)

2003/2004 season

  • Regionalliga North
    May 30, 2004: Wuppertaler SV - Werder Bremen Amateurs 1-0 (Bremen had not lodged a protest against the game standings despite the allegations of manipulation, as the game was played in the previous season and the result did not have a decisive influence on the final ranking of the team.)
    June 5, 2004: Eintracht Braunschweig - FC St. Pauli 3: 2 (Since this game also took place in the previous season, there was no repetition.)

List of games run by Marks

The game marked in bold was repeated because it was determined that Dominik Marks had actually influenced and manipulated the game . The rest of the game was dealt with before the DFB sports court.

2004/2005 season

  • Regionalliga North
    August 13, 2004: Hertha BSC Amateurs - Arminia Bielefeld Amateurs 2: 1 (According to the DFB Sports Court, referee Dominik Marks had manipulated the match. Hoyzer had incriminated Marks during his interrogations. According to Hoyzer, he had pushed the game and paid 6,000 euros Croatian clients. Based on the statements by Hoyzer, Marks was given a pre-suspension by the DFB on February 15th. The game was repeated on April 12th, 2005 and ended 6-0.)
  • 2nd Bundesliga
    December 3, 2004: Karlsruher SC - MSV Duisburg 0: 3 (According to Hoyzer, Marks had received 30,000 euros for the manipulation of the second division game. The KSC had appealed against the game evaluation. Since an actual influence on the game could not be proven [despite the manipulation agreement], the game was not repeated.)

literature

  • Bernd J. Hartmann, Holger Niehaus: On the criminal classification of betting manipulation in football In: Juristische Arbeitsblätter 2006, p. 432 ff.
  • Jan Schlösser: The Bundesliga betting scandal - aspects of a criminal law assessment In: Neue Zeitschrift für Strafrecht , 2005, p. 423 ff.
  • Sven Geisler, Volker Oppitz: Innocent! In the whirlpool of the soccer betting scandal . Edition Sächsische Zeitung 2005, ISBN 3-938325-20-8
  • Maurício Ferrão Pereira Borges: Association jurisdiction and arbitration in international professional football. Taking into account the internal FIFA case law in relation to the “lex sportiva” . Peter Lang Verlag, Frankfurt am Main a. a. 2009, ISBN 978-3-631-59015-7 , p. 24 ff.

Web links

 Wikinews: Football Betting Scandal  - In The News

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ DFB sports court blocks referee co-op for three months. German Football Association , April 29, 2005, accessed on January 27, 2020 .
  2. ↑ Oliver Fritsch: The Zwayer files. In: The time . December 9, 2014, accessed December 9, 2014 .
  3. ↑ Hoyzer destroyed Toppmöller's career. In: The world . January 22, 2010, accessed September 27, 2015 .
  4. ↑ a b It was the encounter with the People's Republic of China on October 12, 2005, which was won 1-0.
  5. ↑ juris.bundesgerichtshof.de
  6. ↑ DFB welcomes prison sentence for Hoyzer. December 10, 2008, accessed March 11, 2012 .