Felix Zwayer, referee with past links to match-fixing, to officiate Europa League final
German referee Felix Zwayer has been selected to officiate the Europa League final between Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United on May 21.
Zwayer, 43, was given a six-month ban by his country's football federation (DFB) for his involvement in a match-fixing scandal in 2005.
Zwayer was one of the officials who brought German second division referee Robert Hoyzer's match-fixing plot to light and Hoyzer was banned for life. Zwayer has always denied being in on Hoyzer's fix of Wuppertal's game with Werder Bremen II and a DFB investigation found no evidence that he had made decisions to alter the outcome of the game.
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He was discovered to have accepted a €300 payment from Hoyzer, however, and was suspended for failing to refuse the offer and then for failing to properly report it.
England midfielder Jude Bellingham received a €40,000 for his comments about Zwayer in 2021 as he criticised the referee's decisions after his Borussia Dortmund side's 3-2 defeat against Bayern Munich.
'You give a referee, that has match fixed before, the biggest game in Germany. What do you expect?' Bellingham told ViaPlay after the match.
Zwayer has been a FIFA referee since 2012. He works primarily in the Bundesliga and is also regularly used for UEFA matches. He officiated the UEFA Nations League final between Spain and Italy in 2023 and the Euro 2024 semi-final between England and the Netherlands.
May's final will be the second Europa League game Zwayer has refereed this season after the round of 16 second leg between Olympiacos and Bodo/Glimt.
The most recent European match Zwayer took charge of was Paris-Saint Germain's 2-1 victory over Arsenal in the Champions League semi-final second leg on Wednesday.
The Europa League final is being held at Athletic Club's San Mames Stadium in Bilbao, Spain. Tottenham, 17th in the Premier League, overcame Glimt 5-1 aggregate in the semi-finals while United, 16th, denied Athletic the chance to play the final on home soil with a 7-1 aggregate win.
UEFA has also confirmed the appointment of Romanian official Istvan Kovacs as referee for the men's Champions League final between Inter and Paris Saint-Germain, while Croatian Ivana Martincic will take charge of the women's final between Barcelona and Arsenal.
Kovacs, 40, oversaw the 2024 European Championship group stage fixture between the Czech Republic and Turkey, branded the dirtiest game in the history of the competition, with Kovacs showing a record 18 cards — 16 yellows and two reds.
This season's Champions League final in Munich will mark his third UEFA club competition final, after refereeing the 2024 Europa League showpiece and 2022 Conference League final.
Martincic, 39, was fourth official for last season's Women's Champions League final between Barcelona and Lyon, and has been selected to officiate at Euro 2025 this summer.
Irfan Peljto will referee the Conference League final between Chelsea and Real Betis, marking the official from Bosnia and Herzegovina's first UEFA club competition final.
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