Hertha fan threatens to kill referee Ittrich
After viewing the video footage, referee Ittrich corrects his decision on Saturday and shows Hertha striker Niederlechner a red card. This infuriated one fan so much that he sent the referee a death threat, for which he has since apologized.
Referee Patrick Ittrich received a death threat after the match between Hertha BSC and VfL Osnabrück (0:0) in the 2nd Bundesliga. "It's unbelievable to read the disgusting DMs (editor's note: private messages) on my account after the game today," Ittrich wrote on Instagram and shared a screenshot with the message from a Berlin fan: "I will kill you. You are a disgrace to German soccer."
Ittrich, a police officer by profession, had shown Hertha striker Florian Niederlechner the red card in the 85th minute for rough play (after video evidence). His comment on the threat: "Charges will follow, by the way."
Users criticize the threats
Ittrich himself reported on dfb.de on Monday that the author of the death threat had since asked him to apologize. He also said that he had received numerous emails and messages on social networks in which the insults and threats had been clearly criticized and he had received support: "I'm pleased about that and it shows me that a clear majority clearly condemns such attacks. In any case, the positive letters I have received far outweigh the negative ones."
The German Football Association (DFB) also condemned the death threat in the strongest possible terms. Lutz Michael Fröhlich, Managing Director of Communications and Sport at DFB Schiri GmbH, emphasized: "Such behaviour is outrageous, disturbing and unacceptable. It harms the referees, but also the sport of soccer as a whole. Some simply don't seem to know any boundaries or inhibitions."
"Referees are not fair game"
In this context, Fröhlich also recalled that the referee was recently struck down with a fist on the pitch after a match in the highest Turkish league. In addition, referees in Greece's top league temporarily went on strike after a referee was attacked by spectators following a match and massively threatened on the internet.
According to Fröhlich, it is "incomprehensible and shocking that even such serious attacks do not at least make some people pause for thought, let alone change their minds". "Referees are not fair game, neither in professional nor amateur soccer, neither on the pitch nor off it - not even on social networks. They are human beings, athletes and a natural part of the soccer family."
Ittrich said that he did not want to simply accept such attacks without comment, but rather "make them public in order to raise awareness". His aim was not "to be at the center of this issue, but rather to encourage everyone to treat each other with more respect". Especially "in the context of anonymity on the internet, we should be aware of what we say", says Ittrich.
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- The threat was not an isolated incident in the world of soccer, as referees in the Turkish and Greek top leagues have also faced physical attacks and online threats recently.
- Despite the death threat, Bundesliga 2 soccer referee Patrick Ittrich, who is also a police officer, received an abundance of support and criticism from fans after the incident involving VfL Osnabrück and Hertha BSC.
- In response to the incident, Hertha BSC's soccer league rival, VfL Osnabrück, emphasized the importance of treating referees with respect and reminding fans that they are part of the soccer family, not fair game.
Source: www.ntv.de
