Europa League final referee named as official in match-fixing scandal

Felix Zwayer has been chosen as the referee for the Europa League final between Manchester United and Tottenham, with some fans sure to recognise the official’s name.

Zwayer, who will officiate the all-English clash in Bilbao on 21 May, was handed a six-month ban in 2005 for his part in a match-fixing scandal.

The German, 43, received the ban from his nation’s football federation after working as an assistant referee to Robert Hoyzer, who was found to have taken bribes to fix several 2. Bundesliga matches that he officiated.

Zwayer allegedly accepted a €300 bribe ahead of a game involving Wuppertaler SV, and he later informed the German FA of Hoyzer’s match fixing – with three other referees accompanying Zwayer.

Zwayer’s ban was kept secret until German publication Die Zeit released “The Zwayer File” in 2014. Meanwhile, Hoyzer was banned for life.

In 2021, Jude Bellingham took issue with Zwayer’s officiating in a Bundesliga match between rivals Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund, saying: “You give a referee that has match-fixed before the biggest game in Germany, what do you expect?” Bellingham, who played for Dortmund at the time, was fined €40,000 for his comments.

Zwayer subsequently took a break from refereeing, though he was back in the spotlight at Euro 2024. There, he refereed England’s semi-final against Netherlands, another game in which Bellingham played.

Uefa said in a statement on Monday (12 May): “An international referee since 2012, the 43-year-old has this season taken charge of seven Uefa Champions League matches, including the semi-final decider between Paris and Arsenal, plus two in the Uefa Europa League and one in the Uefa Conference League.

“This will be his second Uefa competition final as a referee, with Zwayer having previously been in charge of the 2023 Uefa Nations League final between Croatia and Spain. He was also the lead official in four matches at Uefa Euro 2024.”

Zwayer’s assistants in the Europa League final will be compatriots Robert Kempter and Christian Dietz, while the fourth official has been named as Italy’s Maurizio Mariani.