Steinhaus and Brych - Referees of the Year 2018 in Germany

The DFB Referees Committee has decided that Bibiana Steinhaus and Felix Brych are the Referees of the Year 2017/2018. As part of the ceremonial closing of the referee training camp, the two referees received their awards in Grassau am Chiemsee. “Last season saw many and great successes for our referees, which made the selection of the Referee of the Year an exciting and difficult decision, with Bibiana Steinhaus and Felix Brych two winners absolutely deserved”, says Ronny Zimmermann, DFB Vice-President for referees and evaluation. For Bibiana Steinhaus it is the seventh overall award as Referee of the Year, who was also given this special honour last year. Felix Brych receives the title for the fourth time (last one in 2016). 

"Once again the award for highly acclaimed Bibiana Steinhaus, who has done well in her first Bundesliga season, and this performance alone, without forgetting her international assignments in various competitions, is worldwide "unique", praised Ronny Zimmermann the award winner. In her debut season 2017/2018, Steinhaus had eight appearances in the Bundesliga and was the first woman who ever refereed a game in the highest German league. On Matchday 3, at the encounter Hertha BSC against Werder Bremen, she wrote a piece of German football history. Helmut Geyer, acting chairman of the DFB refereeing committee, adds: "Bibiana Steinhaus has more than confirmed her nomination for the Bundesliga in the last season with great performances and has been proving her performance at the highest level for years. Therefore, this is a logical and more than deserved award for a national and international top referee". 

In the men’s category, the title holder, who stands before his 250th stint in the Bundesliga and thus on the fourth place in the eternal referee table of the Bundesliga, looks back with pride on his achievements. "Felix Brych has had an incredibly successful year, crowned by being named world referee of the year last December, and his achievements in the final stages of the 2017/18 Champions League have impressively shown what class he has. Unfortunately, the recent World Cup could not prove his extraordinary ability again", said DFB Vice-President Zimmermann. "Felix Brych has achieved a lot in the 2017/2018 season, when he has become world referee of the year, a great honour! In the Champions League he impressed with very good performances, so he was appointed four times in the knock-out phase alone, among others, Liverpool's semi-finals testifies to his confidence as a referee in European top competitions", said Lutz-Michael Fröhlich, chairman of the Elite Referees Committee, giving his words of praise and adding: "He was particularly convincing in the difficult second phase of the Bundesliga. He participated with great energy in all qualifying FIFA seminars for the 2018 World Cup and it is a pity that he could not crown his otherwise very successful season there. Nevertheless, he deserves great credit for his achievements in the 2017/2018 season." 

Source: DFB