Bundesliga: What happens if the referee is infected?

"Both the special hygiene regulations and the corona tests, as well as refereeing in front of empty stands require special preparation", said Lutz-Michael Fröhlich in an interview with ntv.de. The sporting director of the elite referees and his team have communicated a lot in video conferences with the 26 first division and 22 second division referees, discussed controversial game scenes, discussed training performances and discussed possible scenarios for when and how the season should continue could be. Now that it is clear when the ball will roll again, the referees will also take action. So far, however, they have not been tested for the Sars-CoV-2 virus "because they do not go into team training like the players," explains Fröhlich. "They get tested when they get their first assignment." This means that the referees, assistants and fourth officials will be tested for the first time a few days before their return and again the day before the game. As the season progresses, there will be a test the day before the match. The result must be available by 10 a.m. on the match day, as the DFL concept provides. "The hygiene requirements are top priority, as we also have a role model function," said Fröhlich. The referees are behaving “in the stadium, at home and during training according to the instructions of the DFL, which were also given to the clubs".

What happens if the referee tests positive? The tests the day before a match are "carried out in the most logistically convenient place," as the referee chief says. This means either at the match location, as part of the host club's test routine, or at a club that is close to the referee's place of residence, which has a home game and therefore also tests. Basically, the referees should only arrive on the match day, overnight stays should be avoided if possible. But if it should ever be necessary, "then only in hotels that meet the special hygiene requirements," says Fröhlich. In this regard, agreements have already been made with suitable guest houses. But what happens if it turns out on match day that a referee has tested positive for the virus and has to quarantine? Then who will step in for him at short notice? "It varies from case to case," explains Fröhlich. "If the venue is central, like the clubs in the west, we would be able to send a replacement in time that has a short journey. In more remote venues, for example in Freiburg or Leipzig, it will be more like that the fourth official is a Bundesliga referee who can take over the game management if necessary." However, it cannot be excluded that "in exceptional cases a second division referee will whistle a Bundesliga game". What is new is that "the referees' neutrality with the regional association is being abolished", as Fröhlich explains. Previously, the referees were not allowed to whistle a game belonging to a club belonging to the same regional association as them, but this regulation has now been suspended, at least for the time being, to enable shorter journeys. However, according to Fröhlich there is one restriction: "We will not use the referees in their place of residence or in the immediate vicinity." That means, for example, Munich's Felix Brych will not referee a game of FC Bayern, but maybe one of FC Augsburg or FC Nürnberg. Deniz Aytekin, on the other hand, will not be seen at a match of the Nuremberg team on the field, but possibly at one of the Bavarians. Fröhlich hopes that this change will be widely accepted and will be retained after the Corona crisis. In fact, it is difficult to see why professional referees should not referee games from clubs from "their" regional association. At the level of paid football, a possible bias due to regional affiliations should be largely excluded; in other sports they are already significantly further in this regard. For example, the Sochi 2014 Olympic Ice Hockey Final between Canada and Sweden was refereed by three Canadians and one American, without anyone having the idea that the referees could be biased. 

Another new feature is that the fourth officials will wear mouth-to-nose protection during the game, as is also intended for team officials and substitutes on the benches. On the other hand, there will be no corona-specific tightening of rules, as Fröhlich emphasizes: "Anyone who comes too close to the referee for unsporting reasons or triggers a mass confrontation will not be punished differently than in times without a pandemic." On the other hand, it is conceivable that the number of possible substitutions is temporarily increased to five per team in order to provide relief in view of the tight schedule. "If the IFAB approves the increase, we will decide in close consultation with the DFL and the clubs whether we will introduce them in the first and second leagues," says Fröhlich. "After all, it would be a rule change during the current season. If it were decided, it would be easy for the referees to implement it."

There will also be some changes in the Video Assist Center. The "workstations" - there are a total of ten, spread over two rooms - are shielded from one another by plexiglass walls, and on the other hand, such cutting discs are also inserted between the individual workstations of a station. "The VARs and their assistants will also come to the Video Assist Center with mouth and nose protection and wear them until they have sat down at the station," explains Fröhlich. "Only there will they remove it, the partitions offer sufficient and better protection." Instead of two operators per game, only one will also provide the best camera images. A station is now occupied by three people instead of four as before. If several games take place simultaneously as on Saturday afternoons, the VAR teams will go to their stations one after the other, not simultaneously. You do not have to be in the video center two hours beforehand as usual, the usual briefing is omitted, there is only a quick check 30 minutes before the game. The follow-up is also not carried out on site. "Nobody should be in the Video Assist Center longer than necessary," says Fröhlich. However, neither the video assistants nor the operators are tested for the Sars-CoV-2 virus, "because they are not in a competition". Should a VAR nevertheless fail, flexibility is required: "We would try to send a replacement to Cologne, but if necessary the AVAR has to step in," says Fröhlich. The referees are specifically prepared for the special features of games without an audience. "We have put together video clips from ghost games in UEFA competitions and from the game without spectators between Mönchengladbach and Cologne," said Lutz Michael Fröhlich. "Above all, the lack of background noise will be a significant difference from normality," he says. "That doesn't necessarily have to be negative for the referee, but it's unusual. There is no pressure that can come from the audience, the noise only comes from the players and the benches." Fröhlich expects that "the assessment of situations and decisions in public will be much more factual" because the audience's emotions are missing. In addition, Lutz Michael Fröhlich pleads for humility: "Other sports are idle, many livelihoods are at risk," he says. "But our referees can now go about their work again. They should be grateful for that, and they should show this gratitude when they appear, just like the players. We should send positive messages to society." It will soon become clear whether this will work. 

Source: ntv.de