The match against DJK SF Nette II, played in Dortmund’s District League B1, was nearing its end when tensions boiled over. Bild reported how, in stoppage time, the referee showed Phönix player Emre S. a red card with Nette leading 7-4.
Several Phönix players are alleged to have run at the referee, demanding the decision be overturned, prompting him to abandon the game and retreat to the dressing room.
As the referee later made his way to his car, he was chased by a group of Phönix players and supporters. In the parking lot, player Recep S. allegedly punched him in the face, while around 30 men surrounded the referee’s vehicle, preventing him from leaving. Police eventually arrived, arresting Emre S. in the locker room. Emergency services treated the referee for injuries at the scene.
Bild reported that Recep S. is already known to the police for previous assault offenses, while Junge Freiheit noted that the Dortmund-based team “are almost exclusively migrants.”
SG Phönix Eving issued a statement on Facebook late on Monday evening condemning the violence but strongly criticized the press coverage, especially from Bild. “Although we do not include some of the referee decisions in the game, this, of course, in no way justifies such an outcome,” the club said.
The club claimed that the player named in the Bild report had already been substituted before the red card and denied that he was known to police. “All the coverage and commentary borders on murder,” the statement read, calling reactions on social media “slanderous and racist.”
Phönix said it was cooperating with authorities and had begun internal steps to clarify who was responsible. “We will do everything we can to investigate the perpetrator and cooperate with an accurate explanation,” the board wrote.
The referee, who was left shaken but not seriously injured, is expected to file a formal complaint.
Police confirmed they are pursuing an assault investigation.
