Felix Zwayer: UEFA stand by decision to appoint referee with match-fixing past for England semi-final | OneFootball

The match official accepted a bribe 19 years ago

Uefa are standing by their controversial decision to appoint a referee once embroiled in a match-fixing scandal for England’s Euro 2024 semi-final with Netherlands.

German official Felix Zwayer was hit with a six-month ban after being found to have accepted a €300 (around £250) bribe from fellow referee Robert Hoyzer in 2005.

Zwayer went on to help bring Hoyzer's match-fixing plot to light and was rewarded in part with a reduced suspension while Hoyzer was banned for life.

Jude Bellingham referred to the scandal in a post-match interview after his Borussia Dortmund side lost to Bayern in a game referred by Zwayer in 2021 and was subsequently fined €40,000 (around £34,000) by the German authorities.

Felix Zwayer accepted a bribe 19 years ago

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Uefa, however, are confident in the 43-year-old's integrity.

Zwayer will lead an all-German officiating team for the semi-final, supported by assistants Stefan Lupp and Marco Achmuller and Video Assistant Referee Bastian Dankert.

Wednesday’s clash in Dortmund is the Zwayer’s fourth match of the tournament, having also officiated Italy’s opening victory over Albania, Portugal beating Turkey during the group stage and Netherlands’ last-16 victory over Romania.