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Ghost goal allowed by referee in German Bundesliga

Stefan Kiessling from Bayer Leverkusen has scored a ghost goal. His header went wide, but touched the net of the goal. Due to a hole in the net, the ball went into the goal from the side and not between the bars. Referee Felix Brych, a World Cup candidate, missed that. The only thing he saw was that the ball was in the goal. He awarded the goal.

Did it influences the result? Definately: Leverkusen beated Hoffenheim with a 1-2 win.

UPDATE: German tv channel ARD did a poll and 57 percent of the respondents wanted the match to be replayed. Thirty percent say that Leverkusen should stay the winner of the match. The other thirteen percent had no meaning.

UPDATE 2 Monday 28th of October: German FA decided that the ghost goal match will not be replayed eventhough the result might seem “unsatisfactory” from a sporting point of view, says Hans E. Lorenz, chairman of German FA’s jugde panel. Hoffenheim can protest against the decision within a week.

How do you check the nets before the match? And do you check every part of it? This hole was very small, as you can see in the video below.

Also check this video of a Wrexham “ghoast goal”, in the end correctly allowed by referee Amy Fearn.

24 Comments

  • Dr. Errol Sweeney

    Why weren’t the nets check thoroughly before the start of the game? I can understand from where the referee was standing why this happened. Referees are not running a wide enough diagonal to pick up these things.

    • jan (administrator)

      Think that’s the biggest problem, Errol. Right before the match the check is short, but in the warming-up or even hours before the match it should be checked thoroughly.

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