UEFA make official decision ahead of Liverpool vs Lille in Champions League despite previous controversy

UEFA have confirmed the appointment of Felix Zwayer as referee for Liverpool’s Champions League penultimate league phase showdown with French giants Lille at Anfield.

Zwayer is a 45-year-old referee with over 20 years of experience in German football and 15 years officiating in the Bundesliga. He notably oversaw the Euro 2024 semi-final between England and Netherlands, and was also in charge of the UEFA Nations League final match between Spain and Croatia a year earlier.

The German referee has taken charge of 33 Champions League matches over the course of his career, with the most recent of those coming in December when Celtic played out a 0-0 draw in the Croatian capital against Dinamo Zabreg.

In his career as a referee, Zwayer has taken charge of three Liverpool matches, with the most recent of those being a 1-0 defeat against Real Madrid during the 2022/23 campaign. He also oversaw a 2-0 win over FC Porto a season earlier and a 0-0 draw between the same two sides in March 2018. Zwayer has produced 173 yellow cards in 33 Champions League games as a referee and has produced six red cards. He has an average of 5.24 a game, according to WhoScored.com.

Felix Zwayer controversy explained

Zwayer in recent years has overseen some of the biggest and most high-profile games in European football, but his career in the sport has not been without controversy. Zwayer was involved in a match fixing controversy during his early years as a referee back in 2005. The incident was centred around Robert Hoyzer, who admitted that he fixed and betted on matches in the second and third tier of German football.

Zwayer, who was his assistant referee at the time, he along with three other high-ranking referees informed the German FA (DFB) about Hoyzer's match fixing. Zwayer served a six month suspension but that ban was kept under wraps until German newspaper Die Zeit published a document from the DFB highlighting the punishment. UEFA and German football authorities consider Zwayer to be fully rehabilitated, but Hoyzer was ultimately banned from football for life and sentenced to prison for two years and five months.

However, debate over the scandal did resurface in 2021 after a high-profile title decider between Jude Bellingham’s former club Borussia Dortmund and reigning German champions at the time Bayern Munich. During the game Bellingham was left furious at the referee for failing to award Dortmund a penalty and later went on to reward Bayern a spot-kick for a handball incident involving Matts Hummels. The defeat played a crucial role in deciding the title race and an infuriated Bellingham claimed Zwayer was not a fit choice to oversee a game of that magnitude.

Liverpool’s upcoming opponents

Liverpool are top of the Champions League with a perfect 18 points from six matches after thriving in the new format. Their opponents Lille have surpassed expectations in the early months of the tournament and currently sit with 13 points from six matches, leaving them in eighth position and firmly on course to clinch the last automatic place in the last 16 of the competition.

Lille are third in the French league, but a seemingly insurmountable 14 points behind runaway Ligue 1 leaders Paris Saint Germain. They have a squad featuring England breakout star Angel Gomes, who impressed during Lee Carsley’s interim stint and have talisman Jonathan David leading the line. David was amongst the top scorers in French football last season and has hit the ground running again this term with 17 goals and seven assists in 30 appearances.

The Canadian international has just six months remaining on his contract in France and is expected to become a free agent in the summer with several Premier League sides such as Newcastle United, Aston Villa, Tottenham and Arsenal all thought to be queuing up for his signature. Lille have been one of the surprise packages in the competition so far and have already produced upsets against Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid while also gaining a valiant point against Juventus during this season’s competition.