Suspected perpetrator arrested
©IMAGO
A scandal in the 3rd league: Rot-Weiss Essen goalkeeper Felix Wienand was injured by a firecracker in the home game against SV Waldhof Mannheim. The 23-year-old fell to the ground after a bang in the penalty area and held his ears. Wienand was immediately taken to a hospital for an examination. According to an initial diagnosis, the goalkeeper suffered a blast and showed an acute stress reaction, as RWE announced on the “X” platform. Further investigations are to follow. Tino Casali came into the game for him.
The game was close to being canceled after the incident in the 53rd minute, for which a Mannheim fan was apparently responsible. After an interruption of more than 45 minutes, things continued. The suspected perpetrator is said to have been identified and arrested. At the time of the break, Essen was leading 1-0 thanks to a goal from Marek Janssen. It stayed that way. Mannheim’s Terrence Boyd also saw a red card in the 67th minute.
A similar incident, albeit with a lighter instead of a firecracker, occurred in the Bundesliga in December 2024 during the game between 1. FC Union Berlin and VfL Bochum. In stoppage time of the game, Bochum’s goalkeeper Patrick Drewes was hit in the head by a lighter and fell to the ground. The match was played to an end after an interruption, but Bochum protested against the score after the score was 1-1 and was later awarded a win.
