A Prussia Ultra jumps back into the fan block; down below, referee Felix Bickel (29) looks at a black monitor.
Football fans rarely see such a penalty decision. In the second-division game between Preußen Münster and Hertha BSC, Münster's Niko Koulis (26) brings Berlin's Michaël Cuisance (26) to the ground in the penalty area. Referee Felix Bickel (29) initially does not award a penalty but is asked by the VAR to go to the sideline and take another look at the scene.
And that's when it gets curious. Because: The screen isn't working, it seems to have failed. Bickel is looking at a black monitor. BILD knows: A Münsteraner Ultra pulled the plug on the monitor, thus sabotaging the VAR operation. At the same time, the Preußen Ultras in the curve are displaying a banner that reads: "Pull the plug on VAR."
A photo shows the alleged plug puller wearing a green storm helmet as he jumps back from the interior onto the grandstand. Whether this ultra is actually responsible for the VAR sabotage, why the power connection was apparently so easily accessible, and why no one plugged the plug back in - currently unclear.
One way or another: Referee Bickel cannot make the penalty decision on his own without video images – so his assistant in the Cologne basement steps in.
Bickel explains over the stadium loudspeakers: "We have reviewed a possible foul in the penalty area. My colleague Katrin Rafalski has determined that the 24th player from Münster Cuisance clearly hit the shin. Therefore, my final decision is: penalty kick." DFB referee Rafalski (44) is on duty as a video assistant during the game and makes the penalty decision from a distance.
Hertha captain Fabian Reese (28) converts the penalty kick into a 1-0 lead (45'+4). A setback for Preußen? No, seconds after the restart, Jannis Heuer (26) heads in the 1-1 equalizer (46.). But substitute Marten Winkler shoots Hertha to victory in the third minute of stoppage time.