Hertha Berlin’s Initial Appeal Rejected By DFB, Second Appeal Filed

The DFB sports court have announced that they have rejected Hertha Berlin’s appeal to have their 4-3 aggregate loss to Fortuna Düsseldorf overturned.

Hertha’s appeal was based on the argument that their players were unable to complete the final two minutes of the playoff’s second leg after Düsseldorf supporters rushed the field in an early celebration. Referee Wolfgang Stark took the players off of the pitch and then restarted the match once the police were able to clear the field.

DFB official Hans E. Lorenz delivered the ruling: “The appeal was unsuccessful as no reasonable grounds for an appeal could be established. The referee reacted in accordance with the laws of the game and Hertha BSC’s claim of a disadvantage because of the match interruption could not be substantiated.”

There is a 24 hour window for Hertha to appeal the decision to the DFB Federal Court. They wasted no time and have filed their intention to do so. A hearing will be held later this week at the DFB headquarters in Frankfurt.