The amateur referee who moved Germany by proposing to his partner suspected of having simulated a homophobic attack

A new twist. The German amateur football referee, who suddenly became popular across the Rhine after proposing to his partner before a Bundesliga match, is now the subject of an investigation. Indeed, the man is suspected of having simulated a homophobic attack against himself, authorities said Thursday.

Pascal Kaiser, 27, was widely applauded by the spectators at the RheinEnergieStadion, the 50,000-seat stadium of the Cologne club, when he proposed, kneeling on the ground, to his fiancé at the end of January. His partner said yes, live on television which was broadcasting this Bundesliga match against Wolfsburg.

A few days later, the referee explained that he had been the victim of insults and threats on social networks, then of a homophobic attack at his home. He then shared a photo of himself with a black eye.

Contacted by AFP, the local police then confirmed the filing of a complaint, reporting that “two to three unknown suspects” were on the run.

Suspected of having sent “threatening messages” to himself

In recent days, the German press has reported the authorities’ suspicions of a simulated attack. Questioned by AFP, the Cologne public prosecutor’s office confirmed that a man was under investigation in the city “based on initial suspicions of simulating criminal offenses.”

“On this basis, a search of the accused’s home took place, during which evidence was seized,” they said in a statement. The man in question is “suspected of having simulated attacks of which he was the victim and of having himself written and sent threatening messages which were supposedly intended for him”, also indicates the prosecution.

Pascal Kaiser refused to respond publicly to these accusations, his lawyer emphasizing to the local newspaper Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger that we could “draw no conclusions” from them.

A separate investigation into theft and embezzlement

According to the Tagesspiegel daily, Pascal Kaiser is also the subject of a separate investigation for theft and embezzlement in connection with money stolen from his former workplace, a bar in Cologne, charges he denies.

Contacted by AFP on this subject, the Cologne public prosecutor’s office confirmed the filing of a criminal complaint by the directors of a bar in this city, without expressly naming the person concerned “taking into account the presumption of innocence”.

German amateur football referee, Pascal Kaiser came out in 2022 and remains one of the few openly bisexual people in a sport marked internationally by strong homophobia.

Writing on social media after the alleged attack, German Commissioner for Sexual Diversity Sophie Koch said he had been “the victim of cowardly and inhumane violence”.