Munich’s Dr. Felix Brych is one of 18 referees who are going to be on duty at this summer European Championship. Brych and his team, which also consists of Mark Borsch (Mönchengladbach), Stefan Lupp (Zossen), Bastian Dankert (Rostock) and Marco Fritz (Korb), are working incredibly hard to prepare themselves for the tournament.
“We’re looking forward to it,” explained Brych. “The European Championship is a big deal for referees. We’re all fully aware that it’s going to be an intense few weeks but are determined to give a good account of ourselves.” The 40-year-old is currently getting up to speed with the latest rule changes and maintaining his fitness levels for the competition, as well as next season’s Bundesliga. This will be his first trip to the EUROs as a match official.
Travelling four days before the first game
The DFB are full of praise for the referee. “We have faith in Felix Brych and his team and hope that they have a successful tournament,” explained vice-president Ronny Zimmermann. “I am sure that they will officiate the games expertly – they are an extremely competent group.”
The quintet head to Paris on 6th June. The tournament’s referees will all be based in the same hotel, as it makes organisation, feedback and discussion easier. “This set-up will help us prepare for our games better,” said Brych. “The referees are also a team and we want to perform the job to the best of our collective abilities.”
“We want to get as many games as possible”
Brych has plenty of experience of officiating games on both a domestic and international level. He has been a Bundesliga referee since 2004 and has been on FIFA’s list since 2007. He was named the DFB’s “Referee of the Year” in 2012/2013 and 2014/2015. He also took charge of two games at the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
Brych is going into the tournament as a realist: “It would be churlish to start talking about refereeing the final. There are too many variables at this point. Our main aim is to referee as many games as possible and make sure that we do a good job when called upon.” The officials are informed of appointments two games before the question and head to the venue the following day. Constant concentration is a must.
Munich’s Dr. Felix Brych is one of 18 referees who are going to be on duty at this summer European Championship. Brych and his team, which also consists of Mark Borsch (Mönchengladbach), Stefan Lupp (Zossen), Bastian Dankert (Rostock) and Marco Fritz (Korb), are working incredibly hard to prepare themselves for the tournament.
“We’re looking forward to it,” explained Brych. “The European Championship is a big deal for referees. We’re all fully aware that it’s going to be an intense few weeks but are determined to give a good account of ourselves.” The 40-year-old is currently getting up to speed with the latest rule changes and maintaining his fitness levels for the competition, as well as next season’s Bundesliga. This will be his first trip to the EUROs as a match official.
Travelling four days before the first game
The DFB are full of praise for the referee. “We have faith in Felix Brych and his team and hope that they have a successful tournament,” explained vice-president Ronny Zimmermann. “I am sure that they will officiate the games expertly – they are an extremely competent group.”
The quintet head to Paris on 6th June. The tournament’s referees will all be based in the same hotel, as it makes organisation, feedback and discussion easier. “This set-up will help us prepare for our games better,” said Brych. “The referees are also a team and we want to perform the job to the best of our collective abilities.”
“We want to get as many games as possible”
Brych has plenty of experience of officiating games on both a domestic and international level. He has been a Bundesliga referee since 2004 and has been on FIFA’s list since 2007. He was named the DFB’s “Referee of the Year” in 2012/2013 and 2014/2015. He also took charge of two games at the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
Brych is going into the tournament as a realist: “It would be churlish to start talking about refereeing the final. There are too many variables at this point. Our main aim is to referee as many games as possible and make sure that we do a good job when called upon.” The officials are informed of appointments two games before the question and head to the venue the following day. Constant concentration is a must.
It’s also important to keep an eye on other games in order to pick up on trends and frequent issues. Brych and his colleagues have to be aware of how the tournament is progressing. They’ll also have regular meetings with UEFA representatives in order to stay on the ball. The excitement is rising, focus is narrowing and the games are approaching – the tournament’s 25th team are ready.
