Hertha relegated as protest is dismissed, Dusseldorf promoted

Category: World Sports Created on Monday, 21 May 2012 15:12 Published Date Written by GNA Hits: 454

Frankfurt (dpa) - Hertha Berlin's protest in connection with a Bundesliga relegation/promotion play-off tie was dismissed on Monday by a sports tribunal of the German Football Federation (DFB) which said the game will not be replayed.

Hertha appealed after Tuesday's 2-2 draw at Fortuna Dusseldorf, a game which was interrupted for 20 minutes late in stoppage time after a pitch invasion of celebrating Dusseldorf fans.

   But the presiding judge of the DFB sports court said that referee Wolfgang Stark acted according to the rules when he stopped the game and then continued play for the final minutes after the pitch was cleared.

The ruling means that Hertha are relegated from the Bundesliga and Dusseldorf promoted 4-3 on aggregate from the two-legged tie.

   Monday's ruling can be appealed within 24 hours.

   Dusseldorf face sanctions over the pitch invasion in a separate DFB probe and Hertha for their fans who threw flares onto the pitch.

   The DFB is also probing players from both camps, most notably Hertha's Levan Kobishvili who according to testimony from Stark physically attacked the referee.