There are always photos of great goals or bad referee decisions in football. However none stands for cut celebration and a memorable moment in football history like the time German referee, Wolf-Dieter Ahlenfelder dozed off during a Bundesliga match.
The Memorable Mishap
It begins at the year 1975, precisely during a Bundesliga match between Werder Bremen’s and Hannover 96. This particular game was quite typical, people, both players and the audience were actively involved in the game. Then came the moment that would forever be etched in football folklore: After only 32 minutes of regulation time, which is 15 minutes short of the factual half time break, referee Wolf-Dieter Ahlenfelder blew his whistle.
Of course, the players and fans had no idea what was going on and if they had slept and missed something. However, this was as far as Ahlenfelder got before he decided to backtrack and go running back to his previous strategy – it didn’t take long before he fully regretted his action. After some consultation, he had to rebegin the match in order to make it through the remaining part of the first halftime aggressively laughing all the participants.
Of course, refereeing mistakes are not rare; however, a more legendary story was behind Ahlenfelder blowing the whistle too soon. But it emerged later that Ahlenfelder had consumed at least a beer and a shot of aquavit a Scandinavian schnapps before the match. This pre-match indulgence may have led to his early whistle though Ahlenfelder himself was quick to defend himself by saying that he had the capacity to oversee the match.
While some see the light on the matter and move on, Ahlenfelder stilled his refereeing and from what people can tell today he was known to be funny than a strict referee. His early halftime whistle had entered football mythology and became a true legend in Germany that tells people about some humouristic aspects of the game.
The story didn't end there. In Bremen for instance in which the match was conducted, a new trend arose in local pubs where a drink of beer accompanied with a shot of aquavit was christened an ‘Ahlenfelder’ in sympathy with the referee’s error. The drink reminds him of the funny story and that Ahlenfelder used to enjoy a good time.
Wolf-Dieter Ahlenfelder, passed away in 2014 when he was 70 years of age but cannot be forgotten in football in Germany. His story is a lesson to be learnt because the sport is not defined by accuracy and codified principles but individuals and events that make it interesting.
