The upcoming Europa League final between Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur will be overseen by German referee Felix Zwayer, who has previously served a six-month ban due to his involvement in a match-fixing scandal.

Zwayer found himself entangled in a web spun by Robert Hoyzer back in 2005. The German official was one of the whistleblowers who brought to light the widespread match-fixing plot Hoyzer was implementing across the German second tier.

As he explained in an interview with Tagesspiegel am Sonntag at the time, Zwayer claimed to have been asked by Hoyzer to guarantee the result of a meeting between Rot-Weiss Essen and Cologne. “When I got this firm offer from Hoyzer, I went to my refereeing colleagues,” Zwayer claimed. “I stress once again that I strongly rejected this offer straightaway.”

“I have a clear conscience, and I can sleep well because I know I didn’t tamper with the game,” the former real estate agent claimed.

While Hoyzer was banned for life, Zwayer received a six-month suspension after the German football federation (DFB) uncovered that he had accepted €300 from his compatriot.

Zwayer served his ban and took charge of his first top-flight match in 2009, before becoming a FIFA-listed referee three years later. News of the Berlin-born official’s suspension only came to light in 2014.

Jude Bellingham infamously clashed with Zwayer while playing for Borussia Dortmund in 2021. After suffering defeat to Bayern Munich thanks to a debatable Robert Lewandowski penalty, the English midfielder fumed: “You give a referee, that has match fixed before, the biggest game in Germany. What do you expect?” Bellingham was fined €40,000 for his comments and the scrutinised official took a two-month break from refereeing.

Despite his controversial past, Zwayer has continued to receive a glut of high-profile matches. The German official was reunited with Bellingham in the semi-finals of Euro 2024 and actually awarded England a dubious penalty which helped the Three Lions find a way past the Netherlands.

Earlier this month, Zwayer took charge of Arsenal’s 2-1 defeat to Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League semi-final without any notable errors.

Spurs have twice been refereed by Zwayer. The north London outfit are yet to win a game under his watch, although their Champions League defeat to Barcelona in 2018 owed more to Lionel Messi’s brilliance than any blunder from from the official. United, by contrast, are yet to lose under Zwayer’s watch.

United and Tottenham are set to face off in the Europa League final on Wednesday, 21 May at Bilbao’s San Mames Stadium.