The case Zvezda Zvenigorod/RUS - Hypo Niederösterreich/AUT

The EHF Arbitration Tribunal Inquiry Panel, set up to investigate the allegations of attempts of manipulations of EHF referees in relation to the 2007/2008 Women’s Champions League Final, 1st leg between Zvezda Zvenigorod and Hypo Niederösterreich that took place in Chekhov, Russia on May 17, 2008, has decided not to formulate any charges.

The Inquiry Panel condemns expressly the money offer made to the EHF referees by an unknown person after the aforementioned final during the banquet that was organised by the hosting club, Zvezda Zvenigorod.

However, all the information gathered did not enable the Panel to identify the unknown person or to determine, with a sufficient degree of certainty, whether this person had any connection with any of the clubs that played the final.

Moreover, the Panel found that taking in consideration the measures implemented by the hosting club to take care of the EHF officials and the particular circumstances during the banquet, no specific accusation can be made against Zvezda Zvenigorod regarding its general obligation to assure an adequate protection of the EHF officials.

The case is therefore dismissed

For the sake of clarity, the match between Zvezda Zvenigorod and Hypo Niederösterreich was reviewed and analysed by an external expert. The analysis of this expert shows that there are no clear examples of refereeing in favour of one team and that the referees made an overall good performance.