Dortmund’s Jude Bellingham fined Rs 34 lakhs for ‘match-fixing’ remark against referee

Borussia Dortmund's Jude Bellingham on Tuesday has been handed a EUR40,000 (Rs 34 lakhs approx) fine by the German Football Association (DFB) after his "match-fixing" remarks against the referee Felix Zwayer, after his team 3-2 defeat by Bayern Munich.

However, the 18-year-old England international has avoided a ban, for voicing his frustration over the standard of officiating in the Klassiker clash.

Zwayer was the referee in the Der Klassiker as Bayern Munich edged Dortmund at Westfalenstadion on Saturday. Robert Lewandowski grabbed the winning goal from the penalty spot which didn't go well with the English international Bellingham. "For me, it wasn't [a penalty]," Bellingham told reporters after the game, as per goal.com.

"[Mats] Hummels isn't even looking at the ball, he's fighting to get it and it just sort of hits him, it hits him and I don't even think he's looking at the ball. You can look at a lot of the decisions in the game, you give a referee that has match-fixed before the biggest game in Germany, what do you expect?" he added.

DFB referee supervisor Marco Haase then launched a complaint against Bellingham for his controversial comments on Zwayer, leading to an investigation being carried out.

An unfortunate result against a brilliant opponent but positives to take moving forward.
All my love to @JulianBrandt pic.twitter.com/h2WzeIG49u — Jude Bellingham (@BellinghamJude) December 4, 2021

The midfielder, while escaping a ban for his comments, has been given a fine of EUR40k, with his post-match quotes having been deemed "unsportsmanlike conduct".

With the top-of-the-table win at Borussia Dortmund, Bayern have taken an important step towards topping the pile at Christmas, opening the gap between themselves and their biggest league rivals to four points.