Stories: Match abandoned in Leverkusen
The date is 29 February 1948. Mülheim SV are the visitors to Leverkusen in the championship match in the Rhine District League 2.
The Am Stadtpark stadium is well attended with the temperature around freezing point. There is a somewhat heated atmosphere amongst the crowd given the adverse condition of the pitch. Just a few minutes into the game, a Bayer 04 defender slips in the penalty area and he accidentally handles the ball as he falls. The referee unjustifiably awards a penalty but Mülheim miss the spot kick. The match goes to and fro and becomes increasingly uncompromising as the game goes on. Bayer 04 centre forward Kastner scores a fair goal after the restart but the referee rules it out. Mulheim then take the lead. Twenty minutes from the end, Bayer 04 striker Höher, brother of the former Bayer 04 player, future Bundesliga player and coach Heinz Höher, is fouled in the box. Play carries on and the atmosphere worsens. Leverkusen supporters invade the pitch and attack the referee. Order is only restored with the intervention of the stewards and police. The match is abandoned. Bayer 04 are punished: three home games behind closed doors.
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