Officially. Regarding the treatment and rehabilitation of Assistant Referee Sergei Becker

25.01.2019 17:24

UEFA and the Football Federation of Ukraine bear all the costs of treatment and rehabilitation of Sergey Becker.

Serhiy Becker was appointed as a member of the Ukrainian refereeing team as an assistant referee for the Greece-Estonia League of Nations match. The match took place in Athens on November 18.

On November 17, the refereeing team was to hold a traditional training session before the match. But at the appointed time, Sergei did not appear in the lobby. When colleagues went up to his room, it turned out that Sergei needed urgent medical attention because he had a stroke.

Fortunately, thanks to the professional actions of the hotel staff and ambulance crews, our compatriots were able to save lives. Until December 20, Sergei Becker received treatment at a local hospital, after which he was transferred to the rehabilitation center in Athens, where he is now.

FFU Secretary General Yuri Zapisotsky comments on the situation: “Immediately after we learned about what happened to Serhiy Becker, I contacted UEFA and the Greek Football Federation to provide Serhiy with the necessary assistance from FFU. The UEFA Referees Committee and its head, Roberto Rosetti, have also joined in to help and monitor the situation. But our colleagues from UEFA assured us that they will pay for treatment in Greece and rehabilitation in the first months. This has also been repeatedly confirmed in numerous subsequent negotiations and correspondence. "UEFA will come to the rescue and reimburse the referee's medical expenses in the hospital plus two or three months in the rehabilitation center," the letter from UEFA said.

To date, all the bills provided by the hospital for Serhiy's treatment have been paid. For our part, we informed the doctors that as soon as it is possible to transport Serhiy to Ukraine, the Football Federation of Ukraine will take over the relevant services - either a flight or, if the flight is impossible due to medical reasons, rent a specialized car. We also understand that Serhiy will need further rehabilitation in Ukraine, and FFU is ready to pay for it. "

According to the chairman of the FFU Arbitration Committee Luciano Luci, in the first days one of our referees remained in the Greek hospital together with Serhiy Becker. "He was there until Sergei's relatives arrived in Athens. FFU leaders were constantly interested in the referee's health, Yuri Zapisotsky was in constant contact with the UEFA arbitration department, representatives of the Greek Football Federation. UEFA covered all the costs of treating the Ukrainian referee in the Greek hospital. Representatives of the arbitration committee are constantly in touch with our colleague and his relatives. I know that Serhiy is successfully rehabilitating - he can already move independently. But further rehabilitation awaits him. During the recent meeting, the arbitrators and assistants decided on their own initiative to raise funds and hand it over to Serhiy's family. We supported this decision. The president of FFU, the leadership of the federation, all colleagues are worried about Serhiy and wish him a speedy recovery. "