A female referee was hirt after being knocked to the ground while attempting to break up a brawl between male players during a friendly football match in France.
The incident occurred on Saturday during a pre-season fixture between French club Metz and Dutch side Fortuna Sittard.
Mathilde Demoncay was officiating the match at Schlossberg Stadium in Forbach, eastern France, when tensions flared in the 40th minute.
A shirt-tugging incident escalated into a confrontation between two opposing players, quickly drawing others into a wider melee.
Video footage circulating on social media shows Ms Demoncay falling heavily after being struck during her intervention, landing near a prominent sign that ironically read: “Respect the referee”.
The 26-year-old official remained on the pitch for several minutes, clutching her arm, as assistant referees, security personnel, and medical staff rushed to restore order and assess her condition.
Although she initially resumed her duties as an assistant referee after play restarted, Demoncay was forced to leave the field at half-time.
Fortuna Sittard, who lost the game 3-1, described the episode as a “remarkable moment” in their match report but offered no further comment.
Metz, the French club, made no mention of the incident on their website.
