Werder Bremen’s coach, Markus Anfang, quit on Saturday after German authorities began investigating the authenticity of his COVID-19 vaccination certificate.
Anfang, who on Friday denied using a fake certificate, said he would resign in the interest of the club and the team. His assistant coach Florian Junge also resigned.
“I have decided to terminate my role as head coach at Werder immediately because of the dire circumstances for the club, the team, my family and personally,” Anfang said in a statement. club.
Werder, who is playing in Germany’s second division this season, said on Friday that an investigation was underway into the coach’s vaccination certificate, with Anfang saying he did nothing wrong. and he was vaccinated twice at an official vaccination center.
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He said he later digitized his vaccination certificate at a pharmacy.
Werder chief executive Frank Baumann said: “Markus and Florian took responsibility for this decision and helped end the final days of turmoil surrounding the team.
“We respect this decision and will begin the search for a new head coach.”
Vaccinating players and team staff has been a problem for months in German football.
Bayern Munich midfielder Joshua Kimmich caused a heated discussion among the public as the top person to reject the vaccination, citing international concern in Germany about the long-term effects of the vaccine.
