16 Facts About Markus Merk

Markus Merk was born on 15 March 1962 and is a former top-level German football referee.

Markus Merk is a six-time winner of the German Referee of the Year Award and the record holder in games refereed in the Bundesliga.

In 2005, Merk was awarded the German Bundesverdienstkreuz in recognition of his service to football and his charity work in India.

In 1988, Markus Merk was appointed the youngest Bundesliga referee ever, aged 25, representing his home club 1.

Markus Merk became a FIFA referee four years later, and officiated at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona.

Markus Merk was elected an unprecedented six times as German Referee of the Year.

Nevertheless, Markus Merk received worldwide recognition for his excellent refereeing in this game.

Markus Merk refereed the 1997 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup final, and the 2003 UEFA Champions League final.

Markus Merk was the referee in the semi-final of the 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup between Cameroon and Colombia, a game remembered for the death of Marc-Vivien Foe.

Markus Merk awarded a penalty to England, taken and missed by David Beckham, after Wayne Rooney was brought down in the box.

Markus Merk is a long-time proponent of instant video replay to judge critical scenes.

On 1 March 2008, Werder Bremen striker Markus Rosenberg scored a goal from clear offside position; Merk initially gave the goal, but immediately after that realised it was illegal, but it was too late to retract his error.

Markus Merk called it "the most bitter moment of my career" and called for introduction of instant replay.

The religious Markus Merk is active helping slums in India, providing basic dental care for the poor since 1991.

Markus Merk helps the Indienhilfe Kaiserslautern, which erects schools and housing for the homeless, as well as offering basic medical care.

Markus Merk was a professional dentist until 2005, when he stopped practising because of his opposition to the Praxisgebuhr, a quarterly fee for patients consulting doctors.