French referee Mathilde Demoncay, 26, suffered a concussion after being knocked to the ground while trying to break up a melee in a friendly match between Metz and Fortuna Sittard on July 25 at Schlossberg Stadium in Forbach, eastern France [1, 2, 3, 4, 5].
The incident occurred around the 40th minute after a shirt-tugging confrontation between players sparked a fight [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]. Demoncay was knocked down in the melee and held her arm as medical and security personnel attended to her [1, 2, 3, 4, 5].
Despite the injury, Demoncay resumed her role as assistant referee after play restarted but left the pitch at halftime. Another assistant referee took over her duties for the second half [1, 2, 3, 4, 5].
The match, played as both clubs prepared for their new seasons, ended with Metz defeating Fortuna Sittard 3-1 [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]. Fortuna Sittard described the incident as a "remarkable moment" on their website but chose not to comment further [1]. Metz did not report on the melee on their site [1, 3].
Notably, the melee unfolded in front of a stadium sign reading "Respect the referee," highlighting the chaotic nature of the episode [1, 3, 4, 5].
Medical follow-up for Demoncay was arranged following the concussion, and the match continued after her substitution at halftime [1, 2, 3, 4, 5].
