The NFL hosted its fourth game in Germany on Sunday, and referee Shawn Hochuli wowed the crowd during the Carolina Panthers vs. New York Giants game.
Hochuli called a penalty in German during the first quarter of the game, which was a false start penalty on Panthers center Cade Mays. He said the whole penalty in German except the end when he said "It's by the center, it's third down."
This penalty caused quite the reaction from fans at Allianz Arena in Munich, Germany with the crowd cheering loudly for Hochuli, who couldn't help but crack a smile from their reaction.
NFL Network announcers Rich Eisen and Kurt Warner were equally surprised and impressed by Hochuli's German.
"Wow! There we go! Showing up!" they said.
Even the refs are speaking German!
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What made this moment more of a full circle is that Hochuli's dad, Ed, officiated the NFL's first game in Mexico back in 2005 and called the league's first penalty in Spanish, per Front Office Sports. What an impressive father-son duo.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as NFL Ref Wows Fans by Calling Penalty in German During Panthers–Giants Game.
