The former German international Christoph Metzelder confessed Thursday, on the first day of his trial in Düsseldorf, the dissemination of child pornography images. Metzelder, 40, is being prosecuted for having shared by e-mail with his ex-girlfriend - who denounced him - photos of child pornography. The former Real Madrid defender admitted during the hearing to have seen 18 pornographic files concerning children and adolescents transmitted. The 2002 World Cup finalist allegedly transmitted photos via WhatsApp messaging, according to prosecutors. Some 297 files with sexual content featuring children or adolescents were found on his mobile phone during the investigation.
“I accept the sanction and ask forgiveness from the victims of sexual violence. I'm going to have to live the rest of my life with that guilt, ”Metzelder said. The trial is due to take place until the beginning of May. If found guilty, he faces a prison sentence of three months to five years, as well as a fine. His partial confession could allow him to get only a suspended prison sentence. “He knows what he's done. He also knows that this can be considered a fault and he knows that he must face up to his responsibilities, ”said one of his lawyers, Ulrich Sommer, on April 21. "He is shocked by himself, to have had this kind of double life," added the lawyer, assuring, however, that his client was "obviously not" a pedophile.
The ex-Mannschaft defender was undergoing coaching training with the German Football Association (DFB) when the investigation was opened in September 2019. The German public broadcaster ARD, for which he was a consultant, immediately reported decided to suspend its cooperation with him for the duration of the investigations. Vice-world champion 2002, Christoph Metzelder has 47 caps for the national team between 2001 and 2008. He spent most of his career in Germany, first in Dortmund (2000-2007) before moving to Real Madrid ( 2007-2010) then returned to Germany in Schalke until his retirement from sports in 2013. Since then he has been running an advertising agency and has his own “Christoph Metzelder Foundation”, which supports projects for children and young people.At the same time, he coached the Under-19 team of TuS Haltern in North Rhine-Westphalia.
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