August 14, 1981. It was a Friday night in Bremen. The air was heavy, the kind of atmosphere where you expect something to break, but nobody expected a human being to be flayed open on live television. If you’ve ever gone down a rabbit hole of "horror sports injuries," you’ve seen the photo. You know the one. A man in a green and white Arminia Bielefeld kit, standing up, his right thigh split wide like a piece of butchered meat, sprinting toward the opposing bench while screaming.
That man was Ewald Lienen.
The Ewald Lienen injury is more than just a gruesome piece of trivia. It’s a moment that fundamentally changed how we look at player safety, the psychological pressure of coaching, and the sheer, stubborn grit of the human spirit. Honestly, looking at the footage today—which is grainy, shaky, and terrifying—it’s hard to fathom how the guy didn't just go into immediate shock.
The Slit That Shook the Bundesliga
Let’s set the scene. Arminia Bielefeld was playing Werder Bremen. It was early in the season, just the second matchday. About 20 minutes in, Lienen, a talented winger known for his pace and technical skill, was driving down the wing. Then came Norbert Siegmann.
Siegmann wasn't trying to commit a crime, but his sliding tackle was high, late, and incredibly dangerous. His studs didn't just hit Lienen; they acted like a hot knife. They caught Lienen’s right thigh and literally unzipped the skin.
We aren't talking about a scrape. The wound was 25 centimeters long. That’s nearly 10 inches. It was deep enough that spectators in the front rows—and certainly the television cameras—could clearly see Lienen’s muscle tissues and his femur bone.
Total carnage.
🔗 Read more: Buddy Hield Sacramento Kings: What Really Happened Behind the Scenes
What happened next is the stuff of legend. Most people would have collapsed. They would have waited for the stretcher, probably passed out from the sight of their own leg falling apart. Not Lienen. He stood up. He looked at the gaping hole in his leg, and instead of crying for help, he was filled with a primal, white-hot rage.
He didn't run to the doctor. He ran to the Werder Bremen bench. Specifically, he ran to their legendary coach, Otto Rehhagel.
Lienen was convinced—and he maintained this for years—that Rehhagel had incited his players to play "dirty" or "aggressive" to stop him. He shook his fist at Rehhagel, blood streaming down his leg, blaming the coach for the state of his thigh. It’s one of the most iconic, albeit disturbing, images in the history of German football.
The Medical Reality: 23 Stitches and a Miracle
People often ask about the long-term damage of the Ewald Lienen injury. Surely, a 25cm gash that exposes the bone ends a career, right?
Surprisingly, no.
The doctors at the hospital had to use 23 stitches to put his leg back together. It looked like a Frankenstein experiment. But here is the kicker: Lienen was back in training 17 days later.
💡 You might also like: Why the March Madness 2022 Bracket Still Haunts Your Sports Betting Group Chat
Read that again.
Seventeen days.
Nowadays, a player might miss three weeks because of a particularly bad "knock" or a minor hamstring strain. Lienen had his leg sliced open to the bone and was back on the pitch for a competitive match after just three weeks. It’s basically incomprehensible by modern medical standards. He played for another decade after that. He didn't just survive the injury; he thrived, eventually transitioning into a highly respected managerial career.
Why the Injury Still Matters Today
The reason we are still talking about the Ewald Lienen injury in 2026 isn't just because of the gore. It’s because it forced a conversation about the "win at all costs" mentality.
- Player Safety: After the Lienen incident, the Bundesliga—and football at large—began to take a harder look at "studs-up" challenges.
- Coaching Liability: The fact that Lienen sued (or attempted to sue) Rehhagel and Siegmann was a massive deal. The lawsuit was eventually dropped, but it sent a shockwave through the sport. Can a coach be legally responsible for a player's injury?
- Media Impact: This was one of the first times a truly "graphic" injury was captured so clearly and distributed widely, changing the way sports broadcasting handled trauma.
Misconceptions About the Incident
There are a few things people get wrong about that night in Bremen. First, Norbert Siegmann wasn't some "hatchet man" sent out specifically to end Lienen’s career. He was a defender making a clumsy, aggressive tackle in an era where that was much more common. Siegmann actually suffered significantly after the event; he received death threats and struggled with the stigma of being "the man who did that to Lienen" for a long time.
Second, the beef with Otto Rehhagel wasn't just heat-of-the-moment. Lienen truly believed that the culture Rehhagel fostered was dangerous. Even years later, while they eventually reconciled to a degree, the tension remained a part of Bundesliga lore.
📖 Related: Mizzou 2024 Football Schedule: What Most People Get Wrong
Looking Back at a 25cm Scar
If you see Ewald Lienen today, he’s often seen as a "wise old man" of the game—thoughtful, articulate, and still deeply passionate. But he still carries that scar. It’s a physical reminder of a time when football was a bit more like the Wild West.
The Ewald Lienen injury remains the benchmark for "the worst-looking injury that didn't actually end a career." It’s a testament to the weird, often terrifying resilience of the human body.
If you want to understand the history of the Bundesliga, you have to understand this moment. It wasn't just about a foul; it was about the soul of the game, the limits of physical endurance, and a 25-centimeter gash that refused to stay closed.
How to approach sports safety in your own life
While you likely aren't playing in the 1981 Bundesliga, the lessons from Lienen’s recovery and the incident itself are practical.
- Don't ignore the "freak" accidents: Lienen’s injury was an anomaly, but his recovery was due to elite-level (for the time) wound care and immediate surgical intervention. If you suffer a deep laceration, infection is your biggest enemy, not the wound itself.
- The "Mind-Body" connection isn't just fluff: Lienen’s refusal to be a "victim" of the tackle arguably accelerated his psychological recovery. He was back on the pitch because he refused to accept he was "done."
- Check your gear: The studs of 1981 were often metal and sharp. Modern cleats are designed to be safer, but checking for jagged edges on your gear is a simple step that prevents unnecessary "unzipping" of skin during a slide.
The leg healed. The scar remained. The legend grew. That’s Ewald Lienen.