Marco Reus, the Borussia Dortmund and German soccer team’s star midfielder, was fined 540,000 euros ($665,000) for driving without a license for at least three years. The penalty is equivalent to his average pay for 90 days.
Reus was convicted for driving without paperwork in six cases between September 2011 and March 2014, Barbara Vogelsang, a spokeswoman for the Dortmund prosecutor, said today by phone. While the player was awarded speeding tickets on five previous occasions, police didn’t establish that he lacked a license until they pulled him over earlier this year, she said.
Reus, who drives a black Aston Martin Vanquish with a top speed of about 300 kilometers (186 miles) an hour, said he regrets the incident.
“Today I know that I was too naive and that it was stupid,” the 25-year-old told Germany’s most-read newspaper Bild-Zeitung, which first reported the fine. “I have learned my lesson and this will not happen again.” At 18, Reus took driving lessons but failed to take the test. He then decided to drive without a license, he told Bild.
The soccer star, who missed this year’s World Cup because of an ankle injury, is targeted by clubs including Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, FC Barcelona and Manchester City. Reus is Germany’s most valuable soccer player with a price tag of 50 million euros, according to soccer site transfermarkt.de.
Juergen Klopp, his coach at Borussia Dortmund, said he talked to Reus earlier today and was “surprised” to learn about the incident. Reus accepted his guilt and the fine, Klopp said.
“He took a wrong turn at some point in his life,” Klopp told reporters. “He has not come to my attention as someone who often does stuff that’s bordering on the illegal. He’s actually a really great guy.”
To contact the reporter on this story: Stefan Nicola in Berlin at snicola2@bloomberg.net
Reus was convicted for driving without paperwork in six cases between September 2011 and March 2014, Barbara Vogelsang, a spokeswoman for the Dortmund prosecutor, said today by phone. While the player was awarded speeding tickets on five previous occasions, police didn’t establish that he lacked a license until they pulled him over earlier this year, she said.
Reus, who drives a black Aston Martin Vanquish with a top speed of about 300 kilometers (186 miles) an hour, said he regrets the incident.
“Today I know that I was too naive and that it was stupid,” the 25-year-old told Germany’s most-read newspaper Bild-Zeitung, which first reported the fine. “I have learned my lesson and this will not happen again.” At 18, Reus took driving lessons but failed to take the test. He then decided to drive without a license, he told Bild.
The soccer star, who missed this year’s World Cup because of an ankle injury, is targeted by clubs including Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, FC Barcelona and Manchester City. Reus is Germany’s most valuable soccer player with a price tag of 50 million euros, according to soccer site transfermarkt.de.
Juergen Klopp, his coach at Borussia Dortmund, said he talked to Reus earlier today and was “surprised” to learn about the incident. Reus accepted his guilt and the fine, Klopp said.
“He took a wrong turn at some point in his life,” Klopp told reporters. “He has not come to my attention as someone who often does stuff that’s bordering on the illegal. He’s actually a really great guy.”
To contact the reporter on this story: Stefan Nicola in Berlin at snicola2@bloomberg.net
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