Babak Rafati

About Babak Rafati

Babak Rafati was born in 1970 in Hanover, where he later worked in a managerial position at a bank. He served as a referee for 25 years, 15 of those with the DFB in professional football with over 200 games, and from 2008-2011 as a FIFA referee on an international level. An impressive career that nevertheless ended abruptly. It ended due to a suicide attempt by Babak Rafati, just before a Bundesliga match in November 2011, which shocked the public worldwide and the entire Bundesliga. This desperate act was the result of depression, triggered by performance pressure and bullying. This is not only a problem in top-level sports but rather a societal phenomenon in our professional world, affecting everyone today, including strong leaders.

In 2012, he consequently ended his career. After his recovery, his best-selling book titled “Ich pfeife auf den Tod” was released in March 2013.

The main reason for this: Rafati wants to raise awareness and simultaneously have a preventive impact. He wants to support all those who feel similarly, who have lost strength and zest for life and suffer from exhaustion. To be a role model by showing how not to do it. But also how he got back up, coming back from rock bottom and reinventing his life.

He himself says he is the same Rafati, but with a fundamentally different outlook on life. Rafati will give your event a unique touch, not least because he knows what he is talking about, in a self-critical and candid manner. His success rate: The high number of participants who start to rethink and take action after the lecture, as well as an incredibly large wave of positive feedback. A healthy company needs healthy employees, and how to achieve this, Mr. Rafati can convey at your event in an unparalleled way with his strategies. “Healthy reaction to unhealthy circumstances.”