FIFA referees chief Pierluigi Collina has urged the football community to take action against the rising abuse of match officials, which he described as ‘a cancer that kills football’. Collina made his remarks at an International Football Association Board (IFAB) meeting in London on Tuesday, where he also announced plans to trial sin bins and limit the number of players who can approach the referee.
Sin Bins to Improve Behaviour
Collina said that FIFA had approved a trial of 10-minute sin bins for ‘dissent and specific tactical offences’ at the higher levels of professional football. This would also mean that only captains can approach the referee in ‘certain major situations’, such as penalty decisions or red cards.
The aim of the trial is to improve the behaviour of players and coaches towards the officials, and to reduce the number of yellow and red cards. Collina said that the sin bin system had been successful in lower-level football, where it had been implemented since 2017.
He said: “We have seen very positive results in terms of the number of cautions and sendings-off, and also in terms of the respect shown by the players and the coaches to the referees.”
Abuse is ‘Unacceptable and Intolerable’
Collina also expressed his concern about the increasing abuse of referees, both at the grassroots and the elite level. He said that such abuse was ‘unacceptable and intolerable’, and that it could have serious consequences for the future of the game.
He said: “The World Cup is the most important tournament on earth in our sport with the best players in the world. It would be a shame if some of these players wouldn’t be able to play due to an injury caused by an opponent. So the first message to our referees is to protect the players’ safety.”
He added: “But we also have to protect the referees’ safety. Because this might be the cancer that kills football. If we don’t have referees, we don’t have football.”
Collina showed video footage of some of the dangerous and violent challenges that referees had to deal with, and said that they would not hesitate to show red cards to any player who endangered an opponent or an official.
He said: “It is irrelevant that the player didn’t want to hit the opponent – simply by making this intervention it puts the opponent in a very, very risky position. Again this is unacceptable if we want to protect the safety of an opponent.”
He also condemned the use of elbows in aerial duels, saying that they were ‘absolutely unacceptable’ and could cause serious injuries.
Women Referees to Make History
Collina also confirmed that three women referees – France’s Stephanie Frappart, Rwanda’s Salima Mukansanga and Japan’s Yoshimi Yamashita – would make history by officiating at the men’s World Cup in Qatar next year.
He said that they were selected on merit, and that they would be treated as equals to their male counterparts.
He said: “For us they are referees. This is the message I gave them…you are not here because you are women, you are here because you are FIFA match officials.”
He said that he was confident that they would perform well, and that they would inspire more women to take up refereeing.
He said: “They are role models for many young girls who might decide to follow their example and try to become a referee.”
