‘Respect the Ref ’ drive highlights safety fears
FIGURES have shown that 90 per cent of abuse experienced by grassroots referees have gone under-reported, but there have been instances when local football associations have campaigned against it through open letters and social media.
The season so far has seen referee strikes, officials withdrawn for their own safety, teams expelled from tournaments and some leagues refusing to provide referees for games.
The treatment meted out to them and the concern about their protection at the grassroots level have forced officials to leave the sport and take up another professions.
In recent months there have been several letters and posts from county football associations which have gone viral, warning coaches, players and parents about their conduct. There are videos on social media of abuses the officials have to go through during matches.
The Football Association (FA) recently launched a ‘Respect the Ref’ campaign that wants “parents, players, spectators, coaches and everyone else” to see the game from an official’s perspective.
Simon Mahomed, who has 20 years of experience refereeing, told BBC Sport: “I have been racially abused, sworn at, had flags thrown at me, players ranting and raving, you know the usual.
“A few weeks ago, I did a game and the abuse was constant. When I got home I said to myself, ‘Why am I even doing this?’”
He is not the first referee to have questioned his choices.
“You don’t give a decision, you get eight or nine players surrounding you and that shouldn’t be part of the game,” Mahomed said.
“[But] that’s not to say every game is a bad one, it’s the minority. We are a valuable asset within grassroots football and without a referee there can be no game,” he added.
“Being a referee, it’s amazing. It gives me a challenge. It gives me an ability to switch off from a normal 9-5 job. It gives me a freedom. And it’s a chance to give something back to the community.”
The FA’s official figures show that of the 850,000 grassroots fixtures in England during the 2019-2020 season, there were 77 reported cases of assault on a referee. A spokesperson told BBC Sport: “We are clear that all forms of abuse, whether on or off the pitch, are completely unacceptable, and we will continue to do everything we can to stamp out this behaviour.
“The FA works very closely with our 50 county FAs around the country to recruit, retain, support and develop the referee workforce to service the game.
“The retention of all referees is crucial and this remains a priority as part of the FA’s wider Respect campaign.”