Euro Cup Won't Tolerate Player Behavior
The referees for the Euro German Cup will only explain their decisions to the team captains during the matches, and any other player who approaches the referee showing signs of disrespect or disagreement will be cautioned, UEFA announced.
The organization released a document signed by Italian Roberto Rosetti, UEFA's head of refereeing, stating that UEFA wants referees to explain their decisions more to all teams, and that the decision to act this way is an
attempt to improve the status quo.
"How will we do it? The idea is simple: we ask that all teams ensure their captain is the only player who speaks with the referee. We ask captains to ensure their teammates do not invade or surround the referee, allowing for direct conversations so decisions are transmitted in a timely and respectful manner," it states.
Rosetti insists that only the captain of the team wishing to discuss a decision may approach the referee, and it is the captain's responsibility to ensure their teammates respect the referee, keep their distance, and do not surround them.
"Any teammate who disregards the role of their captain and/or approaches the referee showing any signs of disrespect or disagreement will receive a yellow card. If the captain is a goalkeeper, a field player must be designated to fulfill this role in case an incident occurs at the opposite end of the field," he adds.
Rosetti explains that officials will be encouraged to be open in their conversations with captains "to foster a healthy environment among all parties," to build trust with players and show the type of leadership required of modern officials. Additionally, UEFA's refereeing specialists and a tournament referee, if possible, will meet with each of the 24 teams to discuss this in more detail.
"Adopting this approach and empowering referees will lead to an increase in the already high quality of refereeing in our competitions and better matches for players and fans to enjoy during the tournament. If we can facilitate constructive dialogue between referees and team captains, we will all benefit and leave a positive legacy for the future of the sport," says Rosetti.
In his writing, he emphasizes that "explaining a decision with 22 players hounding you is impossible for a referee," who makes between 200 and 250 decisions per match, one every 22 seconds, and that there may be a breakdown in communication, which could damage football's image.
"We want referees with strong personalities who make and stand by decisions - which can sometimes be unpopular - on the field, but at the same time, we want them to be more open and explain what led them to make certain decisions. They receive a lot of information from the Video Assistant Referee (VAR), and we are willing to talk and share more details with players and coaches to help them understand how a decision was made," he added, recalling that both coaches and players support this new approach.
