By Richard Davis
I was at an early-round Chatham Cup tie in a provincial town this season.
About 100 spectators turned up, dotted around the pitch.
The home team had invited some of the club juniors up to be ball boys. They beamed as they walked onto the pitch before the game, lining up to shake hands “just like on TV”.
As the game progressed into the second half, both teams and their technical areas were unhappy with some of the referee calls, and were vocal about it. Players and coaches on both sides traded insults.
A few beers in, some passionate “supporters” on both sides hurled abuse at the referee.
On the pitch, a fight broke out between several players, resulting in a player being sent off.
More ‘colourful’ language from the sideline.
Afterwards, the parents of the juniors thanked the coach for the invitation but said they wouldn’t bring their kids back to that environment.
Poor sideline behaviour and referee abuse isn’t a new problem. It’s not just football, nor is it just New Zealand.
But does that make it OK? Does that make it something we have to just put up with?
And do we, as a football community, even agree we have a problem?
I’ve called out what I’ve seen as bad behaviour face-to-face before. I’ve encountered more defensiveness than apologies.
I’ve been told “that’s football, mate” and “guess you’ve never been to an EPL game then”.
The other one I’ve heard is “it’s just banter”.
What is banter?
Can we just check in for a second and make sure we all know what banter is?
Sure, it might mean different things to different people, and maybe even change depending on the context … but the dictionary tells us banter is “the playful and friendly exchange of teasing remarks.”
So, in a football context, banter might include:
- “Ref, do you need new glasses?”
- “Hey, ref, shall I get you a map?”
But personal insults, attacks, and threats—that’s where I believe we cross the line from banter to abuse.
Personal attacks include:
- “You’re the worst referee we’ve ever seen!”
- “You’re a disgrace, you idiot!”
Abuse can easily turn to threats: “You better watch your back after this game, ref.”
One sideline insult I heard at the recent game was: “You’re a f$$kn pussy, ref”.
Hardly banter. It’s not clever, it’s not witty, and it doesn’t make our sport appealing, inclusive or fun.
Would you say the same thing if the ref was your child? Your parent?
Is it the context?
For those who tell me “that’s football” or suggest I should go to an EPL game; can I suggest that maybe what’s acceptable at a large football stadium with thousands of spectators is not appropriate for a provincial town?
Essentially, context matters.
Those of a certain age will remember the 2006 “Togs, togs, undies” Trumpet ad from 2006. If you don’t – watch it.
Essentially, speedos are acceptable clothing when you are on a beach. Wear speedos in the middle of a supermarket, however, and it’s no longer appropriate or culturally acceptable.
Going to watch a football match in a crowded stadium may be a different experience for spectators and participants than watching a local league match (or a Chatham Cup game) on a Saturday afternoon.
In a stadium, the referee and officials are much further away from the crowd, and unlikely to hear individual comments, or even the specifics of the chants. Security staff are on hand to ensure players and officials are protected.
A local league match might separate the linesman from the supporters by a rope but he or she is still close enough to be touched, and definitely to hear everything that is said.
Even in stadiums we have Fan Zones – the areas marked out for the passionate fans.
Buying tickets in those areas means chanting, colourful language and probably standing for the whole game. If you don’t want that, you have the choice to buy somewhere else.
Abuse can still be damaging, even if fired from the anonymity of a computer keyboard.
In its efforts to combat hate speech, FIFA have rolled out software to protect players, coaches and officials from online abuse.
Since its launch in late 2022, the software has analysed 30 million posts and comments aimed at 3,381 players and 160 teams across 11 FIFA events, including tournaments, qualifiers and friendlies.
The service has blocked 2.6 million abusive comments. The most violent examples — 30,883 of them — have been reported to social media platforms for action, including account suspensions.
READ MORE: ‘FIFA will always stand against hate being part of football’ — Gianni Infantino >>>>
This is a game
This is a game. It’s a game we love, and a game we are passionate about.
But it’s a game. Some days you’ll win, and some days you will lose.
Yes, a bad call can have financial implications for players and club. Yes, incorrect calls can change the course of a game.
But referees are human, and they are doing their best.
If VAR in the Premier League, with all the money and resources they have, can make mistakes, surely we can give some grace to our part-time referees?
What happens when we continue to abuse our referees?
In July 2022, WaiBOP Football’s referee appointments officer, Brett Chibnall, wrote an open letter, calling on the football community to unite to combat “the cancer that is dissent and abuse.”
Chibnall, who has more than 50 years’ experience as a player, coach, referee and referees’ coach, said the game was losing referees at an alarming rate.
“We are all the problem, and we can all be part of the solution. Please let us start to save our game,” he urged.
READ MORE: Referee’s open letter: ‘It’s time we worked together to save our game’ >>>>
The reality for most of New Zealand is that we don’t have enough referees. Every weekend, some games in some adult leagues need to provide their own referee.
Shall we face up to the fact we don’t have enough referees partly because of the abuse we give them?
Who wants to go to work and be subjected to abuse for 90 minutes?
Some referees refuse to go to some football grounds because the players, support staff and spectators are so vile.
Can we change?
Calling out inappropriate behaviour can be difficult, and feel awkward.
But some clubs appear more willing than others to tackle situations.
A good example is Auckland club Takapuna who confronted poor sideline behaviour by spectators last year when their president addressed the issues in his aftermatch comments.
The club followed up with a website warning, under the heading “Abuse is never just ‘good banter’”.
Takapuna highlighted NZ Football’s Code of Conduct, providing online links to the document that sets out to “encourage fair, ethical treatment of all persons and organisations”.
The code says that conduct includes respecting the rights, dignity, and worth of others, and football participants should be fair, considerate, and honest in all dealings with others.
When was the last time you saw the code at a club? Or saw it brought to the attention of those attending matches?
READ MORE: NZF’s Code of Conduct >>>>
Main photo credit: Jackson Simmer on Unsplash
This story was first published on July 16, 2024.
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