Last December, three American women — Tori Penso, Brooke Mayo and Katy Nesbitt — walked onto the field in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, to referee in the men’s FIFA Club World Cup. A half decade earlier, Saudi Arabia didn’t even allow women to attend games, and when the ban was lifted it segregated them into designated […]
referees
Posted inSoccer America Daily
In the News …
Seattle-based Ballard FC, the reigning USL League Two champion, has hired James Riley as its new head coach.
Posted inSoccer America Daily
Monday morning: What We’re Reading
MLS referees work stoppage ‘imminent.’
Posted inYouth Soccer Insider
Ref Watch: The Best of 2023. And is MLS Next Pro referees’ best hope?
As usual, the abuse of referees remained a big part of soccer officiating news in 2023.
Posted inSoccer America Confidential
Violence against referees — FIFA and Collina must act now
Following the brutal assault on referee Halil Umut Meler at the end of a Turkish top-flight game by the now former Ankaragucu president Faruk Koca, Pierluigi Collina has issued a call for action. The Chairman of the FIFA Referees Committee has declared that “it’s a responsibility for all those who love the ‘beautiful game’ to take action and […]
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What They're Saying: Pat Noonan
“I also would love to see some transparency and accountability with the officials. I’m talking about it, at some point Matt’s going to have the opportunity to talk about it. Lets have an official up here talking about what transpired so it’s not just transcript, it’s not just ‘here’s the report.’ We can move forward […]
Posted inSoccer America Daily
Thursday morning: What we're reading (and listening to)
1. Remembering Henry Kissinger, the soccer man and fan, from one celebratory night By Michael Lewis (Front Row Soccer)2. MLS could be be first pro league to trial ‘sin bins’ in soccer after lawmakers back trials By Matt Slater (The Athletic)3. A new pro soccer team for Milwaukee is still planned. The launch is delayed until […]
Posted inYouth Soccer Insider
Ref Watch: Rule-makers to tackle the dissent problem? We've heard that before.
A player so aggressively approaches a professional referee that the ref has to raise his arms in a protective gesture. If you think that referee would obviously yellow-card the player — for “dissent by word or action” — you’d be wrong. Tune in to games from around the world and in nearly each one you’ll […]
Posted inSoccer America Daily
Soccer rule-makers support sin-bin trial
Soccer’s rulemakers have recommended the trialing of sin bins in the professional game as part of a groundbreaking bid to clamp down on player misbehavior. Temporary dismissals of players for offenses such as dissent and tactical fouls were backed by the International Football Association Board (IFAB) at its annual business meeting in London on Tuesday. […]
Posted inSoccer America Daily
Tuesday morning: What we're reading (and listening to)
1. Offside? Handball? Christina Unkel on controversial MLS calls from the weekend (Morning Footy)2. Will Oscar Pareja stay or go? Orlando City’s future uncertain By Charles Boehm (MLSSoccer.com)3. This Mexican immigrant soccer agent wants women players to get more pay and less abuse By Eduard Cauich (Los Angeles Times)