Referees could soon temporarily halt matches and issue "cooling off periods" to combat hostility on the pitch. According to a recent report by The Times, the proposed rule change is part of an upcoming International Football Association Board (IFAB) meeting. IFAB helps set official rules for soccer. The introduction of cooling-off periods would potentially stop […]

Premier League referee Simon Hooper was left "devastated" after committing a crucial error in a recent match. PGMOL chief Howard Webb, who oversees the officiating board for the Premier League, revealed the news on Tuesday. The former referee now helps determine officials for each of the Premier League's games. Hooper was in charge of a […]

Every week, there is a new Video Assistant Referee (VAR) controversy. The debate regarding the protocol reached its pinnacle during a fiasco involving Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur in September. The Reds were wrongly denied a goal due to "human error" and ultimately lost the match. Following that, the latest VAR debacles occurred within the last […]

Spanish police are continuing their investigation into the suspected corruption case against Barcelona. The Catalan club, and two of its previous presidents, faced charges of corruption for alleged payments to a former LaLiga referee. Barca has completely denied the allegations and insisted that the payments were for referee reports. Nevertheless, a Barcelona court document released […]

Offside decisions are regularly some of the most debated topics when it comes to the sport of soccer. After all, these calls by referees can come down to mere millimeters on the pitch. This means that exciting and important goals can, and tend to be, chalked off for minuscule infractions. FIFA, with help from the […]

In a new way to provide more transparency on major refereeing decisions in the Premier League, officials are releasing audio conversations from referees during matches. Howard Webb, the current referee chief of the Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL), has introduced a new show surrounding these audio discussions. Match Officials Mic'd Up features Webb as […]

Former Premier League referee Mike Dean has admitted that he purposely avoided correcting a mistake during a match last season while on VAR duty. The now retired official made the claim while on the Up Front podcast with Simon Jordan. According to Dean, he failed to ask match referee Anthony Taylor to review an incorrect […]

Bolton Wanderers manager Ian Evatt picked up a red card late in the side's 3-1 victory against Fleetwood on Tuesday for illegal use of technology. No, he did not show bad behavior or throw out any abusive language. Instead, referees kicked Evatt out of the match for telling the fourth official that he made a […]

Former Premier League referee Lee Mason has reportedly been re-hired by Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) this summer. Mason previously stepped down as a match referee earlier in the year after a serious mistake while on duty. While he may not return to the sidelines, PGMOL has brought back Mason to train referees. Mail […]

New rules regarding time-wasting tactics are set to be implemented in England ahead of the 2023/24 season. The Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) has announced that they will tweak how they gauge added time for the upcoming campaign. This new focus will affect English Football League (EFL) and Premier League matches. The Guardian reports […]

UEFA's use of a semi-automated technology for spotting offside violations has debuted in Champions League play.  The governing body of soccer in Europe previously announced the decision to use the fresh technology earlier in the summer. "UEFA is constantly looking for new technological solutions to improve the game and support the work of the referees," […]

Paris (AFP) – UEFA announced Wednesday that "semi-automated offside technology" will be used from the group stage of this season's Champions League as well as in next week's Super Cup. The optical tracking system was trialled at the FIFA Club World Cup in Abu Dhabi in February and last year's Arab Cup. FIFA have confirmed […]

Soccer can be a beautiful game, but refereeing is often ugly. When referees apply loose constructionism to the rule book, consistency suffers. Players like to know what they can and can’t get away with. Erratic refereeing decisions foster player and manager rebellion. Emotionally-laden decisions rooted in a subjective sense of “what’s good for the game” […]

Mark Geiger is the first American referee to be selected to officiate at a World Cup since Brian Hall was selected in 2002. So far in this tournament Geiger and his two assistants Sean Hurd and Joe Fletcher are the only crew to have been appointed to two games. It is also worth noting that […]

After the interesting and exciting week of Champions League football in both UEFA & CONCACAF, there are those that are still asking questions about referee decisions, and of course demanding repercussions for those actions against certain sides that fell victim to it. I think the main questions we are asking ourselves when it comes to […]