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Often vilified, but oh so necessary because without him or her nothing is possible. In the old days he or she was the one who led the game in spotless black. Nowadays also often dressed in fluorescent colors to deviate from the colors of the two clubs fighting each other. Seen by some as necessary evil and not the most rewarding task in the sport. We are talking about the referee… The cliché that sings around players and staff says that he or she has more or less played an inconspicuous role in a match, because those are the best in their eyes. I partly agree with that statement, because some match situations require a special approach that only he or she can perform. Always argue. Despite the objectivity and neutrality, decisions are to the advantage of one and to the disadvantage of the other. In standard teams one may assume that neutrality, but in lower senior and/or youth soccer the game leader is someone from the home playing club. Sometimes this objectivity disappears and these decisions can be called colored, with some exceptions… Then there is the “phenomenon” border judge, nowadays called assistant referee. They can heavily influence the game by their flag signals and if there is one element that can lead to irritation and anger it is this one. Talk about colored. A foul on one of “his,” whether or not offside, a ball just in front of or over the line, corner kick or goal kick; this can make all the difference. Either it costs points in a season or it earns points. They can seriously determine the course of a match and it is up to the referee to judge how reliable his assistants are. Is the referee the obedient type, does the referee whistle at appeals or does the referee make his meters and make decisions on his own observation? That sort of thing. With a referee headset you can always communicate with your assistants in a second to make sure you made the right decision, so you can improve yourself and the game.
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