In some cases, criticism of referees massively oversteps the boundaries. In the football talk Heimspiel, top referee Urs Schnyder, referee boss Daniel Wermelinger and blue Sport expert Alex Frei talk about it.
No time? blue Sport summarizes for you
- Urs Schnyder, top Swiss referee, talks to blue Sport referee boss Dani Wermelinger and former national team star Alex Frei about hostility towards referees in the football talk Heimspiel.
- Criticism and threats have piled up on social media. For blue Sport expert Alex Frei, this is a social development that is not right.
- The association is therefore working with lawyers. "We take legal action when it gets too much," says Wermelinger. "These people have to be consistently pursued and punished, even if there are legal consequences later on."
A referee's whistle can decide matches and reverberate far beyond the end of the game. Certain decisions trigger a firework of emotions among football fans. The discussions about right and wrong are colorful. Sometimes heated, sometimes loud, sometimes calm and determined. In some cases, the fireworks also sparked sparks that rained down uncontrollably on the referees.
"Did you split the money? ... Have a nice week you bastard, buy yourself a bulletproof vest," was once a handwritten message to a Swiss referee, which the Swiss football association blue Sport published anonymously.
At the football talk Heimspiel, referee Urs Schnyder, Swiss referee boss Daniel Wermelinger and blue Sport expert Alex Frei talk about criticism of referees that crosses borders.
Schnyder has also been confronted with hostility from outside. The top referee recounts an experience that got under his skin. A person once wished the Lucerne native dead. "It was a death threat between the lines," recalls the 38-year-old. These words were one of the worst things that had happened to him. "It really shakes you up." You think about what's going on inside a person who wishes you dead, especially as football is just a game at the end of the day.
Criticism has shifted to the far reaches of social media
Under the guise of social media, hostility towards referees has reached a new level. Wermelinger emphasizes that even when he was still an active referee (2005 to 2011), the referees were subjected to heavy emotional charges. Today, however, these are spreading beyond the stadium roofs and are increasingly being unloaded on social media.
As a result of this shift, the association is working with lawyers. "We take legal action when it gets too much," says Wermelinger. It's about being able to support the referees. "These people have to be consistently pursued and punished, even if there are legal consequences later on."
However, certain cases end with an apology instead of a legal process. Wermelinger talks about an incident when an apprentice posted a threatening message on social media. Discussions were sought with the person and the employer and the apprentice was given the chance to apologize. Wermelinger weighs up each situation. "It's a decision between legal repercussions or an invitation to make a statement."
Alarm bells are ringing for Alex Frei
For Frei, there are no two options in certain situations. The blue Sport expert speaks plainly: "It's a social development that is unacceptable. It should never be accepted anywhere. There are certain things that go beyond the guard rails and must be punished."
Schnyder consumes media very selectively to avoid criticism of the unbridled kind as much as possible. He blocks out news from games he is whistling and social media.
Meanwhile, the association will continue to keep an eye on when people cross certain boundaries with their criticism and their emotional sparks rain down on the referees.
