Finding the best gifts for referees can be tough. After all, different leagues have their own requirements, and sports officials have their own unique tastes and needs. Referee Store was founded by referees, so we can help!  We’ve organized these gifts by sport for your convenience, but many of our products would work great for any sport, as long as you shop in the right category. For example, soccer and basketball officials both use whistles, but it’s important to buy whistles made specifically for each sport because they’ll have unique designs and tones.  Make this Christmas the b ..read more

During a recent Barclays Premier League match between Burnley and Chelsea, Burnley striker Ashley Barnes and Chelsea midfielder Nemanja Matic were involved in a controversial tackle in the Burnley attacking half of the field. As Barnes passed the ball to a teammate, Matic came from a 90 degree angle and cut across Barnes, and deflected the pass.  Barnes studs then made full contact with Matic’s leg, which resulted in Matic falling to the ground. After a delay of 1-2 seconds, Matic quickly got up, rushed over and pushed Barnes to the ground.  It was clear that Matic was upset about w ..read more

With all due apologies to Eddie Floyd, today we look at a case study where a player clearly raises a hand to the face of another player.  The fact that this is a sending off really shouldn’t be open for debate (the ignorant protests of commentator Danny Mills notwithstanding).  It’s what the US Soccer Federation refers to as “100% Misconduct” and must result in a send off. What is more intriguing for those of us who referee (well) below the Premier League level to consider is whether a similar issue in one of our matches could be avoided. You’ll have to wait until about half way thro ..read more

When we train new referees, we often tell them this about being an assistant referee: “if you’re doing your job as an assistant referee, you’ll miss most of the match”. Among their several duties, the trailing assistant referee provides eyes behind the back of the referee, spotting off the ball nonsense that the referee may not see.  As such, it is imperative that ARs not get caught “ball watching”. FIFA Assistant Referee Peter Kirkup illustrates this brilliantly when he spots violent conduct on the pitch, behind the back of Referee Craig Pawson. Just as coaches tell defenders, we tell ne ..read more

At the end of the Premier League 2013/14 season, I started work on a video to celebrate my choice for Referee of the Year.  For any number of reasons, I got distracted and completely forgot about the project. I recently re-discovered it and decided to go ahead and finish it.  So, here it is, more than a little bit late. Whether or not you agree with my selection, I thought it would be kind of cool to celebrate refereeing with the kind of high energy video highlights that are typically reserved for players. Enjoy.  I had fun making it ..read more

It has come time to close down In The Opinion Of The Referee. It’s been a great run, going all the way back to 2011, when the site first launched. I’ve learned a lot and enjoyed every minute of it. But we’ve reached the point where the phrase that became the name of the site is no longer found in the Laws of the Game, and may of the case studies posted here probably contain out-of-date advice. Maintaining a website is a LOT of work, so kudos to all who do it and manage to hold down a day job (and referee). May your whistles be loud and your coaches silent ..read more

Hello fellow referees.  It has been quite a while since I posted anything new here.  I continue to be surprised at how much traffic the site still receives. Please note that almost all of the case studies here were posted prior to the major rewrite of the Laws of the Game in 2016.  I believe there is still a lot of good advice here, but some of the actions taken by referees would be different given the changes to the Laws. This is especially the case for case studies involving denying an obvious goal scoring opportunity (DOGSO).  So read on, but if something doesn’t sound right, check your LOT ..read more