Soccer News: The Importance of a Referee’s Presence
Keith Hackett started officiating on the sidelines in the 1960s in England and is considered one of the top 100 referees of all time in a list maintained by the International Federation of Football History and Statistics (IFFHS).
A FIFA referee, Hackett has had the honor of refereeing at some of the most important soccer matches in history including the FA Cup Final at Wembley and European Championships.
Hackett has also refereed countless EPL games of Manchester City, Manchester United, Arsenal, Everton, Liverpool, QPR, West Ham United as well as at the Olympics.
There is no doubt that when top professional referees, Clattenburg, Dean, Geiger and Oliver go about their duties on the field of play they have PRESENCE that one thing that sets them apart from others.
Presence is often mentioned but never defined as an attribute of a referee’s performance.
In defining Presence I would say that it is the projection of a referee’s positive personality using non-verbal communication.
Advice for Referees on How to Have Presence on the Pitch:
To enhance their presence referees need to be:
- Confident/Self Assured
- Decisive In Their Decision Making
- Demonstrate a Sense of Ease (Emotional Control)
- Enthusiasm
Presence is not a fixed definable quality but rather a process of continuous growth and change that takes place before the eyes of the players.
The challenge is to continually project the right image by being vitally aware of the signals you are sending to others.
The quality of presence is enhanced by the signals the referee sends but diminishes if any of the elements are not successfully transmitted (i.e.: there are different levels of presence. The better the referee is at transmitting these signals the more rewards he gets in easier match control)
Advice for Referees on How to Show Confidence:
- Body Posture
- Eye contact
- Nervous Mannerisms – Avoid these because it can transmit anxiety
- Control of Voice –Vary the tone and avoid sounding over aggressive or timid
Be very careful because confidence can border on arrogance.
Advice for Referees on How to Show Decisiveness
- The speed of decision making
- Sharpness of signals
- Correctness of action
- Ability/willingness to admit a mistake
- Early advantage and strong call
- Control of emotions -Slow to anger
- Appropriate visual response to incidents
- When to smile
- When to turn on the mongrel face
- Willingness to talk when appropriate
- Controlled urgency
It is also important as a Ref to show Empathy:
- Show empathy through your physical activity – That extra effort
So assessors when judging and advising referees please remember to make reference to this aspect of their performance in order to develop these skill sets into their performance.
Keith Hackett is also the author of You Are the Ref, the Ultimate Illustrated Guide to the Laws of Football and the new book, You Are the Umpire. The books are available on Amazon.com. The amazing illustrations are by Paul Trevillion.
You Are The Ref is a cult classic comic strip in England. SoccerToday is thrilled to bring this to our American soccer audience and share these stunning portraits of soccer stars from all eras. For anyone who has ever questioned a ref’s eyesight or grappled with a clearly ‘wrong’ call, now it is your turn!
According to David James, “Anyone who loves the game knows You Are The Ref. Paul Trevillion’s brilliant art has been around for generations!”
