Best for:
Anyone interested in becoming a football (soccer – but I’ll be calling it football for the rest of the review) referee; anyone who enjoys watching football but isn’t actually clear on what the rules are; anyone who thinks its super easy to be a referee.
In a nutshell:
The official laws of the game of football, along with descriptions of rule changes, and practical advice for referees.
Worth quoting:
“The best positions is one from which the referee can make the correct decision.”
Why I chose it:
I am a new football referee (eight matches in as of today), and I wanted the tactile book of laws to consult, highlight, and go back to.
Review:
Watching Ted Lasso, the character Keeley makes mention at some point that she doesn’t really pay attention to what’s going on during the match, but knows to shout ‘referee’ in exasperation / anger when something doesn’t go her team’s way. I think anyone who watches football on TV or in person (including myself) has exclaimed at a perceived bad call.
I played football off and on for over 30 years, with my final season in goal ending in June of this year. Prior to that, I took and passed the referee course, because I knew I wanted to stay involved in football but couldn’t keep throwing my body on the ground week after week (I was a goal keeper). And let me tell you – being a referee is fucking HARD.
This book outlines the 17 laws (rules) of the most popular sport in the world. From the size of the pitch, to the ball, to the players, to offside and everything in between, these 100 pages describe what should be the same no matter where and when someone plays a game. In reality, as we all know, each referee uses their own experience and judgment to determine calls. Just today, for example, I refereed 14 year old girls. There was definitely some pushing, but fouling? Eh. But at one point I awarded a penalty to a team. The defenders lost it. At the end, the keeper told me I needed to go back to school to learn about penalties. And don’t get me started on trying to call offside without having assistant referees (shockingly, I do not have eyes in the back of my head).
While observers will think its super obvious what is a foul and what is not, or what is offside and what is not, the laws as discussed in this book are both crystal clear and dependent on the circumstances of the match. Is that a foul just because the person jostling for the ball is stronger than their opponent and so is using more force? Is someone actually being careless, or reckless (and thus needs to be cautioned, a.k.a. shown a yellow card)? And when a player loses it and cusses on the pitch, when should they be cautioned for dissent and when should I let it go because they are just expressing some frustration?
The laws cover the standard items, but also a lot of weird situations that possibly could come up. Like, there is an explanation for what to do if someone someone taking a corner kick manages to touch the ball a second time before anyone else … with their hand … in the opposite end of the pitch. Has this ever happened? It must have.
I appreciate that the book also includes explanations for changes to laws from the previous year, as well as tips on positioning and common sense, plus a glossary. Obviously I’m not going to whip it out during a match, but I’ll be reviewing it every week before matches.