Clampdown on player and coach behaviour paying off with increased bookings for dissent reducing incidents
An 88 per cent increase in yellow cards for dissent has led to big reductions in players surrounding referees and mass confrontations; a harder line on coaches has also reduced technical area misconduct; PGMOL chief Howard Webb encouraged by early results
Wednesday 13 December 2023 18:25, UK
A tougher line from match officials on dissent from players and coaches has reduced incidents of players surrounding referees and mass confrontations.
Through the Premier League, EFL and FA competitions, there has been a collective approach to empower referees to take a stronger stand against poor behaviour this season.
This has led to a sharp increase in yellow cards issued for dissent - up 88 per cent - compared to the same period last season.
That is connected to a 37 per cent decrease in charges for surrounding referees, a 43 per cent decrease in charges for mass confrontations and a 10 per cent reduction in technical area misconduct.
Howard Webb, Chief Refereeing Officer at PGMOL, said: "We were empowered and supported by the game to be more robust with our actions to address declining behaviour. A culture change won't happen overnight and it is early days, but we are moving in the right direction and our officials are successfully delivering on our part of the collective football effort to reset behaviours, protect the reputation and promote the positive image of the game for the next generations.
"It has been encouraging to see improvements in some behaviours already and the aim is that cautions for dissent decrease significantly to a much lower level in time as this culture change takes effect. That is the real indication of the progress, and with the power of example being so strong, we all have a continued duty to hold firm for the benefit of the game's future."
The results in full
The above figures include all fixtures from the beginning of each respective league in the 2023/24 season up to and including fixtures on the weekend of Sunday December 3 - a total of 3,633 Matches. They apply to the Premier League, Championship, League One, League Two, National League (steps 1 -4), Women's Super League and Women's Championship.
Misconduct Cases
- 37 per cent decrease in charges for surrounding of a match official (from 19 to 12 charges)
- 43 per cent decrease in charges for mass confrontations (from 61 to 35 charges)
- 10 per cent decrease in charges for technical area misconduct (from 70 to 63 charges)
Match Discipline
- 88 per cent increase in dissent cautions for players (from 966 to 1,813 cautions)
In addition, a new Participant Charter came into effect at the start of the season for players, managers, coaches, support staff and club officials to adhere to on a matchday and is in place across Premier League, EFL, National League System (Steps 1-4), Barclays Women's Super League, and Barclays Women's Championship.
Trevor Birch, CEO of the EFL and PGMOL Board Member welcomed the initial results: "Without Match Officials, we have no game at all, so it is imperative the game does all it can to support them so that they can do the job to the best of their ability.
"In the close season it was clear that we had to try and tackle the surrounding of officials, dissent and inflammatory behaviour, so while it is far from perfect, it is encouraging to see that a tougher application of the rules has led to a decrease in unwanted incidents.
"More broadly, we all have a responsibility to ensure that we treat our match officials with the respect that they deserve. Across the world we are seeing troubling incidents with referees abused, assaulted and intimidated at all levels of the game. This is not unlinked to the behaviour and reactions we see on the pitch and while these drops are encouraging, there is still more to do."
Premier League CEO Richard Masters said: "We are pleased to see real progress made in the management of on-field and technical area behaviour so far in the Premier League this season," Premier League Chief Executive Richard Masters said.
"Professional football sets an example to those who play and watch the game at all levels, so it is encouraging to see this approach has already had a positive impact on our game.
"We will continue to back our match officials to deliver these stronger measures in the Premier League and recognise that this plays a big part in continuing to deliver a competitive and compelling competition for all."
Mark Bullingham, FA CEO added: "This season, English football came together to take a collective stance against unacceptable behaviour in our game. It's great to see that the new approach has made a positive impact on the season so far. We have seen a decrease in charges for surrounding of a match official, mass confrontations, technical area misconduct, and an increase in the number of cautions for dissent. This shows that our new approach is making an impact at the top of the pyramid, and we need to maintain this and ensure that these positive changes are carried through to the whole game."
