Elite Association Football Referee Training and Officiating: A Comparative Analysis of Refereeing Practices in Three European Leagues Thomas Webb ‘The thesis is submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the award of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy of the University of Portsmouth.’ November 2014 Abstract Association Football referees have been an under researched subject within the social sciences. Association Football more generally, has been researched more extensively, whereas ‘the referee’ has been the subject of research in the natural sciences, most notably in physiology and psychology. As a result of this lack of attention from social scientists little is known about elite referees, their historical evolution, development pathways and structures, training, match preparation and performance. This PhD thesis offers a comparative analysis of elite refereeing in three countries namely England, Spain and Italy. The thesis provides a comparative analysis of elite refereeing in the domestic leagues identified, as well as UEFA and FIFA and offers a detailed series of recommendations, designed to inform, develop and improve elite refereeing in European and world football. Initially the thesis utilises an historical approach in order to outline and analyse the inception and early development of refereeing prior to the codification of Association Football in 1863, paying particular attention to referee training, assessment and support until the modern day. Empirical research is also employed in the form of semi-structured interviews with elite referees and those involved with the management, administration and training of these referees. The cultural differences that exist between the leagues, players, fans and media that operate within those leagues are considered as is the impact of UEFA and FIFA and the focus on standardisation and uniformity across domestic countries, principally driven by UEFA and FIFA. This thesis has identified significant aspects of difference in practice between individual referees and the systems that they operate within, contrary to objectives connected with the uniformity and standardisation of match officials. Table of Contents CHAPTER 1 – INTRODUCTION: THE RESEARCH FOCUS ................................................................ 2 JUSTIFICATION AND RATIONALE FOR THE RESEARCH ............................................................................... 2 RESEARCH, ASSOCIATION FOOTBALL AND REFEREEING .......................................................................... 7 STRUCTURE OF THE THESIS ................................................................................................................... 8 CHAPTER 2 – REFEREEING IN ASSOCIATION FOOTBALL: KEY EVENTS AND SIGNIFICANT DEVELOPMENTS UNTIL 1900 ............................................................................................................ 10 EARLY FORMS OF FOOTBALL ................................................................................................................ 10 INITIAL DEVELOPMENT OF RULE MAKING AND THE NEED FOR AN ARBITRATOR ........................................ 13 FOOTBALL, RULES AND THE PUBLIC SCHOOL INFLUENCE ....................................................................... 14 THE USE OF UMPIRES OUTSIDE THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS .......................................................................... 17 ‘UMPIRES’ AND ‘REFEREES’ IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF ASSOCIATION FOOTBALL ...................................... 19 THE FORMATION OF THE FOOTBALL LEAGUE ......................................................................................... 21 EMERGENCE OF THE REFEREE AND THE TRANSFORMATION OF POWER .................................................. 22 VIOLENCE, GAME MANAGEMENT AND SUPPORT FOR REFEREES ............................................................ 23 THE FA REFEREES’ COMMITTEE AND THE REFEREE’S UNION (ASSOCIATION) REFORMED ....................... 29 CHAPTER 3 – THE DEVELOPMENT OF REFEREEING (I): FROM PROFESSIONALISATION TO PAYMENT ............................................................................................................................................. 33 THE INTRODUCTION OF REFEREE CLASSIFICATIONS ............................................................................. 33 AMATEUR AND PROFESSIONAL CLASS-BASED STRUGGLES .................................................................... 38 THE ‘PROFESSIONAL’ REFEREE AND THE GROWTH OF ASSOCIATION FOOTBALL ..................................... 44 REFEREES AS AN OCCUPATIONAL GROUPING: DIVISIONS AND DIFFICULTIES ........................................... 47 PAYMENT FOR REFEREES .................................................................................................................... 48 FIFA, REFEREEING AND THE ENGLISH REPRESENTATIVES ..................................................................... 50 CHAPTER 4 – THE DEVELOPMENT OF REFEREEING (II): THE IMPORTANCE OF TRAINING, ASSESSMENT AND STRUCTURE ..................................................................................................... 55 ADVISING THE REFEREES – GUIDANCE FROM GOVERNING BODIES ........................................................ 55 THE FA MEMORANDUM, 1935 – FOR THE GUIDANCE OF REFEREES AND LINESMEN ................................ 57 THE NATIONAL REFEREES CONFERENCE 1946 – A CONCERTED FOCUS ON REFEREE TRAINING, EXAMINATION AND PROMOTION ............................................................................................................ 61 REFEREE TRAINING, ASSESSMENT AND PROMOTION 1945-1950 ........................................................... 63 REFEREE GRADING, ASSESSMENT AND APPOINTMENTS 1950-1960 ...................................................... 66 ASSESSORS, TRAINING COURSES AND REFEREE FITNESS ..................................................................... 69 THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE FA AND THE RA ............................................................................... 72 FURTHER TRAINING, PROMOTION AND ASSESSMENT: 1960-1980 .......................................................... 74 ADMINISTRATION OF TRAINING AND REFEREE FITNESS FROM THE 1970S ............................................... 76 CHAPTER 5 – RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS ....................................................................... 82 INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................................... 82 CONDUCTING THE RESEARCH PROCESS: STRENGTHS, WEAKNESSES AND LIMITATIONS ............................. 83 PARTICIPANTS AND SAMPLE ................................................................................................................. 87 RESEARCH DESIGN, METHODS AND CHOICE OF ANALYSIS .................................................................... 89 CONTENT ANALYSIS............................................................................................................................. 97 BUILDING TRUST/TRUSTWORTHINESS AND CREDIBILITY ......................................................................... 98 CONFIDENTIALITY AND ETHICS ............................................................................................................. 99 CONCLUSION ..................................................................................................................................... 100 CHAPTER 6 – REFEREE STRUCTURES AND SUPPORT: THE MODERN GAME OF ASSOCIATION FOOTBALL............................................................................................................... 101 REFEREEING IN ENGLAND IN 2014 – CURRENT DEVELOPMENT PATHWAYS .......................................... 101 THE NATIONAL REFEREE DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME ........................................................................ 105 THE ‘FAST TRACK’ PROGRAMME ........................................................................................................ 107 MANAGING THE ‘FAST-TRACK’ PROGRAMME ........................................................................................ 109 ELITE STRUCTURE OF REFEREEING IN ENGLAND ................................................................................. 112 ‘PROFESSIONAL’ OR ‘FULL-TIME’ REFEREES ....................................................................................... 113 PHYSICAL TRAINING AND FITNESS ........................................................................................................ 117 CURRENT REFEREES: A PHYSICAL COMPARISON WITH PLAYERS ......................................................... 126 IMPROVEMENT IN FITNESS LEVELS – AN ENGLISH EXAMPLE ................................................................ 130 MANAGING ELITE REFEREES IN ENGLAND ........................................................................................... 136 REFEREEING STRUCTURES IN ITALY ................................................................................................... 139 PATHWAYS AND PROMOTION IN THE ITALIAN SYSTEM ........................................................................... 142 REFEREEING STRUCTURES IN SPAIN .................................................................................................. 143 PATHWAYS AND PROMOTION IN THE SPANISH SYSTEM ......................................................................... 146 PROMOTION OF REFEREES ................................................................................................................ 148 CHAPTER 7 – REFEREES’