Mt. Diablo Soccer Association (MDSA Region 223)
Referee Abuse Zero-Tolerance Policy
The MT. DIABLO SOCCER Board and Referee Administrator are well aware that all referees will make mistakes. All adults associated with MT. DIABLO SOCCER should always remember that we are modeling our behavior – at all times – for our children and that includes how we treat and behave toward referees. Recent notoriety – and violence – by out-of-control spectators, parents and abusive coaches requires that the MT. DIABLO SOCCER Board of Directors adopt the following policy and to require all coaches and parents to read this policy and sign and acknowledge that they have done so. It is the expectation that coaches will notify all team parents of this policy at the team meeting or via some other means of communication and will ensure that all coaches and parents read and sign individual copies of this policy. Coaches are expected to return their complete set for all coaches and parents associated with their teams. Ignorance of this policy will not be an excuse for referee abuse or any subsequent dismissal from the field of play.
Specifically, the No Tolerance Policy provides that:
- It is inappropriate for anyone to verbally contest a referee’s decision and all concerns should be voiced in a civil fashion at an appropriate time.
- It is the coach’s responsibility to control all spectators associated with his/her team and failure to do so will result in the coach and/or spectator(s) being warned and possibly sent away from the field of play.
Categories of Abuse (from coaches or spectators):
Level 1 Abuse (A warning / caution may be warranted): Reactive comments that are loud enough to be heard by any of the referee crew and that negatively impacts their performance. This includes comments that dictate actions the spectator, coach or players believe the referee should take or should not take such as: “that’s a foul!”, “handball!”, “offside!”.
Level 2 Abuse: (Immediate ejection of offending party):
- Words or actions that imply the referee is biased towards or against a player, coach, or team. Comments such as: “Call it both ways!”, “You have got to be kidding me ref!”, “Who’s paying you?!”.
- Language or actions that reference the race, ethnicity, gender or sexual orientation of the referees/players/coaches.
- Any acts that make the referees/players/coaches feel unsafe in the environment.
In all cases of cautions or removals the referee will record the incident with the offender’s name on the game card, photos the game card, and report the incident to the referee administrator. Offending coaches and/or spectators may be subject to additional sanctions, including removal as coaches or a prohibition on attending matches by the offending spectator.
