Post by Golden_Boy™ on Jul 2, 2009 15:00:14 GMT -1
Uefa gives referees power to stop matches marred by racism
www.guardian.co.uk/football/2009/jul/02/uefa-anti-racism-measures-new
Uefa has approved new guidelines for match officials to deal with racist chants and anti-social behaviour in stadiums, which includes stopping the game.
The new rules, agreed today, would allow a referee to first stop a match and issue a warning over the public address system requesting that racist behaviour cease. If this does not work, he could suspend a game for five to 10 minutes.
"As a third and final step, if the racist behaviour does not cease after the game has restarted, the referee shall as a last resort, definitively abandon the match," Uefa said in a statement.
European football's governing body also decided that any consequences, such as forfeit, stadium suspension, fines or others, from any racism outbreak "will be dealt with by the Uefa disciplinary bodies".
A number of racist incidents have blighted matches in recent years and Uefa has often been criticised for imposing relatively minor fines and sanctions on the governing bodies of offending nations.
Uefa's executive committee will announce decisions on "financial fair play" at its next meeting in September and said clubs need to cut their spending.
A Uefa statement said: "The key principle on the road towards a fairer and more transparent game is that football should reward those clubs living within their means.
"This means that clubs shall need to reduce their spending. To be viable, salaries and transfers should be proportionate to the generated income. Clubs should invest in their youth sectors, and use their homegrown talent to reinforce their squads."
Uefa's general secretary, David Taylor, said the proposals would be discussed with clubs, players and leagues at the next meeting of the Professional Football Strategy Council at the end of next month.
It was also confirmed that an experiment with two additional assistant referees, one behind each goalline, would take place in this season's Europa League group stage.
The new rules, agreed today, would allow a referee to first stop a match and issue a warning over the public address system requesting that racist behaviour cease. If this does not work, he could suspend a game for five to 10 minutes.
"As a third and final step, if the racist behaviour does not cease after the game has restarted, the referee shall as a last resort, definitively abandon the match," Uefa said in a statement.
European football's governing body also decided that any consequences, such as forfeit, stadium suspension, fines or others, from any racism outbreak "will be dealt with by the Uefa disciplinary bodies".
A number of racist incidents have blighted matches in recent years and Uefa has often been criticised for imposing relatively minor fines and sanctions on the governing bodies of offending nations.
Uefa's executive committee will announce decisions on "financial fair play" at its next meeting in September and said clubs need to cut their spending.
A Uefa statement said: "The key principle on the road towards a fairer and more transparent game is that football should reward those clubs living within their means.
"This means that clubs shall need to reduce their spending. To be viable, salaries and transfers should be proportionate to the generated income. Clubs should invest in their youth sectors, and use their homegrown talent to reinforce their squads."
Uefa's general secretary, David Taylor, said the proposals would be discussed with clubs, players and leagues at the next meeting of the Professional Football Strategy Council at the end of next month.
It was also confirmed that an experiment with two additional assistant referees, one behind each goalline, would take place in this season's Europa League group stage.
www.guardian.co.uk/football/2009/jul/02/uefa-anti-racism-measures-new
