Premier League, EFL & FA introduce new player behaviour rules
Last updated on .From the section Football
Plans designed to reduce "intolerable behaviour" by players and managers in English football have been announced.
In a statement, the Premier League, English Football League and Football Association said poor conduct has reached "unacceptable levels".
Starting this season, red cards will be issued to players who confront match officials and use offensive language or make gestures towards them.
Behaviour within the technical areas will also be more rigorously enforced.
Not one player has been sent off in the Premier League for insulting or abusive language towards a match official in the past five seasons.
But Premier League chairman Richard Scudamore said there has been concern "for some time" that players have been "overstepping the mark".
"It is our collective position that these types of behaviour should no longer be tolerated," he added.
"Things happen in the heat of the moment during fast and highly competitive football. We still want to see the passion fans enjoy and demand, but players and managers have to be aware there are lines that should not be crossed."
Offences which could earn players a yellow card
- Visibly disrespectful behaviour to any match official
- An aggressive response to decisions
- Confronting an official face to face
- Running towards an official to contest a decision
- Offensive, insulting or abusive language and/or gestures towards match officials
- Physical contact with any match official in a non-aggressive manner
- A yellow card for at least one player when two or more from a team surround a match official
New red card offences
- If a player confronts match officials and uses offensive, insulting or abusive language and/or gestures towards them
- Physical contact with match officials in an aggressive or confrontational manner
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Hope managers will back the officials and authorities here.
It may well be at the start we see multiple red cards a game. Good. As long as they stick with it football might start to very slowly change it's image.
You have no right to abuse a ref cos you think you know better. 90% of the abuse refs get are for decisions that are actually correct.
Take your blinkers off and grow up.
Footballers are seen as role models (rightly or wrongly). Yet, they constantly claim for every throw in and corner (even if they kicked it out); roll on the ground like they've been shot; try to claim penalties at every turn.
Maybe this will help the beautiful game regain a little of its looks!
This should have happened years ago, ref's have been too tolerable for far too long now. I've even seen it in under 10's football, and when you tell the lads off for it they don't realise it was wrong in the first place because they see it on TV.
Well done..........................finally!
This is nothing like Rugby; wendyball players should have nothing to do with the ref unless called to be given a card. Captains only should be allowed to speak to match officials - and that should be done with respect.
1. Only the captain should be able to approach the referee.
2. If players want to raise an issue they go through their captain.
3. No player is allowed to address an official unless the official asks to talk to them first.
Yellow card for breach of any of the above.
Well your the exact type of neanderthal that needs to be kicked out the sport. I hope you spend many happy hours on the sidelines next season.
Absolutely brilliant and I hope it is fully enforced. It's so easy to cut this out and over time it will then filter down through to grass roots. You won't have 10 year old son thinking it's acceptable to shout at the ref.
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Can we extend it to cover sending off the fathers of 10 year olds too so that they realise abusive language in front of 2 teams of kids is unacceptable?