The Portuguese Association of Football Referees (APAF) admitted this Wednesday, December 3rd, to proceed with a total stoppage of referees, if their proposals for the activity are not accepted by the sports authorities.
In a statement, entitled “red card to verbal violence”, APAF recalls the meeting with the Club League, on November 12, in which it presented “a set of proposals for regulatory changes” that it intends to see implemented this season, but accuses the organization’s response of “not meeting the expectations presented”.
“We announce that the referees will maintain and intensify the protest actions, until objective and effective measures are implemented in order to guarantee respect, safety and dignity in the exercise of the function of refereeing. We consider moving towards a total stoppage of the referees, if nothing is done, in a timely manner, in relation to our proposals”, the note reads.
APAF intends that “this issue is finally faced with the seriousness and depth it deserves and that it is duly debated in the Liga Portugal, both in the General Assembly and at the Summit of Presidents”, which will take place on Thursday.
“APAF and the referees note the commitment of the FPF Arbitration Council, which remains committed to ensuring the best conditions for the performance of the refereeing function. There is also a clear commitment on the part of the president of the Portuguese Football Federation, Pedro Proença, to immediately ratify the regulatory changes, after they have been approved by Liga Portugal, thus showing the willingness to guarantee this path of improvement”, he says.
The body representing the class expects “the same responsibility and determination from all other entities that make up the game”, remembering that “this is not an exclusive matter for referees in professional competitions”.
“The prevailing climate is also being reflected in the referees of the remaining competitions, national and district, at all levels, with a special focus on the lack of security, an issue that should deserve the best attention from the competent authorities”, he stated.
In the meeting with the Club League, APAF defended the worsening of the Disciplinary Regulations in more than a dozen articles, advocating the reinforcement of the punishment of attitudes and behaviors of clubs and sports agents with the arbitration teams.
Among the proposals, without alluding to the case reported by referee Fábio Veríssimo in the game between FC Porto and Sporting, APAF defends the amendment of Article 66, referring to coercion, adding the occurrence with family members of referee members.
“It is considered, in particular, that there is an attempt when the club, during the game, including its interval, confronts or shows to any member of the refereeing team its decisions from that game or previous games without the latter’s consent”, reads the wording proposed by APAF, which extends the scope of this statement to attempts at coercion.
APAF continues to increase fines, in the case of statements about arbitration before games, to triple, defending the loss of points, in case of recurrence, and the penalty of “suspicion”, with an identical proportion to the proposal to increase sanctions for attacks on referees, including the loss of five to 10 points.
The representative structure of referees defends a 100% increase in fines for acts that damage the honor and reputation of the bodies of the sports structure and its members, also proposing, in the case of a repeat offense, one to three games of ban, and, in the case of three or more convictions, the loss of two to six points.