Question Number: 14127

Character, Attitude and Control 10/14/2006

RE: COMPETITIVE Adult

DAVID of Goldsboro, North Carolina USA asks...

What rule is there against a ref if a player punches him and the ref returns the aggresion?Where can I find this rule or regulation?

Answer provided by Referee Keith Contarino

Violent Conduct, found in Law 12, occurs when any player punches any other person connected with the match including the referee. If this is adult play a referee is free to defend himself. We are told to avoid this if at all possible in our code of ethics but if a referee cannot assure his safety by leaving the scene he may defend himself and the results of this action will probably be acted upon in a court of law. The referee will write a full and thorough report and send it to the proper soccer authorities in his jurisdiction and they will act on it. The referee should also file a police report and may even swear out a warrant for the player the same as any citizen may do if attacked.

Answer provided by Referee Chuck Fleischer

Ref Contarino sums up what US Soccer policy is and what each party can do under the law.

Right, what makes you anyone has the right to strike the referee? Where on earth do you think this is something can be do condoned in any fashion. And then you ask what happens when the referee defends himself. Tough luck! There are some referees that will take Mr. Sluggo to court and from there to jail. That's fine with me. There are some referees who will just defend themselves at cost of their career, that's fine with me, too.

There are other referees who don't really care what happens after they get assaulted by someone and trust me sir, those referees are not to be trifled with. Should you know anyone who considers assaulting a referee you might want to tell him to be very, very careful which referee he chooses to assault because jail is the best thing that can happen to him...

Answer provided by Referee Ben Mueller

Many players get life time bans for assaulting a referee. There is a form that gets filled out and send when a referee gets assaulted.