UEFA Referee Inspectors - advisors and assessors

Most football enthusiasts go to a UEFA competition match to watch the actual football on offer, in the hope of seeing plenty of goals, silky skills and a triumphant outcome for the team they may be favouring.

Different focus
However, there will be at least one person in the grandstand who will be more intent on watching every move made by the referee and his assistants. It is the job of the UEFA referee inspector to concentrate on the referees’ team – as an advisor and, ultimately, as a judge – while the fans focus on the action provided by the 22 players.

Chosen for experience
The referee inspectors who travel to UEFA matches for European football’s governing body are often former international referees who are chosen for their experience. Their duty is to accompany and guide the referees’ team for a particular match – and assess their performance in view of appointments for future UEFA matches. Norwegian Reidar Bjørnestad, a former international referee, current member of the UEFA Referees’ Committee and referee inspector for some years now, agreed to guide uefa.com through the work that a referee inspector undertakes on his European match assignments.

Match preparation
“When you’re preparing for a match, you will try and have some knowledge of the referee and the teams involved, so that you know what kind of match to expect, and what particular task the referee will have,” says Mr Bjørnestad. “The main thing is to go to a match with a clean sheet, that is, you try not to look into a referee’s ‘history’ too much, and you give the referee the chance to perform in the match you’re watching. In principle, the referee inspector should be at the match venue on the arrival of the referees’ team – normally, the day before the match – and the inspector would then be together with the referees’ team throughout their stay. You take meals together, offer guidance if necessary and ensure that the referees are not subject to any unnecessary pressure.”

English communication
There should be no language barrier between the referee inspector and the referees’ team, as UEFA is pursuing a policy that every international referee should have a knowledge of and the ability to communicate in English. “Consequently, inspectors are not really chosen in terms of the language they speak, “ says Mr Bjørnestad. “Everybody is expected to communicate in English at this level.”

Different criteria
The contact between the referee inspector and referees’ team immediately before a match is up to the individuals concerned. Then there is the referee’s acid test itself – the game on the pitch. It is also here that the referee inspector’s duties begin in earnest. Throughout the match, the inspector closely watches the match officials and takes notes on a variety of criteria. These include personality, attitude, perception of the game, disciplinary control, co-operation with the assistant referees, physical condition, movement and interpretation of the Laws of the Game.

Marking system
The objective is to compile a report for UEFA on the referee’s performance. “There is a marking system of five to ten. The mark of ten would be the perfect performance, while five would be a performance which did not keep up to the expected standard,” says Mr Bjørnestad. “You take a lot of notes during the match, not only to be able to present a conclusion to UEFA, but also to enable you to advise the referee in the post-match discussion, about such matters as his man-management, the behaviour of players, or any incidents that occurred. You’re also looking at the assistant referees, because you have to compile a short report on how they have performed as well – you look at their co-operation with the referee, their judgement of offside, or whether they are prepared to assist the referee in taking a decision. It is very important, for example, that the assistant referee sees what a referee does not see, such as off-the-ball incidents.”

Completing documents
After the match, Mr Bjørnestad says that the referee inspector can go into the referees’ dressing room to check that everything is in order. “Then you let the referee do his report. When the referee has filled in his paperwork, you can then go through the match. Subsequently, I will write my own report to UEFA.”

Sensitive – but honest
Mr Bjørnestad agrees that the referee inspector has to be sensitive but honest in his appraisal of a referee’s performance. “You can’t do a good job if you’re not honest, because your opinion influences a referee’s next appointment. Sometimes coaches say that referees should also be inspected by other people in football. But the referee inspector is in the best position to understand the referee’s role. A referee needs the honesty of an inspector – even if he might not agree with the inspector’s views – so the system not only helps UEFA. It also helps the referee.”