May 12, 2003

President's Pitch for Civility

In recent weeks, the Utah Youth Soccer Association has received a disturbing number of reports of referee abuse and related misconduct. I write to urge us to do better. We must not allow our dissent to descend into behavior that dishonors and disgraces our game.

Dissent is a hallowed American tradition. In this country, we are privileged to have the right to disagree with our government and its authorities. As the great Justice Robert Jackson famously observed: "If there is any fixed star in our constitutional constellation, it is that no official, high or petty, can prescribe what shall be orthodox in politics, nationalism, religion, or other matters of opinion."

The First Amendment protects us from government censorship. It does not, however, prevent a voluntary organization like the Utah Youth Soccer Association from enforcing its rules of conduct. And neither the First Amendment nor the Laws of the Game permits verbal abuse of soccer referees. In fact, Law 13 expressly prohibits participants in a soccer game from "show[ing] dissent by word or action." The same law also prohibits the use of "offensive, insulting, or abusive language."

That is not to say that we must always agree with the match officials. Referees are not infallible. They make mistakes. Sometimes referees even make mistakes that turn the outcome of a match. Of course, the same is true of players. It is the nature of the game.

There is no doubt that Utah needs a deeper pool of qualified referees. There is also no doubt that Utah will never develop the referees it needs unless we can create a better environment for referee development. Quality officials are not born; rather, they are made from experience. Referees, especially inexperienced ones, are bound to make mistakes. While referees need to be held accountable for their performance, they must also be afforded the opportunity to learn from the error of their ways. Unfortunately, too many promising referees are quitting instead of learning. Sideline abuse is the prime cause of referee desertion.

As a coach, I know the frustration of seeing an incorrect call hurt my team's chances of winning a match. I have felt the burning injustice of a call not given at the cost of victory. There have also been times when I felt obligated to stand up and dissent on behalf of my team. But in those cases, I was willing to accept the consequences of transgressing Law 13. I did not claim any absolute "right" to dissent. To the contrary, my compulsion to speak out required me to accept the responsibility of doing so. We should expect no less from any coach in our organization.

Let us resolve to serve our game by aspiring to its ideals. Please respect our game and the officials who serve us. Our players will benefit from our example.

Paul C. Burke
President
Utah Youth Soccer Association