EURO team referee briefings
Wednesday, June 8, 2016
Article summary
UEFA Referees Committee members have been visiting the teams at UEFA EURO 2016 to ensure that referees, players and coaches are on the same page concerning interpretation of the Laws of the Game.
Article top media content
Article body
UEFA has been visiting the 24 teams taking part in UEFA EURO 2016 to ensure that referees, players and coaches will "speak the same language" in relation to interpretation of the Laws of the Game.
Members of the UEFA Referees Committee, themselves experienced former international match officials, have been emphasising the need for everyone to be on the same page with respect to referee decisions and actions.
UEFA prepared a series of clips that were shown to players and coaches, with the main objective being that both they and the referees know the same instructions about what will happen on the field of play with respect to the laws. The European body has not made use of the meetings to give individual warnings to players.
Explanations to the teams have been particularly significant ahead of this final tournament, because of changes to the Laws of the Game decided by the International Football Association Board (IFAB), which enter into force at UEFA EURO 2016.
UEFA is also especially determined to eradicate the "mobbing" of referees, where players pressurise an official by surrounding him, and has instructed referees to protect the players by dealing out strict punishment for fouls that endanger their safety.