The ‘only the captain rule’ will prevent clubs from crowding referees after decisions are made – and might lead to a better environment for officials
There is too much pressure on referees these days. At least, that’s what Mark Geiger, the general manager of the Professional Referees Organization thinks. The image is too common now. An official makes a decision – any decision, really – and they are immediately swarmed. One team thinks they’re wrong. The other rush to the referee’s defense. Before you know it, a gaggle of discontented footballers crowd an official who is simply doing their job.
And there is, objectively, no way of stopping that. Soccer is a passionate sport, one that brings the most out of its participants. There is rarely such thing as a black and white decision. Stakeholders in the game can never change that reality. But what they can do is try to lessen the potential impact of when a contentious decision is made, and control the inevitable chaos that ensues.
That’s why MLS is instituting a new rule this season, dubbed “Only the Captain rule” building off trials in the global game to prevent that standard swarm – allowing officials to talk to just one specific player after a call is made, and booking anyone else who tries to get involved. And it might just lead to a cleaner game.
“We want it to be an attractive game where the referees are free to make the decisions they need to make,” Geiger, who was a long-time MLS official, said. “Of course, there’s going to be pushback. It’s an emotional game anyway, and you don’t want to take that out of it. But we didn’t want the constant assault on officials for every single decision that they make.”