Our Blogs
Mindhunter, behavioral science as applied to modern-day refereeing
Written by Soccer America In the first part of this series we discussed old school refereeing namely “refereeing by the book” and the transformation into “man management” in modern day refereeing. (Since Jaap Uilenberg used the phrase ‘man management’ when I was first...
Doing Your Homework: Should Referees Do Homework and How Much is Too Much?
Sports coaching and sports psychology are two distinct disciplines in the field of sports science, yet they are often intertwined. The effective coach is often an effective psychologist. Consider, for example, the testimony of Liverpool players when they discuss...
My referee story by Edward Bellion
My referee story by Edward Bellion I began refereeing when I was about age 30. Prior to then, I had been a keen amateur and recreational player throughout school and university years in England. In 1968 I went to the USA to take up a research fellowship at the...
Moving the Goal Posts: The Restart, Home Advantage and Referees
Home advantage is a strange phenomenon in football. Naively, I used to dismiss it. I assumed that a ball was a ball and goal was a goal. Surely it does not matter where a game is played when it is the same game? Other sports seemed to support this notion. ...
Premier League returns with controversial decision
The Premier League is back but not without controversy.
After 100 days, the top flight returned with Aston Villa vs Sheffield United. However goalline technology grabbed all the headlines, as a goal was not given despite the ball crossing the line.
Former Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher called it embarrassing and Mark Clattenburg said VAR should have intervened.
Former Head of the PGMOL (refereeing body) will be joined by Roger Dilkes and Mark Halsey at 3pm this afternoon to discuss the incident on Ref Lounge. You can sign up free here.
Live Q&A with Keith Hackett and leading referees
Join former Premier League referee Keith Hackett, plus special guests Mark Halsey and Roger Dilkes for a one hour Q&A session.
This free webinar is made for you to improve your officiating skills while learning from leading professionals.
The webinar takes place at 3pm on Thursday 18 June. Click here to sign up.
Youth Sports, Soccer and the Pandemic
Youth Sports, Soccer and the Pandemic by Ahmet Guvener Recently I read an article (a) with great astonishment. According to a report by Wintergreen Research - "Youth Sports: Market Shares, Strategies and Forecasts, Worldwide, 2019-2026" – there was a 19.6 billion...
Controlling Yourself Before You Can Control Others
Recall a time when, during a football match, you saw a player (or players) lose their composure and control. One type of incident that comes to mind is the so-called ‘mass brawl’; a cluster of players, frustrated, angry and primed for physical competition acting in a...
A look back and how things have changed.
This blog is proudly created By Keith Hackett for Keys to Referee. With no live football on television, l was recently invited to appear on Talksport’ s Hawksbee and Jacobs show. This was to discuss a recent showing on television of the 1979 FA Cup game between...
Soccer Six football – A walk down memory lane
Some years ago, when English clubs were not qualifying for the European Competitions with the regularity that they are today, or the F.A. Premier League had not been thought about, the football visionaries felt that an indoor tournament for Football League clubs was...
Advice on applying the use of advantage
This blog is proudly created By Keith Hackett for Keys to Referee. I was a referee who just loved to apply advantage in order to keep the game flowing at pace and to allow players the opportunity to use their skills against the opposition. The more experience of my...
1-2-3 Stepped Management Process
This blog is proudly created By Keith Hackett for Keys to Referee. REFEREES SHOULD BE ENCOURAGED TO APPLY THE 1,2, & 3 STEPPED PROCESS WHEN MANAGING PLAYERS. Before I write this article, I will always encourage referees to apply the law and not to shirk from the...
Referee Body Language
This blog is proudly created By Keith Hackett for Keys to Referee One area of your performance that I want you to give consideration to is your Body Language which is the art of non-verbal communication Some years ago, I was surprised when a Sports Psychologist in a...
Warm-up procedure prior to kick off
This blog is proudly created By Keith Hackett for Keys to Referee. When I appointed Prof Matt Weston to become the Sports Scientist for the PGMOL he rightly took control of all the training and put in place regimes to affect a lifestyle change in our match officials....
The movement patterns of top referees
This blog is proudly created By Keith Hackett for Keys to Referee Sir Stanley Rous who became the sixth President of FIFA made a major contribution to football by rewriting the Laws of the game in1938, making them simpler and easier to understand. He was also the...
A brilliant podcast by Peter Gray with Keith Hackett
Please click on the icons below to listen to the Podcast by Peter Gray with Keith Hackett. Podcast hosted by @pwgray @realfootymatter talking & hopefully making people smile about REAL football : non league, semipro, amateur & grassroots. Interviewing REAL...
While We Are Social Distancing, Referees Should Think About the ‘Social Payoff’
Sports are a social situation. They take place with others and in front of others. This is part of their appeal; players enjoy the camaraderie, fans quench their thirst for tribal belonging and coaches satisfy desires to influence others. Hence self-isolation is...
Fair or foul challenges – see, recognise think act
This blog is proudly created By Keith Hackett for Keys to Referee. I was asked through social media to explain and highlight ways in which referees can improve their performances. I so believe that one aspect of law interpretation that creates controversy is how a...
Management of Penalty Kick Situations
This blog is proudly created By Keith Hackett for Keys to Referee regarding managing Penalty Kick situations and the surrounding situations. AIMS To ensure match officials apply LAW 14 consistently and correctly To review knowledge and understanding To give advice on...
The Role of the Referee Coach
Sportsmen and women, around the globe, have become accustomed to support from coaches, in their specific sports, in order to enhance their performance as they strive for excellence. Referees, at all levels of the game are no different, and they need to have quality...