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Knickers in a knot UEFA takes bureaucracy to all-time low
Posted: Tuesday February 29, 2000 05:48 PM
As if referees didn't already have enough to worry about, European soccer's governing body UEFA -- in its infinite wisdom -- is hammering home another piece of petty bureaucracy with which to burden officials. UEFA has reminded referees that a player who completely removes his shirt while celebrating a goal must be cautioned. Even if he's wearing a replica jersey underneath, whipping off one's top shirt is still a yellow card offence. But get this. A player lifting his shirt over his head, but not removing it, will not be cautioned. Instead, this kind of incident will simply be recorded in the ref's match report. Now bear in mind that the footballers merely lifting, not removing, their shirts may wear under-shirts sporting commercial or political slogans. For this, they won't be flashed a yellow card. Instead, the matter will be referred to UEFA's disciplinary committee. I ask you. Haven't they got anything better to do? Ok, by all means, keep a check on potentially provocative political stuff or gratuitous advertisements. But what on earth is wrong with the rest of it? Why shouldn't players be able to celebrate in any fashion they want on the field of play, as long as they're not intentionally setting out to ignite some kind of violent frenzy in the stands.
Taking off one's shirt and swirling it overhead, a la Ryan Giggs after his wonder goal in the FA Cup semifinal win over Arsenal last season, seems innocent enough to me. Indeed, there are far more provocative things a player can do to his shirt, like kissing the club emblem or badge, even tugging at the emblem when facing the crowd, as if showing just how passionate he is about the club. It's an "I'm one of you" move, designed to illustrate loyalty. Now surely that kind of behavior is more volatile than running down the field half-dressed and waving a piece of colorful cloth around. It's not quite so in your face. I like all kinds of reactions to goal scoring. Even the silly and bizarre are cause for comment or amusement, if nothing else. Diving, sliding, fist-pumping, all good. Stoic and understated works too. Whatever grabs you. Why is there legislation governing one of the most spontaneous reactions known to human beings, that which follows the hitting of a euphoric high on the sports field. If the bureaucrats had their way, we would never see the likes of Brandie Chastain ripping off her shirt after scoring the winning penalty in the women's World Cup final. And yet that remains one of the enduring sports images of 1999. Can you imagine her scoring, doing the shirt thing, then being mobbed by her teammates -- only for the referee to say: "Sorry girls. Gotta split this up. Need to give the heroine of the hour a yellow card." And heaven forbid we should see a player already on a yellow card sent off for such a show of emotion. Referees should be told to concentrate more on maintaining general fair play -- of promoting open, fluid play in games free of niggling fouls and dirty deeds. And especially they should focus on catching the cheats. The divers and fallers, the injury-frauds and time-wasters, those innocent faces that conceal a shirt load of underhand tricks.
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