{"id":10020,"date":"2024-09-07T13:51:05","date_gmt":"2024-09-07T12:51:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/?p=10020"},"modified":"2024-09-10T15:19:31","modified_gmt":"2024-09-10T14:19:31","slug":"fishbowl-anyone","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/?p=10020","title":{"rendered":"Fishbowl, Anyone?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Readers in the Goonerholic bar run by the inimitable Dave Faber or this establishment setup in his honour will have had the dubious pleasure of reading my opinions about referees down the years. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Well, guess what, you lucky souls?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is plenty more in the tank!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To briefly summarise what I\u2019ve already said\u2026 I don\u2019t think they are any good at their jobs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I think it is fair to say that most fans think refereeing standards are declining steadily and have been for years, yet also think they are powerless to do anything about it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This provides a backdrop of frustration (or sheer downright anger) and a sense of injustice which permeates fans\u2019 discussions. It is not improved by what most fans see as a refusal from PGMOL to accept that there is a problem with refereeing standards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This general air of dissatisfaction rumbles on amongst fans and tends to be most vociferous immediately after some particularly egregious error. As such, the discussions centre around minute dissection of individual decisions, sliced up and placed under the microscope.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From such close range, the bigger picture is harder to see, and this focus on individual incidents and officials make it difficult to place what we see every week a larger societal context.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Perhaps we need to put our microscopes away, find a different vantage point, and look through a different lens?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That is what I am going to attempt in this piece; to walk a few miles in the opposite direction and look back at things with my binoculars, as it were.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The end result won\u2019t be perfect, any more than that leggy metaphor was!  I will miss important points and struggle to make sense of complex and sweeping influences which affect us in more profound ways than the quality of refereeing. But all of that is how it should be; that is merely a sign that the issues we face are indeed complex.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, I\u2019d like to approach this as an exploration and invite all of you to tell me where you think I have wandered off-trail or where you think I have missed a promising avenue of investigation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I am committed to improving and refining the ideas laid out here. I am curious what others think and accept that they will have vital pieces of the puzzle that make up the bigger picture I hope to see more clearly. And I know I will have made mistakes along the way, which are all my own, and for which I take full responsibility.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, through a process of collaboration marked by openness to constructive criticism and a genuine desire to learn and progress, I am sure I will get a lot further than I would on my own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I might be wrong about this too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, I am not a PL referee, so I am willing to give this sort of madness a shot\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The formation of the Premier League changed the context in which football was played and the way that people engaged with it, which previously had been largely fixed for decades.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the olden days, when everything was black and white, and nobody had ever heard the word \u2018digital\u2019, people went to matches or listened to them on the radio. They read reports in the newspapers and discussed them in person. Live games on TV were rare.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the early 90s, the PL and Sky Sports changed that, and many more fans had access to football, both domestically and internationally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Money began to pour in, and savvy people woke up to the fact that there were a lot of fans invested in football and there was serious wonga to be made.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When the internet became ubiquitous in daily life, the means of discussing football changed drastically \u2013 now there is exponentially more online engagement than there is discussion in person, and a vast proliferation of platforms and (virtual) places where people can do so, including this one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Note that I deliberately use \u2018discussion\u2019 when describing what people tend to do in person, but \u2018engagement\u2019 is as far as I am prepared to commit myself in describing what people tend to do online.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But football is not the only thing swept along by the tide of change; anything and everything you can think of is along for the ride and, boy oh boy, there are a lot more things a person can do online than talk about the football.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nowadays, the competition for the attention of human beings looking at screens is staggering. The amount of money invested in it is beyond comprehension, yet the returns prove that dosh to be soundly invested indeed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Football is competing for attention in that arena, in a context in which it has never had to compete before, where attention means money. And it is changing accordingly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Football is no longer just a game where people kick an inflated pig bladder about.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It has become a behemoth of interlinked media, marketing, advertising, branding and the rest of the long list of those favourite cash-generating sons of capitalism that dominate so much of modern life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The media that we consume football \u2018content\u2019 through are designed solely to make a profit, and they protect the interests of their bottom line, nothing else.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, in the context of refereeing, it makes sense that our media providers prop up a system which generates bad decisions and, in turn, engagement across their services. They court as much controversy as they can and hire people to stir things up. This is a relatively new type of broadcasting and one that provides an important backdrop for the current attitude towards, and administration of, officiating.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In terms of providing the drama that people are so addicted to – having been weaned on it so carefully and cynically by vast entities whose raison d\u2019etre<\/em> is to make money from hijacking their attention – dodgy decisions that cause a lot of people to go online and argue about them is a better outcome than consistently correct decisions that stir up no controversy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why would the hugely powerful organisations making money off these constant controversies wish to improve the current standards?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And why should they, when their competitors won\u2019t budge an inch or be hamstrung by a notion of fair play or sporting integrity?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The makers of the myriad games you can play on your phone won\u2019t be deliberately making their products duller, and neither will anyone else competing for the attention of football fans in markets that have never before been directly in competition with those packaging and selling football content.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even twenty years ago, I would have felt more of a cynic in writing that. Nowadays, we are all aware that online content is geared towards engagement; the target is anything that gets people to watch it and comment on it, and if that means algorithms promote racist or sexist content to teenagers, or do anything else that eschews decency, respect and goodness in the pursuit of increased screentime, then so be it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Make no mistake, this is the world within which modern football operates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Back in the day, football computer games tried to look as much like the real thing as possible, to appeal to people who watched football, the obvious target audience for a football game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nowadays, Sky Sports constantly plug a new mode of watching a live match with camera angles designed to make it look like a computer game! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is a way to maintain the interest of a new generation who have grown up playing computer games far more than they have watching live football. They find it easier to maintain their flickering attention on a football match if it looks like the games they are used to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Computer games used to imitated the real thing; now that process has reversed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If this seems a little 1984, perhaps it might best be viewed not as a part of any concerted plan, but simply as a logical consequence of everyone involved following the money whenever they have a decision to make. The cumulative effect down the years is more Darwinian than Orwellian, shaping the football landscape one step at a time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is an old saying that the fish in the fishbowl cannot see the water it swims in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I think any discussion of officiating needs at least to attempt to see the \u2018water\u2019 that modern football is swimming in. It is such a huge influence and, I think, provides a necessary context for any meaningful debate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To reiterate, football these days is all about the money; and whilst most people appreciate that in theory, it is worth scratching a little deeper to see what this really means.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To offer just three instructive indicators; clubs are now owned by billionaires and investment funds (who most certainly did not get involved for the love of the game); shirts are emblazoned with betting company logos (I\u2019ll leave you to decide for yourself whether you think this is a good thing); PL TV rights sell for billions of pounds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The list of ways the game has demeaned and diluted itself for a steady stream of ever-increasing money is a long one. A very long one indeed. All fans need a level of cognitive dissonance to support our clubs these days, as the water all clubs necessarily swim in is getting ever murkier. Be it sponsorship deals, the contempt matchday fans are treated with by schedulers, the environmental impact of the game, or any other of the vast morally grey areas in how the game operates, we all have things about our clubs that we must set aside if we wish to continue supporting them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It should not surprise us that all the entities who would hold sway in the matter exhibit a complete lack of interest in any debate about genuinely improving refereeing standards, as they actively do not want to see better refereeing. In their ideal world, people argue increasingly about referees, whilst the standard of officiating worsens at a slow enough pace that people gradually become inured to it and, incrementally, accept decisions that a decade previously they would never have swallowed. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Instead of informed and honest enquiry into what is needed for the long-term good of the game, we are bombarded with that new phenomenon being grappled with in contexts far more important than football: fake news.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We are gaslit into thinking that decisions which obviously contravene the laws of the game are in fact correct. We are told it is somehow appropriate that referees fail to punish dangerous behaviour and serious foul play yet dish out cards and subsequent bans for minor infractions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Decisions are justified under the \u2018letter of the law\u2019 when scores of the same offences go unpunished every week. This inconsistency is mentioned sometimes in the same way one might talk about rain on a summer day \u2013 a bit annoying but ultimately not something anyone can do anything about, so you\u2019d have to be some sort of unreasonable curmudgeon or proud wearer of a tin-foil hat to dwell on it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To take just one specific example, there is a former referee who I have personally seen employed by Sky Sports to comment mid-match on a penalty decision. Having watched a few replays, he explained to the viewers that the referee had made the correct decision. When, a couple of minutes later, VAR had invited the on-field referee to review those same replays and he reversed his decision, the former ref being paid by Sky assured us (without shame, and contrary to what he had confidently asserted moments earlier) that this was, in fact, the correct decision. Apparently, people are supposed to respect his opinion, provided to us as a trusted authority on the rules of the game. You could not make it up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These former referees who have paid gigs on television do nothing more than back up their mates. There is no standard of personal integrity they will not violate, nor any mental contortion they cannot manage in the name of sticking up for the Old Boy\u2019s Club.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It stinks. Fans (consumers) have never asked for it. But it is becoming increasingly pervasive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because it perpetuates the myth that there is no reform necessary – the referees do a great job and officiating is of a high standard. Ahem!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sometimes, this cronyism is picked up and railed against. By some. For a while. And then, once everyone has had a good rant and vented their feelings, we all settle back into the status quo, and just hope we get through the next weekend without another egregious error befalling us. Because, after all, there isn\u2019t anything we can do about it, right?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Instead of persistent focus on the poor standard of refereeing and what can be done about it, we are bombarded and insulted by a proliferation of explanations that defy logic and a basic understanding of football in order to illustrate that decisions that we can all see are ludicrous are actually correct.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If the laws of the game are unrecognisable from those you have known your entire life, then that isn\u2019t because they have been highjacked and are arbitrarily administered by a small cabal of men in black. Oh no, it is just a simple lack of knowledge on your part!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But, fear not brave reader, you will be put out of your ignorance by a former pro referee who is happy to explain this week\u2019s handball rule to you, or why the kind of assault you would be arrested for on a public street carries no punishment under the laws of the game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet, despite the regularity and sheer brazenness of this narrative, people seem happier to go along with all this and argue vociferously with each other rather than address the actual problem. Of all the people who are wound up by the officiating standards, and there are many, most argue against<\/em> each other, rather than arguing for <\/em>change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Does anyone really believe that it is an impossible task to make a clear handball rule and then apply it consistently? Yet every week we are offered a new interpretation, and contradictory views espoused by pundits who were saying something different the week before.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When did officiating become so chaotic?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Seriously. When did it become so utterly, abjectly chaotic<\/em>?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And who does this chaos benefit?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is no longer even the semblance of an obligation for our media outlets to impartially report and evaluate football matches; that just does not keep enough people watching.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We now have phone-in shows that don\u2019t bother with analysis but simply employ figurehead presenters to make crass statements designed to goad people, and then spend the next hour allowing the angriest and least coherent people they can find the opportunity to be further wound up and vent over the airwaves. Because they can sell that to other people who turn up for the drama, in a way that they cannot sell rational, civil discourse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Behind the scenes, we get told that these presenters are actually reasonable and personable, they just get paid to play a role in which they aggravate as many people as possible. Well, that\u2019s all okay then.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How could anyone find fault there?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although now I think about it, I don\u2019t remember signing up for that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I am starting to think I missed a meeting\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We have entered a new era where football is an entertainment industry far more than a sporting one, and there is more money in entertainment than there is in sport.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is in this context that the conversation of officiating has to take place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Next time, I will look at us as fans, and how we engage with each other, and how this shapes the debate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Until then, I know I can rely on you all to be a shining example of how I wish football fans engaged with each other everywhere, so light up the drinks with your thoughts and wisdom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Until next time, \u2018holics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

If you’re reading this brilliant post on the ‘Home Screen’ just hit the word ‘Drinks’ at the foot of the article to read and join discussion of all things Arsenal (and some other stuff) stimulated by this article and the responses from the regular denizens of this virtual bar. If you’ve accessed this post directly, simply scroll down to see the thoughts of fellow Gooners and join the discussion.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Readers in the Goonerholic bar run by the inimitable Dave Faber or this establishment setup in his honour will have had the dubious pleasure of reading my opinions about referees down the years.  Well, guess what, you lucky souls? There is plenty more in the tank! To briefly summarise what I\u2019ve already said\u2026 I don\u2019t […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[23,10],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10020"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=10020"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10020\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10026,"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10020\/revisions\/10026"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=10020"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=10020"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=10020"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}