by Paul Gibson
Home >> Orange Cards in Football
No we aren’t talking about anything that has to do with ING Direct, nor is this an advert for Valencia oranges, but rather the latest proposal for the upcoming European Football League Championship.
The details are rather unclear, but the idea would be to have an “orangeâ€? card that would be somewhere “in betweenâ€? a red card and a yellow card. This would apparently resolve several issues with refereeing and the consequences of “a bad ref.â€? The idea is to give referees a “way outâ€? of expelling or kicking a player out of a game for certain actions that could be considered as serious, such as a slide tackle from behind or a second “grabâ€? of a shirt. The controversial proposal comes after the 2006 World Cup registered the highest number of yellow and red cards in a World Cup competition. The idea seems to mimic the sentiment that referees just don’t cut it any more. Sometimes they adopt a “now you see it, now you don’tâ€? attitude or shall we say, “Now I see it, now I don’t.â€?
The other proposal seems to be a rather interesting one and is certainly not new to the sport: instant replay. Instant replay advocates seem to have the edge, because after all: “a picture is worth a thousand words.� Tell that to the referee who missed our beloved Zidane knock down an Italian player with an excruciatingly painful head butt to the chest.
I am not quite sure if orange cards or instant replay are the answer to good arbitration. Maybe we just keep things the way they are and possibly have a compromise. In American Football, we have something called “a challenge� where a coach has the ability to request that the main referee review a specific play on a monitor in order to make a “ruling� that would affect the possible outcome of a match. Each coach or trainer is allowed one challenge per half, and it certainly makes the games seem a lot fairer. Who knows – this could be the wave of the future in the European Football World.
The orange card seems to be a bit weak though, and instant replay should be the way to go…now all we need to worry about is how to stop footballers from losing their temper or how to teach them to play it clean…but that’s a topic for another day no doubt.
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Posted on http://www.weeklyletter.com at 2006-08-03 11:00:00 +0200
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Hello Paul,
I think orange cards could be a good idea.
I see it as way to evolve, because footbal rules haven’t changed much for the last decade or two. They should adapt to the way the sport is currently played , which I personally think is very HARD.
Regarding the chance of having the replay, I am kind of against it. One of the things I like the most when I watch football games is the human factor and how referees could be so unfair without them knowing…that is how Real Madrid got some points last year he he he.
It would be something like what they have done in F-1 races.
They have adopted many new rules to stop technology and empower human capacities.
Have a great day,
Cristina
Ah yes, Cristina, the human factor… you aren’t kidding about Real Madrid getting a few extra points…but then again, I think that most teams benefit from bad arbitration, so I guess it kind of evens out. “Even Steven” as they say….
One of the things that went through my mind afterwards is that, this could lead to even more violence… I mean, what if they start giving out yellow, orange and red cards…what would happen if they left Zidane on the playing field by giving him an orange card…? Hee, hee, hee. What about leaving Roberto Carlos on the playing field when he’s in a rut, or any other player for that matter? ..
What do you think?
One thing that puzzles some Europeans about Americal Football is that it is not fluid. It seems to stop and start all the time. To introduce ‘challenges’ would be to make a sport a little to litigious for my tastes.
Sport should be about goodwill and that includes accepting that although a referee or umpire may make mistakes, they did so without malice. Look at cricket – there is a game where challenging the umpire is considered ‘ungentlemanly’ and bad form.
Sport stops being sport when doing one’s best is not the ultimate aim.
At my school, if we lost a game of rugby, we would form a line and applaud as the winners left the field. Does that happen in football anywhere? Even with kids? I think not.
I don’t think orange cards are a solution because the problem is with the players and the clubs.
Yellow means you’re warned. Red means you’re off. It’s not rocket science.
Football would be improved , as would most areas of life, by encouraging one simple thing – Respect.
Amen to that Donal! You said it…
but sports is not all about respect, if that were true, there would be no public spectacle. Friendly competition is the name of the game and “doing your best” has everything to do with sports.
I don’t know, I guess the original idea of the orange card was to separate the “economic” fines to players and “ejecting them”. Every time a player is ejected with a red card, they pay one way or another – either they don’t play a game or they are fined for injuring another player.
I agree with you about the challenge…but with our technology today, I don’t think there would be any real time element involved. They actually have a referee in front of a television that tells the referee on the field that something is wrong via radio or earpiece.
I would only add that Respect is also something that needs to be earned…
Great comments! Thanks again!
Just out of curiosity, would colour-blind people distinguish between orange and red cards? Would the orange card have to be not only as orange as an orange but also as round as an orange to be easily distinguished by everybody? Wouldn’t the colour blue be better for this purpose?
And another thing. Isn’t there instant replay in rugby? Does that make it a less human sport than football? Don’t they say that football is a gentlemen’s sport played by rogues, and rugby a rogue’s sport played by gentlemen?
I’m just wondering…
I thing that’s a bad idea, I play football when I was younger. Everybody knew the game rules, was your choice, play dust or not.
Thanks for your comments Paola!
I am afraid one of our colleagues, or even better, one of our students may know more about rugby than this Chicago Bear. Regarding your comments on “colour blind people” and colour combinations… I myself am not colour blind, but my father is. (Now you are expecting me to say something authoritative, but no such luck). I would assume that the referee always tells them which one he is giving them…they can’t be too colour blind, otherwise they wouldn’t see the ball either! ....
Maybe Zidane was colour blind and was actually trying to dry his head off with a red towel??? :)
Thanks for your comment Francisco José!
Yeah, I guess you’re right. Changing the rules of football is like trying to convince an American that they are wrong about something. It’s simply not happening… unless that someone is a Spanish woman :)
However, I don’t think if you play dirty that you would be popular with your friends. But I agree, you play football the way you play football. I don’t think any rules such as an orange card would suddenly change a player’s behaviour or way of playing football. Which begs the question: So if there were an orange card, it wouldn’t really “change” anything, would it?
I don’t see the use of orange cards in football but maybe it’s because I’m colour blind (Hi Paola) .But I think the use of technology can make football fairer. With instant replay you won’t have anymore “goles fantasma” ( sorry, but I don’t know how to say that in English) and all the dirty players that simulate penalties, spit on or hit other players could be punished. For instance, now that we are getting familiar with the “por puntos” driving license ( sorry again) they could implement something similar, the football player license: 1 point less for grasping the shirt, 3 points for thinking that the penalty area is a swimming pool, 5 points for spitting on the face etc… And when you run out of points you don’t play ( and don’t make money) for an amount of time. You’d see the difference if they did that.
But, as Donal says, without respect for the others all those things would be pointless.
JC
Dear Paul,
Readly if I would like that there existed another way of controlling few sportsmanship that is lived nowadays in the football.
The real problem is that it’s much politicised and also there is a lot of money in game.
I believe that it’s a dehumanized game.
If we are speaking about bought parties, because not the orange card would be a good idea measurement, since it would question the opinion of the refere (árbitros)
I believe that there should reign “the repetition of the move” this it would be more just and cleaner.
The violence should be sanctioned by more hardness between players.
Have a nice weekend !
Reyes.
Good morning Juan Carlos:
Excellent comments! I think your idea about a “footballer’s playing license” is much better than an Orange Card. I especially appreciate your point system… 3 points for the ‘pool’ area…ha ha! How about using the “license” idea for referees and take away points for bad or negligent decisions? That would definitely work!
Good morning Reyes!
Yes, we certainly have “a long way to go” before changing the system. Football has, unfortunately, been at the center of several sport scandals, such as the one in Italy. If all of the corruption in football were uncovered or revealed, I don’t think there would be any more fans, or any more leagues. The really sad part, is that people now believe that it’s more important to win at any cost instead of “enjoying” or “watching” a good game of football.
I promise you another Weekly that will present some research into how much money goes into a football match… I am already shaking in my boots! Have a great day Reyes!
Hi Paul,
I would just begin with the license for players. I think the job of the referees is much more difficult because things happend very fast and are not easy to see. Specially when there are 22 guys trying to mislead you. If we first cure the players, life will be much easier for the referees.
jc
That sounds like a legitimate defense Juan Carlos! I never thought of it that way. Of course, there were five referees for each match in the World Cup, but it was still hard to see Zidane who was hiding behind Materrazi’s stomache…. good point!
pg
A week ago, I made red and yellow cards to use with my friends when I go back to school next month and can play football with them again every day at recess and lunch. I will ask them if they want an orange card too.
Thanks for your comments Oscar!
Now if you can get them to finance a “special camera” for INSTANT REPLAY, you will be all set! Thanks for your comments!
Paul