FA says reports of assault on grassroots match officials rise by 32%
Serious charges related to assaults and attempted assaults on match officials increased by 32% in grassroots football last season compared to the 2022-23 season, according to new figures released by the Football Association.
There were 95 charges of assault and attempted assault of an officer in 2023-24, compared with 72 charges in 2023-24 Previous activities.
Overall, the number of serious case charges, including those against players and match officials, increased by 17% from 3,636 to 4,277.
However, while the number of post-indictment charges brought by the FA rose from 2,263 to 2,561, the number of confirmed serious cases fell by 1%.
The FA’s annual grassroots disciplinary review, now in its second year, covers tier five and below in men’s football, and tier three and below in women’s football.
The total number of serious criminal charges against match officials, including abuse/threats and physical assault, also increased from 1,451 to 1,716, an increase of 17%.
The FA said in its review that a key part of its job was dealing with the “most serious cases”.
Alan Darfi, the governing body’s senior disciplinary manager, explained: “These include offenses aggravated by a protected characteristic, threats to match officials and players, physical contact or assault and abuse of players Attacks. Generally, we refer to such offenses as ‘serious cases’.”
The FA said trials into the use of body cameras by adult grassroots football referees since February 2023 have had a positive impact on behaviour, with only one allegation of misconduct against a match official wearing the camera.
It also said the number of referees at grassroots level increased by 20% last season, with more than 37,000 referees involved in England.
In light of the rise in cases, the FA said more football matches are being played and “reporting procedures are working”.
Dalfi added: “While these offenses only occur in 0.1 per cent of grassroots football each year, we know the serious impact these incidents have on those within the football community.”
Rules established before the start of last season Aiming to tackle abuse against players and officials, England’s grassroots clubs have been docked points for “repeated serious misconduct”.
However, no points were deducted, which the FA said suggested the potential penalties acted as a deterrent.
However, the FA said this year’s sanctions were “record-setting” – with discrimination charges alone resulting in a total of 5,510 game bans, with an average of seven.
