Euro 2024: only the captain will have the right to address the referee, if another player approaches, he will be penalized with a card

Les arbitres auront le droit de sévir. Sven Simon – Frank Hoermann/SVEN SIMON

The referees of the next Euro football tournament (June 14-July 14) will better explain their decisions but will only address the captains and will be able to warn other players who seek to interfere, a indicated Tuesday by UEFA.

"We want referees with strong personalities who make decisions – sometimes unpopular ones – and carry them out on the pitch, but we also want them to be strong. they are more open",explains Roberto Rosetti, head of the referees commission within the European body, in a press release.

Officials for the next continental tournament will therefore "share more details with players and coaches to help them understand what led to certain decisions" and "create a climate of trust", especially as they "receive a lot of information" from video assistance to arbitration, continues the former Italian international referee.

Systematic yellow card

But "explaining a decision when 22 players surround you" being " impossible", especially when there are "200 to 250 decisions" per match, < em>"we ask all teams to ensure that the captain is the only player who speaks to the referee", adds Roberto Rosetti.

If the captain is a goalkeeper, "it will obviously be necessary to designate a field player to fulfill this role if an incident occurs at the end of the terrain", specifies the boss of European arbitration. But with this exception, "any player who ignores the role of his captain and/or who approaches the referee by showing a lack of respect or a dispute will be notified", concludes Roberto Rosetti.