Grümpelturniere: Referees ensure fewer injuries
Awareness of fair play in soccer is high. Nevertheless, around 6 percent of the 45,000 soccer accidents that occur each year take place at tournaments. The referee has a great influence on a fair game of football, writes Suva, which supports the organizers of tournaments with trained referees.
Grimming tournaments are currently in high season. Many athletes are aware: unfair behavior can lead to injuries, as Suva writes. According to the accident insurer, this can change quickly on the football pitch, emotions run high and people want to avert defeat or do everything in their power to avoid the penalty shootout - good will is forgotten.
High awareness - deep application behavior
A study by Suva shows that two-thirds of the footballers surveyed were well aware that fair behavior leads to a lower probability of injury during a football match. But only 40 percent confirmed that they would behave accordingly in a conventional soccer match. And what is the situation like at the green tournaments? Sascha Amhof, FIFA referee and referee trainer, says: "Of course, the players are primarily responsible for a fair game. At Grümpelturn tournaments, we observe that things are calmer and fairer with a referee. The clear assignment of roles to a referee, who can take the pace out of heated situations and make the players aware of the fun nature of the tournament, definitely has an influence on the fairness of the game.
Decreasing likelihood of injury - what is the role of the ref?
Over the past 15 years, the likelihood of injury while playing at a green tournament has fallen from 17 to 3.5 per 1,000 players, thanks in part to the use of referees, Suva writes. Nevertheless, there are still around 2700 football accidents per year (not taking into account the Corona years 2020 and 2021, in which team sports could not be played for a time). The referee has a special role to play: "The referee has the task of intervening at the right moment in the right place. If he does his job well, a match runs more fairly and injuries due to fouls can be avoided. The accident figures show that this also works at green tournaments," confirms Amhof.
An unfair game hurts not only those affected by an injury - it also hurts relatives and employers. That's why it pays off several times over to "play fair and not dangerous! Suva supports the organizers of green tournaments with trained referees.
The five rules of fair play:
- I act in an exemplary manner
- I accept decisions
- I play responsibly
- I stay cool
- I think and act positively
More info Fair play in football and Access to trained referees for green tournaments.
