Wow! A black card has appeared in football. What does it mean?
Romania has decided to fight abusive behaviour in the stands with a measure football has never seen before.
Details: The Romanian Football Federation has officially introduced a black card in youth competitions for the U7-U16 age categories. The new disciplinary procedure was approved by the FRF Emergency Committee on September 11 and is aimed specifically at inappropriate behaviour by parents and spectators towards children, coaches, referees and other people at matches.
However, the referee does not show the black card immediately after the first incident. The procedure consists of three stages. First, the match is temporarily stopped and the coaches are asked to calm their supporters. If the abusive behaviour continues, the referee suspends play for ten minutes and sends the teams to the dressing rooms.
If the spectators still fail to stop after the match resumes, the referee blows the final whistle and displays the black card. At that moment, the game is permanently abandoned and cannot be continued. The rule covers insults, threats, physical aggression, constant abuse of referees and conflicts involving parents or spectators. The FRF says it is the only football federation in the world to introduce a card specifically for sanctioning misconduct in the stands. It is also worth noting that all 130 academies included in Romania's Academy Classification have received special materials explaining the new three-step procedure to parents and supporters.
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Steven Perez
Dailysports's expert
