“The sound system for referees would be a real added value”, says Antony Gautier, new head of French refereeing

“The sound system for referees would be a real added value that can bring a lot to referees in general and to French football in particular”, estimated Friday, February 10 on France Bleu Nord Antony Gautier, the new technical director of French arbitration. The 45-year-old former football referee shows real determination to modernize French refereeing, a month after his appointment as head of referees. “Transparency” And “communication” are his two favorite words.

>> Foot: the French Federation will request the sound system of referees in Ligue 1

According to the new head of arbitration, the French Football Federation has “already proposed to be part of the experiment that Fifa is launching on its international competitions for the next twelve months”. The International Federation wishes “authorize the referee, when he uses video, to communicate to the public in the stadium and to viewers on the reasons which led him to take such or such a decision”specifies Antony Gautier.

Supervised discussion with journalists

The technical director of French refereeing is surprised that referees are the only actors in professional football not to express themselves. “I am in favor of referees being able to speak and explain their decisions.” He wants journalists to be able to speak directly to the referee “when certain decisions are open to discussion”. But it takes “set a framework for speaking out. This requires training” referees that need to be put in place.

Antony Gautier is considering appointing a “refereeing spokesperson who would be able to intervene at the end of each day to explain the good decisions and the decisions that deserve to be corrected”. “It’s never nice to admit mistakes”confesses the former referee. “But I have no difficulty doing it because I consider that this is how we move forward”.

To develop arbitration, Antony Gautier wants to set up a liaison committee which will bring together representatives of Ligue 1 and Ligue 2 clubs, members of the Federal Arbitration Commission, employees of the Arbitration Department and of the Professional Football League.