An English FA (Football Association) trial has shown that grassroots referees say that they feel more confident and safer whilst wearing bodycams during matches. During the trial, launched in February, about 100 grassroots referees wore the technology during adult matches.
It comes after hundreds of grassroots referees said they feared for their safety when officiating. The FA said the bodycams act as a "deterrent" and, to date, no referee had needed to activate their camera.
Daniel Meeson, the FA's head of refereeing, said: "The early signs are positive; the referees feel more confident, reassured, protected and safer.
"It's a positive start - no activations - so in my mind it looks like the deployment of these devices is acting ultimately in the way we want them to, which is that deterrent. Better to prevent misconduct and prevent poor participant behaviour than to have to cure it."
The FA's bodycam trial is the first of its kind in the world, and has been approved by the International Football Association Board (IFAB) - football's law-makers. The trial is being conducted in selected adult grassroots leagues in Essex, Liverpool, Middlesbrough and Worcester. If the trial is a success, it will be further extended during the 2023-24 season.
The bodycams, produced by Reveal Media, do not record for the whole match but have an automatic 30-second capture – meaning that if a referee is being abused, they can press record on the camera and it will capture the previous 30 seconds. The footage automatically uploads to cloud storage and is subject to data protection rules.
The device is encrypted, meaning the referee cannot access the footage nor can anyone else if it is stolen. Footage captured can be used in disciplinary hearings to support the match report the referee submits to the FA, but this only applies to players or coaches who are abusive. Footage of spectators cannot be used.
If the trial is successful, the cost of the cameras will have to be addressed - according to the FA, there are about 28,000 qualified referees in England. The FA says it does not want clubs to have to pay for the cameras and will look into funding after the trial concludes.
The Referees' Association in England distributed a questionnaire to its 7,000 members with more than 900 referees responding. 293 said that they had been physically abused by spectators, players, coaches or managers, with some describing being punched, headbutted and spat at, while almost all the respondents had experienced some form of verbal abuse. Others who respondents received a death threat against them or their loved ones.
There were 122 referees aged 17 and under who responded to the questionnaire - more than 100 said they had been verbally abused by coaches/managers (105), spectators (109) or players (102). In Lancashire, the local Football Association is also trying to tackle the issue of abuse through 'Adults in Junior Football' workshops, in which they talk to parents, coaches and managers about their behaviour on match days.
Former England goalkeeper David James, who has sponsored the training of young referees in Lancashire, wants to see the workshops rolled out across the country.