Oh this is a NEW ONE!

[Wahoos1]

In my never ending attempt to keep track of my daughters I have a facebook account. Alas, I never actually look at it as it seems way to painful to maintain.

Tonight, I received a "friend" request from a local club and varsity player who is also a grade 8 ref that I have reffed with. I have reffed him, and I have reffed with him.

What are the ethics here?

[hradilv]

In my never ending attempt to keep track of my daughters I have a facebook account. Alas, I never actually look at it as it seems way to painful to maintain.

Tonight, I received a "friend" request from a local club and varsity player who is also a grade 8 ref that I have reffed with. I have reffed him, and I have reffed with him.

What are the ethics here?

Ethics? It's Facebook - I don't understand the question. Do you want him to be a Facebook "friend" or not?

[boylanj64]

Being one of the younger ones on this board, I'll tell you that accepting means very little - it hardly means you are friends, more that he is someone you know and are willing to let contact you. I sometimes contact younger refs through facebook when they don't answer their email.

The question of your having a facebook account to monitor your daughter is one I won't go in to.

[thegreatcrab]

I actually have a bit of experience with this.

So last school semester when I reffed in France, almost immediately after I met some of the local refs at a training session, I was friended by them online. Then my ASSIGNOR friends me. To be fair hes a younger guy, 27. But he is also refs at a very high level doing Ligue 2 and National (3rd division) games.


My point though is that you can use facebook to keep in touch with other refs. And its useful, you never know when you need to easily get in touch with one of your co-workers.

That and I can easily give them shit every time OM or Montpellier lose. (although not so often this season)

[falcon.7]

In my never ending attempt to keep track of my daughters I have a facebook account.

mmmm.....creepy.....

You could start a Facebook group for referees in your area to keep everyone connected and informed. Might help with retention. The motto for ours is "Independent contractor? Darn, no unions."

[FLRef86]

You can learn quite a bit about your fellow ref's via Facebook....

[d|hogan]

I see what you're asking. I see nothing unethical about it, simply because adding someone of facebook is almost meaningless. Also, it's not as though someone's gonna find out about it, and even if they do, odds are one of you has referred to the other by name in a match when he was playing, which clearly indicates you know each other. I know quite a few of the players I've reffed before too, and it's never been an issue. It's only a problem when you let your friendship influence your calls, which I highly doubt you'd do.

Hope that helps!

[MassachusettsRef]

In my never ending attempt to keep track of my daughters I have a facebook account. Alas, I never actually look at it as it seems way to painful to maintain.

Tonight, I received a "friend" request from a local club and varsity player who is also a grade 8 ref that I have reffed with. I have reffed him, and I have reffed with him.

What are the ethics here?I don't see much of an issue at all. I mean, if the potential ethical issue is that you're going to be accused of not being impartial because of familiarity, well... isn't the fact that you ref with him and know him personally a bigger deal than being connected via an online social networking site? I remember being in HS as a Grade 7 and having a lot of the local Grade 8s who actually ran lines for me in USSF doing the middles on my HS games... that was an interesting dynamic and they had to be very careful (and very good) to remind me that my friendship couldn't cross the line to benevolent dissent.

Not only that, but I'm pretty sure you can play around with your security settings to determine whom (public, your other friends, no one, etc.) gets to see who your other friends are. So no matter how you handle it, you can make sure it's not an issue of ethics publicly.

No matter what, as a personal issue, I think that if you don't confirm his as a friend, you should send him an email or private message and explain why. That would head off any issues you might have with him later--on the field, from either perspective.

[MassachusettsRef]

You can learn quite a bit about your fellow ref's via Facebook....True! Just happened very recently between me and a poster here! Though I think he learned more about me than I did about him...

[gosellit]

Facebook had been great for referees to keep in touch. My state has it's own group. There are many referee groups. Heck, most of our FIFA's are on facebook.

[Ref Flunkie]

Well shoot, if everyone is on FB, we need to all friend up; or at least join a Bigsoccer Referee's group. Perhaps I will make one up if it doesn't already exist.

edit: Done!

[gosellit]

Well shoot, if everyone is on FB, we need to all friend up; or at least join a Bigsoccer Referee's group. Perhaps I will make one up if it doesn't already exist.

edit: Done!

Yep, I'm the 10th member.

[Ref Flunkie]

Yep, I'm the 10th member.

Is it just the BigSoccer group or is there another one I missed (besides the one I just created) for the referees?

[gosellit]

Is it just the BigSoccer group or is there another one I missed (besides the one I just created) for the referees?

yep, the general bog soccer i guess. what is name of the group you just created?

[aevange8]

I wouldn't worry too much about Facebook. I am a teacher and I don't let kids at school facebook me until after they graduate. However, there are other younger refs that I am friends with. I try to keep the kids from school out because there would be handfuls of them on there, with the refs there are only a few that would.

[boylanj64]

Well shoot, if everyone is on FB, we need to all friend up; or at least join a Bigsoccer Referee's group. Perhaps I will make one up if it doesn't already exist.

edit: Done!

Can't seem to find it... argh... what's the name?

[Ref Flunkie]

BigSoccer Referees

Link maybe: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=77843294295

[boylanj64]

BigSoccer Referees

Link maybe: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=77843294295

Nice - member number 11, as we seem to be counting in binary

[hradilv]

Nice - member number 11, as we seem to be counting in binary

I'm there - number 100... okay 4.

[chaoslord08]

Facebook had been great for referees to keep in touch. My state has it's own group. There are many referee groups. Heck, most of our FIFA's are on facebook.

We do? Guess I should jump in on that then.