KMJvet
30 Sep 2004, 11:55 PM
Okay, I've decided that of the leagues I watch, the referees in the Mexican league are the best. Yes, I know that one of them made some poor calls that caused Canada a WCQ, but overall in the league games they do quite well.
Despite the firey reputation of Mexican players, dissent is minimal. The referees seem relaxed and friendly with the players, but they don't feel the need to give a lot verbal warnings. They can communicate with the players with a stare. What little dissent there us, is calm and short-lived. The referees are not afraid to give yellow cards early in the games for offenses that warrant it. They give appropriate yellow cards for simulation (and I've not seen this in other leagues). They award PKs when appropriate. They give yellow cards for persistant infringement. They're not afraid to send someone off. Players get in their walls for free kicks without having to be walked back to 10 yards with the delays from that. Most of goalies get the ball back in play promptly and substitutions are made without endless delays. The referees stay with the play and the ratio of bad calls to good calls is really low, at least as one can judge from video replay, which are really well done on Galavision and Telemundo broadcasts. I watched a game this week, and I don't think there was a single call I would have said was wrong based on replay.
Maybe it comes down to the relationship they have with their players and they'd fail in other leagues. There are always exceptional games, but on balance, the best ref performances come from there IMHO.
caveat...I only watch EPL, MLS, and MFL with any regularity. Some of the other Euro leagues and Argentina, I catch from time to time. So, I don't claim to watch all the leagues. I just think the MFL refs usually do well.
-KMJvet
Despite the firey reputation of Mexican players, dissent is minimal. The referees seem relaxed and friendly with the players, but they don't feel the need to give a lot verbal warnings. They can communicate with the players with a stare. What little dissent there us, is calm and short-lived. The referees are not afraid to give yellow cards early in the games for offenses that warrant it. They give appropriate yellow cards for simulation (and I've not seen this in other leagues). They award PKs when appropriate. They give yellow cards for persistant infringement. They're not afraid to send someone off. Players get in their walls for free kicks without having to be walked back to 10 yards with the delays from that. Most of goalies get the ball back in play promptly and substitutions are made without endless delays. The referees stay with the play and the ratio of bad calls to good calls is really low, at least as one can judge from video replay, which are really well done on Galavision and Telemundo broadcasts. I watched a game this week, and I don't think there was a single call I would have said was wrong based on replay.
Maybe it comes down to the relationship they have with their players and they'd fail in other leagues. There are always exceptional games, but on balance, the best ref performances come from there IMHO.
caveat...I only watch EPL, MLS, and MFL with any regularity. Some of the other Euro leagues and Argentina, I catch from time to time. So, I don't claim to watch all the leagues. I just think the MFL refs usually do well.
-KMJvet