Feature
"To no avail, we lost that match, terribly too... and for a good reason"
"I responded with a firm 'no', accompanied with a scornful look which i know he felt with unease"
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An Ethical Dilemma
By Luke Driscoll October 21st 2015 If I could suggest one thing for parents wishing to sign their children up for club soccer next year, it would be to advise caution. Sunday morning soccer has for many years been the prime attraction of sport for children and their friends. It’s a chance for children to not only have a good time, but also to learn valuable lessons in teamwork, sportsmanship and fairness. However, after learning from my own personal experience that referees at club soccer level are willingly taking bribes, then these lessons our children are being taught are redundant, and it leaves a sour taste in my mouth. It felt like it was only last week when the lads and I signed up to our local soccer club, perhaps reliving our childhood years of comradery and friendship. These years were the ones in which we relished our Sunday mornings on the soccer pitch, not a care in the world except for whether we were going to emerge victorious on the day. Now that feeling is gone based on the hard truths I’ve learnt over the last couple of months. It was yet halfway through the season until I witnessed my first account of bribery on the soccer pitch. Along with playing on the field, I was also delegated the role of team manager, in which I organised all referee fees before the game, which on my behalf made it a little easier to see the background work involved behind the scheduled matches. It was only until I saw the other team slip the referee a fifty dollar note that I realised that something very strange was afoot. Ridiculous, I thought to myself, as who would think someone would bother to bribe a referee in an all age division five game, in club soccer I might add. To no avail we lost that match, terribly too and for a good reason. The finishing score was 4-3, with three penalties given against us within the last twenty minutes of the match. Toward the end of the match is when I realised something definitely didn’t feel right, and my previous thoughts prior to the match beginning came racing back. Had we just lost a game due to an account of bribery? In light of recent events, I decided to form small informal investigations during our training days every Tuesday and Thursday nights. I began by asking various players from other all age teams who we shared the soccer pitch with. I decided to ask the oldest team at the club, an over 35’s team known as The Titans. This team had been together for over 25 years and would surely know the ins and outs of the workings in the soccer club. I decided to inquire with Samuel Brady, the captain of the Titans, about why referees we’re willingly accepting bribes from teams. He stated that it was easy for the referees to get away with it, as considering it was club soccer; there would be no repercussions of their actions as there would be no follow up to any investigation if there were to be one. Mr. Brady also told me that referees were not only taking bribes in all age games, but also in the younger divisions as well, in the unfortunate event that his son’s team was victim too only a few weeks prior. Hearing of it is one thing, but experiencing it is another. My second last game of the season answered all questions, as a referee openly asked if I wanted to give him a bribe. I was completely shocked, not knowing what to do but chuckle it off as joke, as surely a referee wouldn’t actually ask for a bribe out in the open as he did. To my surprise he wasn’t joking. He was being deadly serious. I responded with a firm no accompanied with a scornful look which I know he felt with unease. Unfortunate as it may be, there is no tangible proof besides what has been seen and heard by other players in the club, which is what makes the whole ordeal hard to unravel. My experience alone, if brought up to senior club officials, would just result in a series of conflicting perspective where nothing would get solved. In light of these events I feel that the cause of all this may be linked to the recent FIFA scandal, that left the organisation responsible for world football with little approval. The events that arose in early 2015 that put FIFA in the spotlight involved formal investigations into corruption and bribery within the organisation. These investigations led to Swiss authorities arresting seven FIFA officials in a hotel in Zurich over allegations of racketeering, fraud and money laundering. The incidents that arose here may be linked with the Football Federation Australia, in which $500,000 was stolen by a former corrupt executive within FIFA. This incident, along with various others yet to be brought to the spotlight, may have caused a rippling effect within soccer in Australia, and be the result of referees willingly taking bribes in club soccer. This is not to say that club soccer within Australia is completely corrupt or that all referees are willingly taking bribes, but instead it’s a reflection on some ethics particular individuals chose not to abide by. I feel the incidents I experienced can be directly linked with FIFA as ethical questions are raised about the recent events that arose within the organisation. The unethical behaviour deployed by the association can be a reflection on various soccer associations within Australia slipping off the bandwagon a little, as the overall integrity of soccer has been slightly diminished by the incidents revolved around FIFA incident. I feel that club soccer, especially for children, should be about fairness, sportsmanship and comradery. Sport in general teaches children very important lessons about life, as playing with a team helps kids learn. When they lose, they learn from their mistakes, and play better their next game. But if they lose because the referee was bribed or holds bias for another team, then they get nothing but a lesson of unethical practice. I feel that where once soccer was claimed to be a sport, it can now be labelled as an industry, in which capitalist agendas are put forward over the underlying principles of good sportsmanship. If you’re reading this and considering taking your son or daughter out of his or her soccer team, then don’t. I still love soccer, and so do they. What we should be mindful of are individuals, not the sport. |