Athletic calls for respect for referees after the derby

Athletic says that “everything has a limit” and is calling for respect for referees after last Sunday’s derby at San Mamés. The penalty awarded by Hernández Hernández following Aramburu’s challenge on Nico Williams inside the area prompted three different interpretations. Berenguer scored from the spot and Athletic won the match.

On Tiempo de Revisión del CTA, the decision was deemed correct. Real, for its part, criticised the referee and the technology, calling the decision an error. Athletic has backed the refereeing community, stressing that decisions can go in a club’s favour at times and against it at others.

Athletic’s statement, issued after the other positions had been made public, was titled “Caring for referees is caring for football”. At Ibaigane, the club says that “respect for the refereeing community must be an unquestionable principle shared by everyone involved in football”. The organisation led by Jon Uriarte also underlined referees’ essential role in enforcing the rules, despite their constant exposure and the protests they face. It concluded: “But everything has a limit.”

The club acknowledges that referees, like other participants, can make mistakes and that error is part of sport. But, it argues, a mistake cannot justify campaigns of public targeting, pressure or attempts to influence those responsible for applying the rules. Athletic points to rugby as an example of a sport where refereeing authority can be respected collectively, even when decisions are controversial and competition is tense.

The statement comes as Real continues to argue that the penalty involving Nico Williams should not have been given and that errors went beyond the referee’s decision. In its statement, Real Sociedad cites, among other things, an error of judgement by the on-field referee: in its account, the Real Sociedad player touched the ball before contact with the Athletic Club attacker. It also criticises the image-review process and says the incident should lead to a review of procedures and protocols.

Athletic says it has stood by referees both when decisions have gone against the club and when they have favoured it. The club recalls that after the match against Sevilla, the CTA acknowledged a decision that went against Athletic, while for the penalty incident in the derby the CTA confirmed that the referee’s decision was correct. Athletic reiterated its commitment to supporting and upholding the refereeing community and promoting respect for its members: “Caring for referees is caring for football.”