World Cup Embarrassment

The World Cup, arguably the biggest sporting event in the world (either this or the summer Olympics) begins today. I considered writing a World Cup preview (my previews from 2010, 2014, and 2018 were amazing and still hold up today!) or asking for World Cup predictions (like I did in 2022), but I'm not for the 2026 edition. Basically, while having 48 teams may make the tournament more enjoyable by having more countries like Cape Verde and Curacao participate, does anyone believe that teams like Haiti will keep a match close against Brazil? The group stage is somewhat pointless since 32 teams will advance to the knock-out rounds. I tend to think we're going to see a lot of chalk. Favorites like Spain, France, Argentina, England, and Brazil are going to be there at the end. With so many rounds as a result of the additional 16 teams, I expect that one of these countries that have the most depth will win.

I’ve mentioned multiple times on this blog that with the exception of about 5-6 years in the late 90s and early 2000s, I’ve been a soccer referee since I was 14. While I never worked high school, college, or professional adult games, I've worked some high level youth games over the years. Now, I prefer working travel and recreational games for kids in the 10-14 age range. I can still keep up with them, but I also like teaching and explaining the rules/laws of the game. Plus, with this age group, I get to work with some newer referees, and I enjoy being a mentor and providing advice and suggestions.

Where am I going with this? When I watch the World Cup, I can’t help but watch the referees too. Their positioning, their calls, their body language. I was never on track to become a professional referee, let alone one who got to the World Cup, so I have great admiration for World Cup referees. It's an incredible honor to be selected, and as much as teams/fans will criticize officials, the referees earned their spots. Basically, FIFA didn't observe my U13 boys' recreational games last weekend and decide that I should work World Cup matches.

All of this brings me to Omar Abdulkadir Artan. While you can read all about Artan's background from this BBC article, since we're in the middle of the NBA and NHL finals and the World Cup hasn't actually started yet, I'm not sure how familiar many sports fans are with this name. Artan was going to be the first referee from Somalia to officiate at the World Cup. He was the 2025 Confederation of African Football referee of the year. This is the entire African continent, so again, he is significantly more qualified to officiate the World Cup than me. Artan arrived in Miami earlier this week, which is where the referee base camp is located. My guess is that there were multiple meetings and activities planned to finalize preparation for the games. Artan was denied entry into the United States. This is from CNN:

When asked about Artan’s case, a US Customs and Border Protection spokesperson told CNN that he underwent additional inspection upon arriving in Miami following a flight from Istanbul.

“During processing, the traveler underwent additional inspection, a routine part of CBP’s inspection process when officers need to verify information or determine admissibility,” the spokesperson said. “Following inspection, the traveler, a referee for the FIFA World Cup, was determined to be inadmissible due to vetting concerns and was denied entry.”

Apparently, FIFA has no say in this matter. Although FIFA has plenty of its own problems, this decision was made solely by US authorities, and the host country has final say on these types of matters. 

According to ESPN:

A United States official said Tuesday night that Omar Artan, the Somalian soccer referee who was denied entry into the country ahead of the World Cup, was refused admission due to "association with suspected members of terror organizations."

The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss a matter that is covered by visa privacy laws.

While it's certainly possible that Artan has some type of ties with suspected members of terror organizations, as the kids say, this is sus (that’s short for suspicious for those unhip folks). I highly doubt that Artan was a last minute replacement official. FIFA likely assigned the officials weeks if not months before the World Cup. Which means that FIFA provided names of officials to the US well before the Cup began. So you’re telling us that the US only learned of Artan’s so-called terrorist ties when he arrived in Miami and not anytime in the weeks and months before? Again, sus. 

If Artan was from Germany or Japan or Bosnia and Herzegovina, he would probably be fine. This is because he’s from Somalia, and I suspect that our government considers everyone from that country to have ties to terrorists.

Let's say that Artan does have association with suspected members of terror organizations. That's an incredible long-game to work your way up to become the continent's top referee and get invited to the World Cup. And what exactly is he going to do in America? I suspect that there is tight security surrounding referees to make sure no one approaches them, due to suspected threats involving match-fixing and gambling. Is Artan going to leave his hotel and skip his match to do some type of scouting of potential terrorist attacks? Do you know how ridiculous this sounds?

Meanwhile, there has been no media attention given to Christian Pulisic and the strong possibility of him being a traitor. Sure, Pulisic is the face of US men's national team, but here he is supporting Sweden.

Don't let the "red, white, and blue" Swedish fish fool you. It's still SWEDISH fish. If the US ends up facing Sweden later in the tournament, watch Pulisic closely for bad passes and maybe an own goal. He'll get a hero's welcome when he moves to Stockholm.

Enjoy the World Cup matches!

Random Ramblings: I'm Old Edition

* Look, I understand that I’m old and am increasingly out of touch. I recently read in my Ithaca College alumni magazine (yes, a print version!) that “The hottest career choice is no longer doctor, lawyer, or actor. It’s now content creator” with 57% of Generation Z (people born between 1997-2012) saying they would become an “influencer” if given the chance.” I think I’ve heard of the biggest content creators/influencers. There’s Mr. Beast who makes videos and seems to give away significant amounts of money. I don’t know what Druski does, but he’s in several commercials with Snoop and Zoe Saldana. I’ve heard the name Alix Earle though I’m not sure what she does either except that she spent time with Tom Brady at a party. This brings me to Kendall Vertes. The Pittsburgh Pirates shared pictures of her throwing out the first pitch at a recent game. Despite having nearly 11 million followers on Instagram, I had never heard of her. 

Apparently, Kendall is/was on Dance Moms and started on the show as a child when she was definitely not a mom. But if the show is about the moms, shouldn’t her mom have 11 million followers? Since Kendall seems to be a big deal, they should rename the show Dance Moms and Dancing Kids. Maybe create a new show called Dance Kids Who Are No Longer Kids? I’m sounding older and older as I continue to type this, so I’m stopping now.

* Based on the schedules of my kids’ activities, I haven’t been able to work as a soccer referee this spring. I worked one game as an assistant referee a few weeks ago, so I was excited to have two games as a center over the weekend. Just before I was about to leave my house, the assigning app gave me a notification that my games were canceled. I figured it was a mistake, and since I was running a few minutes late and the field was about 25 minutes away, I ignored it and drove to the field. When I arrived at the sports complex, the parking lot was mostly empty. There was an adult soccer game occurring on one field but no one else was there. I checked my email to see two more notifications that my games were canceled. Apparently, the county (not the county where I live) closed the grass fields due to rain from the night before. My particular field was absolutely playable. One of the coaches was there and grumbled about county officials not actually visiting the field before making a decision to cancel games.

I got back to my car and emailed the referee assigned to see if any other games were available. She gave me several options in the afternoon, but I couldn’t do them. Instead, I took one U-12 girls rec game in the exact opposite direction. The game was fine as I really enjoy teaching and mentoring younger referees and explaining rules and calls to the players (and sometimes coaches). Still, I drove 16 miles to the original field, 33 miles to the second field, and back 19 miles to Luigi’s flag football game. That’s 68 miles just so I could make $30 for a game with 30-minute halves. While I joke that I get paid to exercise when I referee, I’m not sure the paycheck will cover the cost of gasoline!

* I loved the TV show Jury Duty from a few years ago. The show was made up of all actors except for one guy who thought he was a member of the jury in an actual case. Highly recommend seeing it if you haven’t. I was skeptical about the new series, Jury Duty Presents Company Retreat since I wasn’t sure how they would do it again. Despite the awkward title, the show was just as good as the original.

* A few weeks ago, I wrote how I thought (but wasn't 100% sure) that retired Browns and Steelers cornerback Joe Haden was a coach in my third grader's flag football league. It's now confirmed that the 3-time Pro Bowler is a coach. The Moose got a picture with him at Luigi's last game, and we talked to him for about 30 seconds. He was in Pittsburgh to announce a pick at the NFL draft on Friday evening and then flew to the DC area on Saturday to make it back in time for his team's flag football game. That's dedication!

* My kids’ elementary school holds an annual Heritage Night where the gym is filled with tables of families’ cultures/countries. It’s such a fun event, and the kids (and parents) get to try different types of foods from all over the world. 

* I might have been 100 feet from US soccer great Clint Dempsey last week. Men In Blazers, maybe the biggest soccer podcast/show in the US, held a contest for the Best American Soccer Bar. Ireland’s Four Courts near where I work in Arlington won, so Men In Blazers held a live event which featured Dempsey. I walked by the restaurant a little before taping, so I might have been close to him.

* In the next few weeks, I plan on writing two "serious" posts. I have general notes and ideas but need some time to fully form them into posts. They're going to be a little different for me.

Another August 2025 Random Ramblings

I received an email a few months ago from my health insurance company about getting a "Move Kit" and participating in an exercise program. The Move Kit basically consists of a generic version of a FitBit that I wear on my wrist. It syncs up with my phone and tracks my steps. The key part of this program is that it is free, so I signed up. While I've tracked steps on my phone for years, it only works when I actually have my phone in my pocket. Since I don't carry my phone when I referee soccer games, I always wondered how many steps I take during these games. Over the weekend, I finally got the chance to try it. While I'm not completely sure of the accuracy of the device on my wrist, in three 70-minute games (one as a center referee and two as an assistant referee on the sidelines) including walking to and from my car and the restroom, I took about 15,000 steps in less than 6 hours. 

Debbie Gibson has a book coming out in a few weeks. (I've written about her before.) While I'm not willing to buy it (yet?), I put it on hold at my local library.

After four years as the Dining for Dollars chair for my kids' elementary school PTA, I'm finally out! My job was to contact restaurants to set up events where a portion of the sales would go to the PTA. It wasn't a very difficult job, but it took up more time than I wanted in coordinating dates with the restaurants, the board, getting flyers made, etc. I told the PTA president at the end of last school year that I was done but would stick around if they couldn't find anyone new. I sold it as being a great position for someone who wanted to ease into getting involved but not ready for a leadership position. Someone took the role and has ideas for the school year. More importantly, I'm out!

Well, I was due. After nearly 20 years, I received a summons for jury duty. I wrote about my very limited experience years ago near the start of my blog. Might be some new blog content later this fall! (Though not nearly as good as the TV show.)

The Moose last played organized baseball in the fall of his 6th grade year. As someone who throws with his left hand, it was at this level where he could no longer play infield positions other than 1st base. He wasn't great at first, so he mostly played outfield. Although he had/has a good arm, I'm not sure if he pitched that season. Anyway, it was at this level, where you could clearly see a distinction between players. The good players were really good. There were a few kids who hit home runs and pitchers who could really throw. I don't think The Moose had more than 1-2 hits that season (though he had a good eye and walked a lot). I mention this because he just started high school last week and announced that he wants to play on the high school team this spring. As a pitcher. Not exactly sure how this is going to go, but I wish him luck.

Soccer Referee Story

I don’t usually write about my soccer referee experiences. I’ve worked hundreds of games since becoming certified in 1990 (that’s not a typo), and my games aren’t usually worthy of sharing. I’m making a slight exception today. Over the weekend, I worked at a pretty big tournament in Northern Virginia. Probably against my better judgement, I signed up to work four consecutive U11 boys games. For this tournament, that meant 30-minute halves with just one referee. While keeping up with kids in 4th, 5th, and/or 6th grades isn't a problem for me, 4 hours of game time is a lot. And without assistant referees it’s impossible to tell if a player is offsides or if the ball goes completely out of play. Basically, if it’s close, we’re going to keep playing.

Before the first game, one coach approached me about a goal being set about 2 inches behind the goal line. The goal must have been anchored to the ground since it was impossible to move. I mean, Hulk or Thor could probably move it, but the coach and I could not. Naturally, about half-way through the first half, his team took a shot that hit the post, and he immediately started yelling that it should be a goal. Even with the goal set back, it's unlikely that the entire ball crossed the line before hitting the post. Technology used at the World Cup might be able to determine that the ball crossed the line, but they didn't quite have any video replay for this U11 match. Besides, going over the line and hitting the post didn't prove it was a goal. I could have simply called a goal kick for the ball being out of play. And with no assistant referee, I couldn't make this call from 20 yards away. I'm getting really into the weeds. Besides, I'm completely burying the lede here. This coach sounded exactly like Norm Macdonald except that he was not at all funny. 

He continued to complain throughout the game, and I eventually gave him a yellow card for dissent. This follows a trend I've seen throughout the season. So much complaining by coaches and players. Another player on this team got a yellow card for dissent (complaining about calls) too.

The second and third games were uneventful except that both my calves cramped at the same time during the third game. And right when I awarded a penalty kick. That had never happened to me in a game before, and it was quite painful. I limped around for the next few minutes before they finally felt better. After the game, one of the parents of a player in the game gave me some electrolyte powder that I mixed with my water. It was disgusting, and I'm not sure how much it helped.

Then, there was the fourth game. The first half was fine with nothing remarkable. I still couldn't run as fast as I wanted, but it was fine. Part-way through the second half, after a team scored a goal, I pointed to the center circle and started writing this in my book with my back towards the goal. I completely missed some trash-talking and pushing behind me. As soon as I heard the commotion, I ran over, but it was too late. One team claimed that the other started the ruckus, but without seeing it, I couldn't do anything. Yes, I should have waited to write down the goal, but this also wouldn't have been missed with two assistant referees. Over the next few minutes, there were more fouls and more talking and the team leading having their players stay on the ground longer than necessary. Finally, after one player kicked another, I blew a hard whistle and started to run over to issue a yellow card. Before I got there, one kid pushed the kid who did the kicking to the ground. Ugh. Red card. Things settled down for the last 6-7 minutes of the game, but one coach told his team not to shake hands after the game and the coaches weren't exactly going to get drinks together. 

(For the record, I did have a whistle unlike Ed O'Neill.) 

What's funny is that the tournament had a mentor at the field, and I talked with him both at halftime and after the game. Besides waiting to write down the goal and maybe issuing a card for time-wasting, he thought I made the right calls. He basically said that some things were beyond my control. It was reassuring. It also shows that you can still learn even when you've done something for a long time.

Oh, several days later, my right calf is still tender, and I limp around for a minute if I rest/sit for too long.

Three Games As A Soccer Referee

It's been a long time since I've shared stories about being a soccer referee. For those of you who don't know me very well (or know about this side of my life), I became a certified soccer referee in 1990. It was a great high school job since the pay was good, and I only worked on weekends giving me time to do homework and participate in activities during the week. I continued working as a referee when I returned home from college, and after taking a few years off, got recertified again around 2005. Before kids, I worked as a referee most weekends during the fall and spring seasons. In my mind, I get paid to exercise. Between all of the kids' activities, I don't work as much as I'd like, but I still try to get out when I can. I have two amazing primary assigners who I've known for years and understand my schedule. There are many times when I'll email them on Thursday to see if they have any availability for games on Sunday, and if they do, they slot me in. This post is about three games I worked this fall.

(That's not me in the picture.)

Game 1: Under 12 Girls

While I stopped working adult games at least 4-5 years ago, I generally referee games for middle school and high school aged kids meaning that this recreational league game was slightly younger than I usually work. This game featured one team with girls that were a foot taller and probably 30-50 pounds heavier than their opponents. While I probably called more fouls against the “bigger” team since it was warranted, many times, I let the teams play simply because players on the “smaller” team just bounced off players from the “bigger” team and hit the ground. After the bigger team scored a late goal on a penalty kick, one of the parents yelled for me to call it both ways. Then, as I was leaving the field, I overheard the “smaller” team’s coach explain that soccer is a physical game and that the players need to play through it sometimes. 

Most times, I forget a game as soon as it ends. This one stuck with me. Should I have called the game tighter based on the age and skill level? Would that have been unfair to the “bigger” team? I don't know, but both answers seem to be yes.

Game 2: Under 9 Boys

I gave my assigner very short notice about my availability, and while there was a U19 boys game that had an assistant referee (AR) opening , he really needed me to be an AR for a U10 girls game and then center a U9 boys game. He explained that this was the first ever game as a center for the teenage referee assigned to the U10 girls game, and he wanted me to be there as a mentor. The teenage referee did a great job, and I was able to give her some feedback both at halftime and then after the game. Then, I got to center a U9 game, and I loved it. Yes, I called fouls during the game and made sure that it kept moving, but I also explained fouls and helped kids understand the procedure for a goal kick and the proper way to do throw-ins. One of the team's coaches thanked me after the game, saying that although they try to teach this at practice, it's often better for the kids to get the real-time feedback during the game from someone other than them. I really enjoyed being able to teach the kids and be a mentor for a new referee.

Game 3: Under 11 Boys

My final games this fall were for a local all-star recreational tournament. I was by myself (instead of a normal 3-person crew) for three games with 25-minute halves. The temperature was about 37 when I started, but I warmed up quickly from all of the running.

(It wasn't actually as cold as it was from this picture.)

Before I arrived at the field, I noticed on the schedule that no one signed up for the game after mine. In emailing with the tournament assigner, I wrote that I would stay if no one took the game. No one took the game. The game itself was unremarkable with one team winning 5-0. The losing team had some chances, but the winning team controlled the game. As I walked off the field, I heard one or two of the kids complaining about me as the reason they lost the game. There was one goal scored on what may have been offsides. It was close, but I thought the attacking player was fine. Of course, in a one-person system, I can't be even with the next-to-the-last defender on both sides at all times (and especially not in the fourth of four games). If the tournament wanted a 3-person system for all games (and increased costs for the teams), the AR would have been in perfect position to determine if a player was offsides. If it's close, I'm giving the benefit of the doubt to the attacking team. Plus, that one goal had minimal to no impact on the final result.

Anyway, I packed up my bag and as I walked to my car, a player from the losing team asked how much the other team's coach paid me. I was a little stunned, so I didn't answer. The kid continued throwing out various amounts concluding with $1 million. 

I smiled and jokingly replied that I would certainly accept $1 million to help a team win an under-11 game. Do I make mistakes as a referee? Of course. There is constant action, and I miss things. However, I really don't appreciate anyone questioning my integrity. If it was a coach or maybe an older player, I would have given a post-game yellow card for dissent. For a 10 or 11 year-old, I just left the field and went home.

Ramblings Round-Up

I usually call these posts "Random Ramblings," but I thought I would mix things up a little today. 

* Earlier this year, we took the kids to see Newsies Jr. at our local middle school. The kids really liked the live performance and the show. Since that time, we have watched both the 1992 Newsies movie (starring Christian Bale) and the Broadway theater performance of Newsies (starring fellow Ithaca College graduate Jeremy Jordan) on Disney+. I mention all of this because I want to take the kids to more live theater and shows. So over the weekend, I took The Moose and Pedro Tulo to the Kennedy Center to see the world-premier of The Mortification of Fovea Munson. It's a musical based on the book of the same name about a pre-teen who works in her parents' cadaver lab. It's a very cute and sweet (and funny) show. 

* I need to take a recertification class and pass a test each year to be a soccer referee. Since COVID began, everything is online. There are certainly benefits to this format. You can break up the learning modules and test over days or weeks and take them at your convenience. The drawback is that I was used to taking a 5-6 hour class every year in December and being done. Without the structured and set class, I only just earned my recertification, so I was ineligible to work any games until now. 

* The focus of the referee class this year was on the behavior of coaches. There is little tolerance for any referee abuse or questioning of calls from coaches or team officials. One warning and then cards come out. I also found it amusing that the US Soccer Federation regularly included a slide showing former national team coach Jurgen Klinsmann seemingly complaining.

* In honor of having a Kohl's credit card for 23 years, the store sent me a $5 coupon and 30% coupon. Will I receive a gold watch for 25 years?

* We receive a weekly report about The Moose's online activities. While he generally spends much of his time on YouTube and ESPN, last week, he visited Redfin multiple times. I had no idea he was in the housing market as a 6th grader!

* Our cat Ziggy now throws up every 2-3 days. He definitely didn't do this when he was younger. While I should probably contact the vet about this, do you find this concerning?

* Finally, The Moose was all in for the women's college basketball conference tournament games last weekend. Because of this, please join the Sean's Ramblings Group Women's NCAA Tournament group on ESPN, and I'll probably create an Oscars pool just for fun too.

My World Cup Broadcasting Application

A friend recently texted me from his son’s soccer game asking for clarification about a call made by the referee. The defending player passed the ball directly to his goalie who picked the ball up within the penalty area. The referee correctly stopped play and awarded a free kick to the attacking team. He incorrectly gave the team a direct free kick from within the penalty area when it should have been an indirect free kick. Any direct free kick within the penalty area would be a penalty kick, but a pass back to the keeper would never result in a penalty kick.

I understand that I’m really getting into soccer rules/laws here and probably lost many of you. However, my friend asking for a rules clarification gave me an idea. NFL games always have officials available to discuss rules or provide opinions on certain calls. Dr. Joe Machnik has done this for World Cup matches too. Maybe Dr. Joe needs some help for the upcoming World Cup. Therefore, I am here to offer my services. Here are my credentials:

* I’ve been a certified United States Soccer Federation referee since 1990. 

* I’ve served as a referee or assistant referee in hundreds of games.

* I received high praise for my work as the center referee for three Under-9 tournament games this summer.

* I showed restraint in not issuing a yellow card on Sunday to an Under-13 boy who tried to block a goalie's punt. While I gave him a stern talking to, I probably should have issued a card proving that I constantly evaluate my performance.

Sure, I've never worked as a referee for a professional match, but do casual soccer fans really want that? Why not have your "Average Joe" ref discuss calls? Actually, I have an ever better idea. My brother has probably worked more games than me as a soccer referee including many college games. Put the two of us on TV together. There will be lots of inside jokes that no one will understand as we make fun of each other. It will basically be the Manning-cast but without anyone knowing us or with any broadcasting experience. What could go wrong? I look forward to hearing from you, FOX Sports! 

The photo above is from a friend who shared this picture on a kid getting a yellow card for fouling her son. I hope there's a picture somewhere of me issuing a card taken by a satisfied parent!

Referee Stories

I became a certified soccer referee in 1990. It was a fantastic way to make money in high school since I worked a lot of games on weekends, but it didn't interrupt school activities or homework during the week. I continued to work games in college during breaks, but I stopped after college and for most of my 20s. While I don't remember if it was because I was looking for something to do, seeking some extra income, needing to get more exercise, or some combination of all of these, I started working as a referee again around when I turned 30. I still continue to work games when I can, but it's significantly less now than at any other time over the last 30 years. It's just too hard with all of the kids' activities and just spending time with them on the weekends. 

I mention all this because during all of my kids' soccer, basketball, and baseball games, I make sure to thank the officials and never criticize any call. I also tell my kids not to argue with the referees or umpires. I'm at the point where I get upset when coaches, parents, and players yell at the officials (see what happened in February). If a coach disagrees with a call in a calm manner, that's fine. However, these are youth sports, so I expect coaches to set good examples and parents to do the same.

I mention all this because as a soccer ref, I've certainly noticed worse behavior from everyone involved compared to when I worked games when I was younger. I've never felt physically threatened, but I don't like this trend. Over just the last two weeks, a baseball umpire was attacked in Texas, a basketball referee was attacked in Georgia, and a softball umpire was attacked in Mississippi. What is wrong with these people?

It's people like those in the articles which make it unappealing for more people to become officials or continue officiating. 

I'll give one positive though. I worked as a soccer referee for an under-16 boys game a few weeks ago. This was the first season for one of the assistant referees. He's 71! He played soccer for decades, and now that he's retired, he decided to become a certified ref. While I talked to him at halftime and after the game about positioning (where to stand on a corner kick and penalty kick) and some mechanics (keeping the flag raised on an offsides call) like I would do with other first-year refs, he did a nice job and was excited to be there. So maybe there is some hope.

Stick To Sports

I feel bad for my friends who are sports bloggers. It goes without saying that I feel bad for a lot of people right now, but this is a sports related post. Sort of. While there have been times over the years when I considered making Sean’s Ramblings exclusively a Pittsburgh sports blog, I always found this limiting. I like writing about my kids or entertainment or just what’s going on in my life. So while I still write about sports, I have never been a traditional sports blogger. So while I can write about various topics, it’s going to be tough for sports bloggers to come up with content over the next few weeks, months, etc. (Unless you have a blog about football and you can spend months writing about Tom Brady.)

Since we're in a country without sporting events taking place, I thought I would share a few things. First, the XFL announced last week that the league won't be playing its regular season games. I assume that means that there won't be a postseason either. You know what this means? I'm the XFL fantasy football league champion!

ESPN has a game called Streak for Cash. It's a monthly contest where you pick various props such as who will win NHL, NBA, NFL, MLB, soccer, and college games. There might also be individual props such as points scored or goals per game. Anyway, whoever gets the most picks correct in a row per month wins $25,000. I've played for years and never come close to winning. Anyway, with no major sports going on, the props have been quite interesting. There's a Singaporean Premier soccer league match. The Russian Super basketball league game. The other night featured whether the first Mega Millions lottery ball would be odd or even. There's even been "The Masked Singer" and "Survivor" props. I'm all for seeing what props appear next!

And now is where this blog post turns dramatically. Want to know one positive thing about the NCAA cancelling the men's and women's basketball tournaments? Liberty University's men's team, who earned an automatic birth, will not get to play. I'm sure that most of the students, faculty, and staff at Liberty University are good people. The problem is the school's president, Jerry Falwell Jr. I wrote about Falwell being a sore loser after the Virginia elections in 2017. Less than two months ago, Falwell tried to get some Virginia counties to secede and join West Virginia (and he's still working on this). This is completely absurd, but I guess it's politics by someone who is supposed to be spiritual leader and educator. He's all for free speech...except when it comes to people at his own school. Oh, Liberty University also owns Freedom Aviation who sells jet fuel to the Pentagon. I'm not sure how that fits into the school's mission.

Now, Falwell is being dangerous. Last Friday, he went on "Fox & Friends" and said, "You know, impeachment didn’t work, and the Mueller report didn’t work, and Article 25 didn’t work and so maybe now this is their next attempt to get Trump,” he said. This meaning the coronavirus.



You can even hear the anger about the school having to cancel residential classes.

University President Jerry Falwell, Jr., said, “We originally believed it was safest to return our students following their spring break instead of having them return following greater exposure opportunities from leaving them in different parts of the country for longer periods. But, the Governor’s recent decision to limit certain gatherings has left us no practical choice because we have so many classes of more than 100 students. We want to provide for the continuity of our students’ education while doing what makes sense to help slow the spread of the coronavirus to our university family and local community.” The school has one of the largest online student populations in the world, so they can of all places can handle social distancing better than most.

The whole point is that Liberty University, meaning specifically Falwell Jr., doesn't need any type of positive exposure from the basketball team. He's the worst.

I'm going to end this post with something good. Here's Will Ferrell being a soccer referee a few weeks ago.

This isn't a movie. Apparently, all of the parents in this league need to volunteer, and he's a parent. The uniform is legit, so it's possible that he really is a certified soccer ref. Just another thing that me and Will have in common!

Arsenal Player Eats During Game

I'm sharing a video that will likely get removed rather quickly. (Update: The video got blocked almost immediately.)



On January 1st, I was home celebrating the first day of 2020 by watching an English Premier League match between Arsenal and Manchester United. As you can see (by the pictures below, not the video), near the end of the second half, Arsenal's Lucas Torreira is clearly eating chocolate, an energy bar, or something else in the middle of the game.

Then, it appears that he put the remaining food into his pocket. My immediate thought was this seems really unusual, and then I began considering this from the perspective of a soccer referee. I don't think there is anything in the Laws of the Game that would prevent someone from having a mid-game snack. However, if a player threw or spit the food at someone, the player would receive a red card.

Now I kind of hope that this becomes a trend though I'm sure it would come down to sponsorships. Look, there's LeBron James running the Lakers offense while eating a McDonald's Big Mac! And there's Michael Thomas of the New Orleans Saints making an incredible one-handed catch...because he's holding a KIND bar in his other hand. How is Sidney Crosby able to make such an amazing pass while holding and eating a bag of Skittles?

Maybe eating during games will encourage more youth to play sports?

My Fight With United States Soccer

I’ve been a certified soccer referee since 1990. That’s a long time! Back in high school, this was the perfect job. I made pretty good money, and I only worked weekends which allowed me to participate in school activities and (to my parents’ approval) not have to worry about balancing homework with a job during the week. I didn’t ref much during college though I always managed to work a big tournament when I got home for the summer. (Hi Edinboro University!) I took several years off after college, during graduate school (where I already had three jobs), and in my early professional career.

With my wife busy with work and graduate school, I had some extra time and decided to get back into being a soccer referee. I got recertified and got connected with an outstanding youth association in Northern Virginia, who truly supports their referees. I got paid to exercise! I’ve continued to work as a ref since then doing games for kids as young as 8 up to adult league games. I’ve had to cut back my time working as a ref significantly with three kids, particularly since I was an assistant coach for two teams this spring. Even in the rare instance when I planned on working some games last month, I had to cancel one set of games since my middle son had to go to the emergency room in what turned out to be two broken bones in his left arm. I felt awful for retuning the games only an hour before I was to be at the field, but my kid+emergency room took priority. It was the only time I ever had to cancel games and the referee assigner was extremely supportive. This is a really long introduction to my recent correspondence with the United States Soccer Federation ("USSF").

Here we go:

Dear USSF,

My name is Sean, and I've been a certified referee for approximately 25 years. I've enjoyed working as a referee since I was a teenager and now also coach my kids' teams. The reason that I'm writing is because referee fees go up every year, yet, it seems like referees get less and less for these fees. Specifically, we used to receive a paper copy of The Laws of the Game annually, and we haven't received a copy in years. While I understand that the Laws expanded greatly over the last few years, I still like having a handy reference at the field or after the game instead of trying to find something in a PDF format on my phone. Basically, I'm writing to see how I can get a free paper copy of The Laws. I find it completely unreasonable that our fees go up each year, and if we want a paper copy of The Laws, we need to pay for it.

Thank you,
Sean

The reply:

Hi Sean,

Unfortunately, we cannot distribute a free copy of the IFAB Laws of the Game. You can access them with the pdf attached or through the free app “Laws of the Game” in the app store.

I apologize for the inconvenience.

My turn:

Thank you for your quick response. I guess my question is why are you unable to distribute copies of the Laws to referees? It seems like this should be a part of the fees we pay for recertification each year.

I sent a second similar message to USSF 9 days later after not receiving a response. After the second message, I received this reply:

Hi Sean,

Although we appreciate your desire to always have a physical copy handy, it no longer makes sense to distribute over a 100,000 physical copies for free when it can just be accessed online.

We understand where you are coming from, but hope you can respect our rationale with this.

My turn again:

Dear U.S. Soccer Referee Program,

Thanks again for your response. While I understand that it's probably cost prohibitive to print a physical copy for all refs every year, it seems like it could be done once and then (like we do now) we get a printed few pages of only the changes from one year to the next. I guess my main question is this. If it doesn't make sense to print physical copies, why are referee fees going up each year? Where are our fees going? Is there somewhere online (or even a printed copy!) where referees can see the budget specifically for referees?

I sent a second message to USSF after not getting a response for a week, and it appears that I'm not going to get a response to this one.

Look, I know this is a somewhat trivial fight. It really isn’t that big a deal that the Laws of the Game are only available online. I’m just a little old-fashioned. I’d much rather read a physical book than to try to read one on my phone or tablet. I even have a blog and few people have blogs anymore! I just prefer having a physical copy of the Laws. I'm also not happy that fees go up each year, and we were just required to purchase new uniforms since (I believe) a new company now makes the shirts and USSF didn't want refs to wear the logo for the old company on the uniforms. All of this and I want BBQ Fritos back! Well, at least I’m comforted in knowing that my referee fees are going to the US women’s national team which will receive an equal amount of money for winning the World Cup as the men’s team would have received for winning the World Cup.

Wait, what?

Linked In

See what I'm doing here? (I think) I'm being clever by having a posted titled "Linked In" while I share links about interesting articles I've recently read. So here are some links to check out when taking a break from figuring out where and when to buy your turkey and pumpkin pie!

* Where did the phrase "Kennywood's open" originate? The Post-Gazette did some research though we probably will never know. [Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]

* Josh went to Nashville. I went to Nashville for my annual(-ish) hockey road trip about two years ago, but I still haven't written a blog post about that portion of the trip. I should do that sometime especially since I really enjoyed the city. [Josh's World]

* A friend posted this "Homestead & Survival Alarm Clock" picture on Facebook. [Facebook]

Who's parents? Um, I've had this exact alarm clock for at least 20 years. I know that I took it with me to England in 2000, so I probably had it when I was in college in the 90s. What a solid alarm clock!

* An English soccer referee was banned for using rock, paper, scissors instead of coin flip before kickoff. The problem is that he should have played the pick a number between 1-10 and whoever is closest wins game. [CBS Sports]

* Apparently, in solidary with this referee, hundreds of refs did rock, paper, scissors to start games over the weekend. Although I was an assistant referee and not the center referee for two games Sunday, we did a coin toss since that's the way you start a game! [ESPN]

* Ron launched a new website, Steelers Takeaways. Please support him and the site. [Steelers Takeaways]

* Heinz offered Kansas City QB Patrick Mahomes free ketchup for life. I think he should do it and not just because it's Heinz ketchup. Actually, yes, it's because it's Heinz ketchup. [ESPN]

* Finally, credit where it's due. Congratulations to Emory's women's volleyball team on winning the NCAA Division III championship. Emory dominated by losing only one set during the entire tournament run. Of course, that set was against Ithaca College in the quarterfinals and Emory won two other sets against the Bombers 25-23, but Emory deserves and earned the title. [Emory Athletics]

Photo from Emory University's athletics website.

Quick Story

I did not work as a soccer referee at all in the fall since Luigi was born in September, and I was a little busy. Even with three kids, I planned on doing some occasional work as a referee this spring, but then I dislocated my wrist in January. My primary referee assigner contacted me a few weeks ago to see if I could work an adult game during a weekday night, and I feel like I performed pretty well, particularly since it was really the first time I truly ran in about 8 months.

For my birthday, I wanted to ref for only the second time since August. Since my birthday fell on Mother's Day (and again there's that whole three kid thing), I knew that I had only a limited window available. I found an early morning under-9 (probably 2nd and 3rd graders) girls game where I would only be gone about two hours.

It was an easy game to ref with nice players, coaches, and parents. Even the Canadian geese were pleasant enough to leave the field when I shoo-ed them off before the start of the second half.

As I left the field though, a woman called out to me. She didn't say "Ref," she said Pedro Tulo's dad. (Not his actual name.) I think I stopped and turned like Burt Lancaster did in Field Of Dreams (go to 1:35 of this video).



It turns out that the sister of one of Pedro Tulo's preschool classmates played on one of the two teams. I talked with the mom and his classmate for a few minutes including answering the little girl's question of where was Pedro Tulo. I wonder if she'll mention to Pedro Tulo today that she saw me and if Pedro Tulo will have any type of reaction.

My Life In Pictures

Here are some of the things going on in my life captured in pictures. Please note that I am not a photographer and do not play one on the internet, and these pictures were all taken using my phone.

As a result of the massive windstorm that hit much of the northern East Coast on Friday, there were trees down everywhere. This is from the parking lot of Pedro Tulo's school. While we were fortunate not to lose power, I know several people who did not have power for three days or more.

After nearly six weeks I got my cast off! My arm looks so weird.

Oh, the doctor also removed these pins.

Although I was told that it may take up to six months before my wrist is back to normal and I have plenty of physical therapy ahead, my wrist right now feels the same as it did before surgery since it is so stiff. I'm also now going to wear a splint for at least a month though it's nice to take a shower without covering my right arm and I'm able to bite my fingernails again. (What an awful habit.)

The doctor's office had several magazines including Arthritis Today. I was surprised that someone so young and healthy was on the cover, but I guess that's the point that arthritis doesn't only occur for the social security crowd.

Luigi is now six months old and although he often wears sleepers, he sometimes wears these booties to keep his socks on and feet warm. What color would you call these?

Lucky Charms lip balm? I'm intrigued though are they supposed to be magically delicious?

Ziggy has no need for the Directv receiver.

Finally, I watched the first two episodes of NBC's new show Good Girls about three suburban moms that rob a grocery store because they need the money for their families. It kind of seems like it's going to be a network version of Weeds. I'm not sold yet, but I'll give the show a few more episodes. Anyway, in the second episode, the daughter of the character played by Retta participates in a soccer game. If you notice the picture, the referee is wearing a yellow uniform which is a no-no when one of the teams are wearing yellow jerseys. (And yes, I really want to get back on the field to ref some games but I don't have the go-ahead to do that yet.)

24 Hours

On Monday evening after the kids went to sleep, I got the mail which included a rather significant check from all of the games I worked as a soccer referee this fall. Wooooo! Then, I took the 2016 soccer referee recertification test online. (Please note that the next portion of this blog post is about soccer ref stuff, but there's non-ref stuff below.) This 100-question, multiple-choice test is painful. Some of the questions are poorly worded, and there are plenty of others where they are trying to fool you. Here are some questions:

#1: A player, while in an offside position, is guilty of interfering with the opponent and therefore guilty of offside if he does the following:

A) blocking an opponent’s view of the ball but not involved in challenging for the ballherefore guilty of offside if he does the following:
B) running beside the opponent towards the ball without making contact with the opponent
C) making gesture of not playing the ball obvious to everyone
D) none of the above

Does no one proofread this? Although the answer is A, I answered none of the above since I had no idea what the wording in A was supposed to be.

#2 True or false. The ball is in play on a corner kick when the ball is kicked, moves, and leaves the corner arc.

Fortunately, I've taken the recertification exam enough to know some of the quirks. While it's true that the ball is in play on a corner kick when the ball is kicked, moves, and leaves the corner arc, they are asking if the ball is required to leave the arc to be in play. Therefore, the answer is false.

#3 Red #20 is ready to take a throw-in. White #31 pushes a Red attacker down inside the penalty area while jostling for position. You stop the throw-in and caution White #31 for unsporting behavior. The restart is

A) Dropped Ball
B) Thrwo-In
C) Kick-Off
D) Corner Kick
E) Gaol Kick

Is it too much to ask to spell throw and goal correctly?

It took me nearly two hours to take this exam, but I passed with a score of 87%. I don't feel bad about this score either. After the exam, I watched the end of the Detroit Lions-New Orleans Saints Monday Night Football game almost entirely for fantasy football purposes. In a semi-final match, one guy (we'll call him Mike) had a slim lead late in the fourth quarter. His opponent (we'll call him Michael) still had Saints RB Tim Hightower and Lions WR Calvin Johnson. On the last play of the game with victory certain for the Lions, Hightower caught a meaningless 18-yard pass. However, with a half-point per reception and .1 points per yard, this play gave Michael a victory by .1 points. Oh, this play happened just a minute after this rant by Michael:

I *#(@ing don't make the finals because some fat &*^% can't rember to tell the official he's eligible on second down after he remembers to do it on first down. That's the biggest bull &$*# ever in the history of fantasy football.

I feel like the fantasy gods will (or at least should) look poorly at Michael in the championship. Of course, now that I shared this, perhaps the fantasy gods will look poorly at me for the two leagues where I'm still in contention.

On Tuesday morning, I had my regular dentist appointment. I'm sure that I've mentioned this before, but I have a great relationship with my dentist. She knows that I don't floss and never says anything about it. (She also got me an electric toothbrush as a wedding gift.) However, the dental hygienist apparently doesn't know this deal. She asked how often I floss. I replied about once every 6 months which basically corresponds to when the hygienist does it during my appointment. So the hygienist made sure to give the spiel that I need to floss. I'm still not going to floss. If flossing was so important, the dentist should include some with the free toothbrush & toothpaste bag. On a different topic, I need a filling though this is nothing that flossing would have prevented.

This is turning into a very long post. Thanks for staying with me. After the dentist, I took my car to my mechanic for the required state inspection. I've been dreading this since I knew my car wouldn't pass due to an always on airbag light and my driver's side window not working. My 2003 Honda Civic only has 118,000 miles, and I only drive it about 5,000 miles per year. While I definitely need a car, I don't want to put too much money into it or start with a new car payment.

It turned out that the air bag light wasn't a problem. However, my headlights were. Another Honda was there, and I could see how clear they were in the other car compared to my foggy lights. Then, I needed a new window regulator and motor driver. I'm just happy that Warren G is involved with my car.

So my car is now fixed and passed inspection but the soccer referee money is gone.

Finally, I had my soccer referee recertification class. With the class scheduled for 3:30-8:30, I brought snacks and hoped they would provide pizza like they did in previous years. No pizza. I was hungry when I got home but I knew I couldn't eat too much so late. Therefore, my dinner consisted of a cheese stick, clementine, and mint chocolate chip ice cream. Dinner of champions!

Friday Links

- The Best of the Burghosphere Ceremonies take place tonight and Sunday at Most Wanted Fine Arts. Although I'm not able to attend, you can go as I receive the "Best Darn Pittsburgh Blog of Pop Culture and Sarcasm Awesomeness" Award and accept this on my behalf. [Most Wanted Fine Arts]

- I had never heard of Cespedes Family Barbecue until Thursday, and I feel like I've missed out on some great baseball discussions. In the latest podcast, you can hear interviews with Arthur Lenk, a Mets fan and the Israeli ambassador to South Africa, Swaziland, Lesotho, and Mauritius, and newly acquired Pittsburgh Pirates prospect Trevor Williams. Really good stuff. [Cespedes Family Barbecue]

- Heidi is going to be an extra in a UPMC commercial. I have a feeling this is going to be her big break! [The Steel Trap]

- You can tryout to play for the Pittsburgh Riverhounds. I'm saying you since my soccer career peaked when my team won the U-10 championship. Sure, I had some other big moments like playing at the Civic Arena, scoring a goal in my last high school game, and winning a college intramural championship, but I don't think this resume is enough to play professional soccer. I'm also not a fan of paying $125 to participate in an "open tryout." [Pittsburgh Riverhounds]

- On a much lower level of soccer, it appears that the US Soccer Federation is prohibiting and limiting headers for youth players. I have a feeling this is going to be a major topic at my next referee recertification class. [New York Times]

- I need to step up my Twitter game since I haven't made Alex's week in tweets in a long, long time. [Everybody Loves You]

- Happy 13th anniversary to ALOTT5MA. [a list of things thrown five minutes ago]

- The Washington Post shares the Best Books of 2015. Although Amazon now owns The Post, it is a little curious that links for all of the books direct you to Amazon.com so that you can buy the books there. [Washington Post]

Have a great weekend!

Creepy or Awkward?

We went to a birthday party at a park on Sunday, and as we were leaving, I noticed that a youth group that I was involved in during high school was setting up in a nearby pavilion.* I approached one of the girls, who was probably about 16, and had the following conversation:

Me: Are you with the [Youth Group name]?

Her: Yes.

Me: I was in [Youth Group name] too when I was in high school. I probably attended the [youth group camp name] before you were born.

Her:

Me: Well, good luck with the event today.

Her: Thanks.


About 7 seconds later out of earshot from the teenager

My wife: You were being creepy there.

Me: I wouldn't say creepy. Since I'm holding [my one year-old son], I'd say that it was more awkward.


We continued to walk towards the exit and saw a few more members of the group.

My wife: Don't say anything to them.

Me: Okay


So creepy that a 40 year-old guy tried to strike up a conversation with a high school girl that was in the same youth group as me (though 20+ years apart) or just awkward since I was carrying my toddler which means that I'm a (hopefully) respectable father (meaning not creepy)?



* There was also a soccer tournament going on in the park, and I was (and still am) appalled by how the adult referees were dressed. Shirts untucked. Plain white socks. Totally unprofessional.

Weekend Wrap Up

Through the first two games of the Penguins-Rangers playoff series, I have yet to stay awake through the first period. I recorded both games and started watching them after the kids fell asleep. However, in both cases, watching the game was the first time I was able to sit down for an extended period of time, and I crashed shortly after sitting comfortably on the couch. I guess I'll need to stand during the entire game on Monday.

I worked as a soccer referee for two high level (at least for me) games over the weekend. I must have been a little nervous as my stomach/digestive system was not happy with me even more so than for a typical game. Overall, the game where I worked as the center ref went well.

There is someone I know who recently retired from working at the Pentagon and has two grown kids in their 20s. I also discovered via his Facebook page that he attended the Star Wars Celebration convention in Anaheim. I never knew this side of him. Anyway, here are a few of his pictures from what looks like a fun event.

Where exactly is Obi-Wan Kenobi looking?

The NHL conducted its draft lottery on Saturday night with the Edmonton Oilers emerging as the big winner. Instead of Buffalo or Phoenix earning the #1 pick and probably drafting Connor McDavid, who is supposed to be the best prospect since Sidney Crosby, McDavid is now likely going to Edmonton. This is terrible news for the NHL. The Oilers have had the top pick several times over the past few years and are still a terrible franchise. Meanwhile, McDavid could have been a hero in Buffalo, a city that hasn't had a successful sports franchise in years and hasn't won a championship since 1965 or revitalized a struggling Phoenix franchise that may relocate in the next few years. Boo to the NHL for not "fixing" the lottery.

In the second soccer game I worked this weekend, the center ref ended up giving 12 minutes of stoppage time in the second half. There were no injuries and no reason to have more than maybe 3 or 4 minutes of extra time. I was getting increasingly upset as the time passed especially since a tieing goal (the score was 1-0) would have meant 2 10-minute overtime sessions and the possibility of penalty kicks. I definitely would have rather gone home than stay at the field an extra half hour.

On a recent morning, I asked my 4 year-old how he slept. His reply: on a pillow. Good answer.

Finally, Johnny Kemp of "Just Got Paid" passed away over the weekend. While I always liked this song, I definitely do not remember this video.

Merchandising Merchandising

As a soccer referee (and probably every other type of referee), you are required to dress professionally. There is no room for individuality when you put on your yellow shirt and pull up your black socks with white stripes by your knees. Therefore, I was a little surprised when I received the October e-mail from the U.S. Soccer Federation ("USSF") Referee program including a link to Official Sports' Breast Cancer Awareness apparel page. The company is selling various products like wristbands and whistles so that referees can show support of Breast Cancer Awareness month with proceeds to be donated to Stand Up To Cancer.

While I applaud Official Sports for their efforts, I'm a little skeptical about how much will go to Stand Up To Cancer. For example, the wristbands below cost $3.95. Does the entire $3.95 get donated to Stand Up To Cancer or is it a certain percentage? I contacted Official Sports about this and will post the company's reply if I receive one.

I just hope this isn't a case of Official Sports promoting more merchandise!



Please note that I think USSF wouldn't be pleased if referees used a pink whistle or wore pink wristbands once Breast Cancer Awareness month ends. That wouldn't look professional.

Update! I received the following message back from Official Sports

Thank you for your email and inquiry. Official Sports donates 40% of the retail price to Stand Up 2 Cancer.

Is that an appropriate percentage?