KEY POINTS:
The British Government is accusing millionaire football stars of setting an appalling example to schoolchildren, who are copying their violent and foul-mouthed antics at home and in the playground.
In a robust challenge to the game's authorities to clamp down on tantrums and fights among players, Sports Minister
Richard Caborn called on footballers to realise "they are role models and idols to millions of young boys and girls who look up to them and copy their actions".
"Just as their skills and goals are copied on the playground, so is their violent conduct and anti-social behaviour. Week in, week out, there are glaring examples of utterly unacceptable behaviour in football, from the park to the stadium."
Caborn refused to name the guilty players but his comments follow a series of incidents involving stars such as Wayne Rooney, the Manchester United and England striker, who told a referee to "f*** off" 20 times during a match against rivals Arsenal this season.
There have also been a number of incidents involving managers and coaches verbally abusing referees, and television pictures of matches regularly show gangs of players chasing referees and shouting and swearing at them.
Caborn said he was appalled by the lack of respect shown to referees and wanted managers to bring their stars into line. The "growing sport of referee bashing" was indefensible and footballers and managers must learn to accept the rulings without foul-mouthed and petulant remonstrations.
"Everyone involved in football has a responsibility to see it thrown out of the game," he said.
"I have written to the chairmen of the professional clubs to make sure they remind their players and managers that they have signed up to the fairplay charter and indeed of their responsibility as role models in our society."
The Professional Footballers' Association, which represents the top players, reacted angrily to Caborn's intervention, saying footballers behaved better than politicians.
Its chief executive, Gordon Taylor, said: "I would say that footballers are more aware of their social responsibility than people in any other profession, including MPs."
The PFA did not condone swearing at referees but, he said, "it's a fast-moving, contact sport and, as in any job, people can get frustrated. Referees have not raised it as a problem.
"Look at the records we keep; people often forget the six to eight hours of community work that footballers do each week - visiting schools, hospitals, youth groups and so on."
- INDEPENDENT
