Referees, have their football kits changed

Referees, have their football kits changed

Football referees have been a fundamental part of the game since the nineteenth century, although they are actually mentioned as far back as 1581. They became widely used in public school football in the mid nineteenth century, especially at Eton, and a mention of a referee was made in a match report in 1842 in Rochdale. Although the referees role has changed very little, the demands of television have meant that the appearances of referees have been allowed to change by the governing bodies - to make it easier for viewers and players to distinguish them. Up until the mid twentieth century, referees invariably wore a blazer, and their uniform has traditionally been all black which has given rise to referees being referred to as 'the man in black'. Referees have been given the option of changing to a red jersey on the rare occasions that team colours clash with his or her uniform. New jerseys were introduced at the 1994 World Cup, and officials were allowed the option of burgundy, white or yellow. The Premier League was inaugurated a few years later, and the Football Association allowed referees to wear green as another option. Although the FIFA allows one of five colours; black, yellow, blue, red and green, invariably the choice is either black or yellow in English football - if only to save confusion. At present, Adidas supplies all the kit for FIFA referees, and, harking back to more traditional times; referees are asked to wear black socks, shorts and shoes. Recent years have seen referees wearing sponsors logos, and these are usually worn on the sleeve of the uniform. The principle of the uniform is the same as it has always been, namely that the referee should wear a shirt in a colour which distinguishes him or her from the two teams. Midway through a match in 1998, referee, David Elleray had to change his shirt, as one of the two teams, Aston Villa were finding it difficult to distinguish him very easily from their opponents, Wimbledon.