Scottish Referee's to Strike?

Those of us who follow international football will have heard or read about the strike threat from the Scottish referee's. We have seen footballers going on strike, fans coming late into stadiums to protest against their own clubs, but referee's on strike? They are not highly regarded, but lets be honest without referee's and match officials there could be no football. And surely referee's make mistakes, some more and others less, but match officials are a key ingredient of football.

What has happened in Scotland? Like around the world the referee's in Scotland are regularly criticized for their performances, but that has gone to a whole new level in Scotland with clubs not only questioning the quality of referee's in the Scottish Premier League but also their integrity. Such reactions from clubs and managers has led to the referee's saying that their standing has gone down with players and amongst fans alike. Some referee's have received threatening calls, while other even bigger threats. And the biggest culprit amongst the clubs are Scottish giants Celtic Glasgow, who openly have questioned decisions and the integrity of the referee's.

The referee's had to act themselves as their own security was becoming a problem and the Scottish Football Association didn't react in such a way to cover their backs as one would have expected. This has led to the category one officials (highest level of officials in Scotland) holding a vote and unanimously deciding to refuse to officiate over the weekend November 27/28. And such a strike would not only effect the Scottish Premier League, the Scottish Football League, but also the ALBA Challenge Cup final and three Scottish Cup third-round replays.

The Scottish FA has been looking to solve the issue with the Scottish Senior Football Referees' Association , but so far no solution has been found. And now they are scouting for alternatives in trying to bring in foreign referee's to avoid a total washout. Referee's from England, Ireland, Wales, Iceland or Scandinavia could be invited, but foreign referee's have stated in their local media that they support their Scottish colleagues in their fight.

It will be interesting to see what happens in the coming days in Scottish football...