Jonas Eriksson, 47, is angry. The former top referee, now an expert on SVT, believes that the Euro’s best referee was sent home for the wrong reasons. “The decision was made by UEFA’s top management and has nothing to do with performance”, he wrote in a post on Instagram. Jonas Eriksson previously spoke about his disappointment when he was stabbed by the FIFA Referees Committee before the 2018 World Cup. Sweden’s well-known former football referee said that it is politics that decides which referees are allowed to conduct which games. That culture still exists today and is clearly visible at the European Championship, believes Eriksson.
In a post on Instagram, he attacks UEFA. “People often ask: How do you get selected for the final games? Are those successes? How do you classify referees? Is it the one who makes the fewest mistakes? Who really does the ranking? The truth is that it is a dark grief. A dirty, political and false world in which friendship corruption, loyalty and nationality play a role. Football that speaks of fair-play and respect, where the rules are the same for everyone, where the four best teams that have won the most games play the semi-finals in London - but when it comes to referees, it happens indoors, with political agendas, and with everything but the best of football in mind. Those who are selected, including the one who has been selected for the final, are not necessarily the top three referees of the tournament. It is not always those who did best, who received the highest rating, or who came out on top that gain trust”, wrote Eriksson.
Jonas Eriksson told SVT that he believes that Cuneyt Cakir (Turkey) is the best referee at the European Championship, but he has been informed that he has ended his refereeing at the Euro and has been sent home. “This time the best referee of the tournament has already been sent home without a single clear mistake. The decision was made by UEFA’s top management and has nothing to do with his performance during the European Championship. Other referees who, without knowing it, have the right contacts, the best political support or come from important countries, continue to referee. Still, congratulations to the referees who got the last three games! No shadow should fall over them. What everyone should know, however, is that it is a rotten world with anything but good culture and I can say with perspective that I’m damn glad I stopped refereeing three years ago”, concluded Eriksson.
Source: Newsbeezer