It was May 2025 and life was good for Premier League and FIFA assistant referee Dan Robathan. In fact, he was flying high. Years of climbing the football ladder had paid off and he was running the line at the FA Cup final between Crystal Palace and Manchester City. But just months after this career highlight, symptoms Dan thought were sciatic nerve pain and wear and tear were revealed to be benign tumours in his spine, which needed to be operated on immediately. "I saw a neurosurgeon who told me I had two tumours, initially I thought it was one, but it was two," Dan tells BBC Newsbeat. "It was compressing nerves, there was a chance it could affect a motor nerve which means it could affect function in my leg. I needed to go home, lay down and not move. I did that for 15 days, my life turned upside down overnight." BBC Newsbeat met Dan at a football pitch in Norwich, close to where he lives, where he revealed the struggles he has had in trying to regain his fitness and mobility.
Dan picked up his first flag at 10 years old, working his way up from grassroots football to the lines at more than 200 Premier League clashes and World Cup qualifiers. Speaking at the time of the FA Cup final, Dan said it was "a privilege to stand there on behalf of over 37,000 referees across the country". The chances of becoming an elite level referee are low. The FA describes FIFA match officials as the "pinnacle of the officiating ladder". Photos of Dan over the last few years show him doing everything from embracing then Liverpool manager Arne Slot to explaining a decision to Emiliano Martinez, and officiating games without fans due to the Covid pandemic. And in his social media posts, Dan gives a glimpse of everything you would expect from an official at elite level - from the roar of fans to sprinting to be in the right place during split second decisions. To the outside world, all looked well.
"I started having quite bad problems with sexual dysfunction or bladder issues where I'd have to sit down to urinate and I couldn't stand up," he explains. "It got to a point in September [2025] where something's not right at all." A neurosurgeon confirmed to Dan he had two tumours in his spine – and his life ground to a halt. "It was fear, anxiety, not knowing how long it will take me to get back. What would my life look like? Will I be a normal man? Will I walk again?" Surgeons removed one tumour and left one alone, which was deemed safe. The tumours were non-cancerous, but have caused significant damage to Dan, who describes his post-operation recovery as "brutal". Yet there was "no doubt" in his mind that he would return. But by Christmas 2025, Dan was still feeling fatigued and struggling to lift his heel, walk, or feel his calf. "The surgeon said I had under a 10% chance of ever getting back on the field but even then I was like I don't care I will prove everyone wrong," Dan recalls. Yet despite fighting "like mad", he was unable to regain his fitness levels. This week, Dan was forced to medically retire, saying in effect "the decision was made for me".
The 38-year-old says he still has days where he struggles to walk, or where his back feels "on fire". "My body just can't do what I want it to do," he says. Dan underwent testing to confirm his tumours weren't linked to genetics, which was reassuring, but still leaves him facing the unknown. "It's a loss of identity. I've been 'Dan the ref' since I was 10 years old. It's 28 years of being who I am, it's my personality. When you have the recognition that that sort of life is over, psychologically it is really tough." Dan is now working with a psychologist to decide the path forward. "I feel like a 16-year-old who's just left school and trying to work out what I want to do with my life," he jokes. "I have a few options, staying in football. [But] I don't know if I will be able to with the mental health problems I've had. Can I stay involved in a sport that I loved but can't do myself?" One thing he is certain of, is going into the future with his family. "I want to put my son, fiancée, my stepchildren first. I want to try and advocate for men's mental health, for men speaking about health issues. If I can help one or two men in the process, I've done my job." And Dan accepts that if he gets back into football it would need to be for the right reasons. "I need to get that fire my belly."
