Anthony Taylor, a top referee, recently gave an exclusive interview to Camel Live, publicly talking for the first time about the incident where he and his family were besieged by Roma fans at Budapest Airport after the 2023 Europa League Final. The 46-year-old referee admitted that the expectation for referees to be "absolutely perfect" in today’s football world is suffocating, and it has even made him repeatedly question "whether all this is worth it".
On the Darkest Moment of Being Besieged After the 2023 Europa League Final
"That was the worst abuse I’ve ever received in my career," Taylor recalled. At that time, he was walking through the airport with his family when angry Roma fans surrounded him. What made him even more disheartened was that there were actually "no major wrong calls" in his officiating of that final. In his view, some people were trying to "shift the focus to a scapegoat", and this act of shifting responsibility made him feel "extremely disappointed, frustrated and angry".
Taylor said: “At that time, I even thought about quitting refereeing. I thought this was a situation I couldn’t accept.”
When asked if Mourinho, Roma’s head coach, had incited fans by confronting him in the parking lot after the game, Taylor said bluntly: "If we are honest, yes." The Portuguese coach was banned for four games for his behavior at that time, and he also criticized Taylor’s decisions as "disgraceful" twice at the post-match press conference.
On the Death Threats He Once Faced
Last year, after showing a large number of yellow cards in the match between Bournemouth and Chelsea, Taylor received death threats online.
Taylor said: “Social media is full of 'keyboard warriors' who like to talk big. Such incidents (of abusive remarks) may happen every weekend. It happened again last weekend. Outside the (Stamford Bridge) stadium, when you are putting your bag into the team bus, some spectators will come out of the bar or walk around nearby. They will deliberately wait until you pass by before starting to abuse you. They won’t do it to your face when you are looking at them.”
When asked about the impact of the abuse on his family, Taylor said: “It’s like dealing with other things in life. The most important thing is to have a mature conversation. So, if I’m going to officiate a very difficult game, I will tell my daughters in advance. They will understand that if they go to a bar, they may encounter such a situation.”
“It’s up to them to decide what to do, but they are also quite experienced in using social media. After all, some things can only be seen if you take the initiative to search for them, right? They will definitely not search for 'how did my dad officiate this game' on Twitter. If they did that every week, I would really question their judgment.”
On the Officiating Dilemma Faced by Premier League Referees
Taylor pointed out that the "win-at-all-costs" culture in football is eroding the mental health of referees. Although he does not oppose necessary supervision, he emphasized: "Nowadays, few people talk about the positive aspects, and public opinion almost never maintains a balance." He revealed that his family has stopped watching his on-site officiating since the 2023 incident, and he himself has stayed away from social media to avoid interference from negative information.
Regarding the expectation of "perfect officiating" triggered by VAR technology, Taylor believes this is an unrealistic fantasy: “People say 'VAR shouldn’t be nitpicky' one week, but question 'why didn’t VAR intervene' the next. The original intention of this technology requires more rational thinking.”
On the Concern About Grassroots Referees’ Officiating
What worries Taylor even more is the grassroots football environment: "Every weekend, on any community football field in the UK, you can see parents abusing young referees on the sidelines." He questioned how such an atmosphere can cultivate the next generation of referees: “I don’t understand why some people think this is acceptable.”
On Officiating the Club World Cup This Summer
Taylor’s experience of officiating the Club World Cup (in the US) this summer made him realize the challenges of extreme environments. When talking about the players competing in extreme heat, he described the on-site conditions as "absolutely brutal". Regarding the North American World Cup next year, he believes that adequate preparation is the key.
On His Future
Despite the huge pressure, Taylor, who has officiated in the Premier League for nearly 15 years, still calls being a top-flight referee "one of the best jobs in the world". The 47-year-old joked that chasing young players "isn’t easy at this age". Now, his biggest wish is to lead two English referee teams to appear at the North American World Cup next year.
