Right now, levels of punishment doled out by soccer referees to players are pretty basic.
Commit a reckless challenge or persistent infringement, it's a yellow card for you; make a violent challenge that endangers the safety of those around you, it's a red and you're gone.
There is little to no way for referees to properly punish players for an "orange card" offense.
As things stand, simulation — in other words, diving or flopping — should be treated as a yellow card offense. But what happens when a player, who's already received a yellow card in the game, dives in an attempt to con the referee?
Often times, referees are hesitant to issue a player his second yellow card — and thus, an ejection — for simulation.
But as legendary Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson has revealed (above video), a solution, which would give referees far more wiggle room in punishing players for simulation, might be coming down the pipeline.
Ferguson, speaking at UEFA's annual managers' meeting in Nyon, Switzerland, said that the introdution of a hockey-style "sin bin" has been, and is being, discussed by Europe's governing body.
Are you in favor of "sin bins" in soccer?
"We couldn't get to an agreement about it because it's such a controversial decision to change from what we know to a sin bin, but there was a good discussion about it," the 72-year-old Scot said.
"From UEFA's point of view, it's something that they're looking at. It has some merits — in particular, simulation by a player, which has become a disease within the game."
Would giving referees a third option with which to punish players not be a good thing? As the modern game has evolved, players are significantly bigger, faster and stronger than they were when the current Laws of the Game were laid out.
As refereeing matches becomes more difficult — thanks to not only the evolution of players, but also technology which allows slow-motion instant replays of every controversial moment — referees should be afforded every additional aid to better do their job.
What are your thoughts on "sin bins" in soccer? Does it make too much sense not to, or, why mess with something that's not necessarily broken?
