Wayne Barnes sounds warning after referee punched by club president

Former Test referee Wayne Barnes has once again raised concerns over the abuse – both mental and physical – officials are suffering from in all sports.

The Englishman took to social media after referee Halil Umut Meler was hospitalised following a Turkish football match on Monday.

Meler was punched in the head by MKE Ankaragucu president Faruk Koca following their 1-1 draw with Caykur Rizespor.

Koca has since been arrested, along with two others, for “injuring a public official”, while all Turkish league football has been suspended.

Concerns across all sports

While rugby union has not generally had those sorts of scenes, certainly at the professional level, there have been cases of referees being assaulted.

Only earlier in 2023, a player from Perth, Australia was handed a five-year ban for dropping his shoulder into the back of an unsuspecting match official.

Abuse is on the rise and that was evident following the Rugby World Cup when final officials, Barnes and Tom Foley, received death threats.

The former has since decided to hang up his whistle while Foley has made the decision to step back from international rugby.

And after the shocking attack in Turkey, the ex-referee has warned that the severity of these incidents are increasing.

“This is why governing bodies, prosecuting agencies and social media companies need to do more to eradicate abuse in all sports at all levels,” Barnes wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

“Your thoughts become your words. Your words become your actions. Your actions become your habits.”

Recent incidents

Barnes’ wife, Polly, revealed immediately following the World Cup that her husband had received death threats.

She wrote on social media: “What a vile atmosphere at the Stade de France. It’s just a game k***heads. See ya later Rugby World Cup. Won’t miss you, or the death threats.”

Wayne has since called on authorities to do more to tackle abuse of match officials, telling BBC Sport: “When people make threats against your wife and kids, they should be held to account and punished.

“If you’re a fan at your local rugby club and you’re sending vile messages to people’s families and making threats, why should you be able to be involved in the rugby family?

“The bit I’ve always struggled with and will continue to struggle with is when that abuse comes to my family.

“I want prosecuting agencies to consider ways of doing that, I want legislation of what social media sites can do to prevent it, and I also want governing bodies to consider what they can do.”

It is not just referees who are in the firing line either, with France fans targeting Springboks and Montpellier scrum-half Cobus Reinach following their quarter-final clash.

READ MORE: Wayne Barnes aims to tackle ‘abuse and online threats’ after retiring from refereeing