Here’s an idea to curb sportsmen’s misdemeanours on the pitch (team games only though).
Why not apply the individual’s ban to the team?
Squads are so large that they can cope with a player being banned for 3 matches or whatever, they just replace them with the next chap.
Fines seem paltry in light of the wages/income from SKY etc.
What would hurt, really hurt, would be if the club as a whole suffered the consequences of certain types of serious bookings, violent conduct, deliberate diving/handball whatever. Say a player received a three match ban for an offence in the “serious” category then the team would have to field a team minus one player for the next three games. Anyone else in the meantime commits one and gets banned and it’s one more off for the duration of their ban. Like a very firm sin bin!
How quick would that tidy things up and root out the players who are a liability? Either they improve themselves or they will be sold on and unlikely to be picked up by anyone else.
I’d give it one season, possibly two to solve the problems.
Can you imagine a manager faced with picking a team of 10 in a crucial run in for the next three games. The offender would not be at all popular and v unlikely to err again.
My idea to the governing bodies. Feel free to adopt it.

By the way, not really a fan of ball/team games. Just observing and digesting the media scrum over Suarez.

Great idea I reckon.

Fadda “likes” this…

I actually quite like that idea too. Such a massive rule change would never be implemented (look how long goal line technology has taken) but good idea.

There are loads of great ideas like this that would improve the behaviour of footballers on the pitch but the FA (along with FIFA) resists change like no other. Also, until kids are drilled with respect for one another and the officials from the day they take up the game, very little will change. Indeed, I suspect they are taught to respect officials, but see their heroes screaming abuse at them on Sky at the weekends. Witness parents on the sideline at kids’ games (not saying all parents are like this obviously). Things need to change fundamentally in football to make players behave. FFS, it’s taken FIFA and its constituent associations how long to use proven technology to prove that a ball has crossed the line?!?

By the way, not really a fan of ball/team games

No shit Sherlock.

Amazing how may people with no interest are compelled to comment on the games at every possible opportunity.

How about when a cyclist or athlete gets caught using drugs, banning everyone from his country from competitive sports forever.

No shit Sherlock.

Amazing how may people with no interest are compelled to comment on the games at every possible opportunity

I’ve never really found it that amazing.

But would be interested why you think it’s such a bad idea, you didn’t really say, you just made a really bad analogy.

No chance. Suarez commits this offence this weekend, so Liverpool get punished by fielding 10 in the next 3 games. Chelsea get no benefit despite being the offended against, but next week Newcastle benefit by playing against 10. Newcastle win as a result, avoid relegation and Wigan go down instead despite having no part in either being the offenders or offended against. Lawyers would have a field day!!

I know theoretically Newcastle have an easier game next week anyway because they don’t have to play against Suarez, but that’s a tolerable discrepancy I think.

How about when a cyclist or athlete gets caught using drugs, banning everyone from his country from competitive sports forever.

eh? when did I say the entire team or country got banned for one person’s fault?

No chance. Suarez commits this offence this weekend, so Liverpool get punished by fielding 10 in the next 3 games. Chelsea get no benefit despite being the offended against, but next week Newcastle benefit by playing against 10. Newcastle win as a result, avoid relegation and Wigan go down instead despite having no part in either being the offenders or offended against. Lawyers would have a field day!!

I know theoretically Newcastle have an easier game next week anyway because they don’t have to play against Suarez, but that’s a tolerable discrepancy I think.

A well spotted chink there!
But if the offence is immediately punished with a sending off then the opposing team does see immediate advantage. Was Chelsea disadvantaged immediately after the “bite”?

Surely its the luck of the draw who benefits from the punishement but the offender’s team certainly does suffer.

eh? when did I say the entire team or country got banned for one person’s fault?

I was just over reacting, just like all the silly people with an insatiable no interest in football.

What would hurt, really hurt, would be if the club as a whole suffered the consequences

How about making him play wearing a muzzle for the next 10 games after his ban has finished .

Yes, because the bite wasn’t spotted, therefore no sanction taken, Liverpool stay at 11 and adding insult to injury, he scored the equaliser.

mmmmmm
could do with some sort of video ref perhaps?

I’d give it one season, possibly two to solve the problems.

They’re not problems.
They’re talking points and controversies.
It’s what sells papers and Sky subscriptions.

I used to referee at local league level. The only thing that worked there was for sanctions against individuals to apply to the whole team. One local side had such a bad reputation for behaviour / dissent to match officials that the refs association threatened to withdraw from providing officials to any of their games. The committee of the club came up with the idea that if a player got a booking (and hence as was in those days a £6 league fine) – every player on the team, subs included, paid the same fine to the club. So if 3 players got booked in a game, everyone got fined £18. Overnight, the ringleaders / worst offenders were weeded out because no-one wanted to play in the same teams, and during games as soon as someone ‘lost it’ and started looking like they were about to sound off at the ref, 10 other players and 2 subs would be falling over each other to get him back under control!!

So, given that you can’t fine the pros enough to hurt, given the wages they earn, how do you translate that in a way that would hurt them. And all I can see is point deductions. If by losing control in a way Suarez did, he risked losing points and stopped Gerrard playing in Europe next year, do you think Gerrard would stand by and let it happen? Would the board risk keeping a liability if by doing so they risk relegation. It is draconian but it has to be otherwise things won’t change.