The Spanish Football Federation stirred up a media controversy after publishing old statements by Ortiz Arias, the referee of the recent Madrid derby, in a message that Spanish newspapers read as a response to Real Madrid's attack over the refereeing incidents that sparked controversy in last Sunday's match.
The referee had spoken about the pressures referees face, stressing that they often become an "easy target" who take the blame for defeats. He also touched on the impact of the Negreira case on the image of Spanish refereeing, and on the resulting increase in the intensity of criticism and violence directed at officials.
A historic occasion turns into controversy
Arias officiated the Madrid derby between Atlético and Real at the "Riyadh Air Metropolitano" stadium. The match produced refereeing controversy afterwards, especially over demands from some quarters for two red cards to be shown to Atlético Madrid players Kang-in Lee and Cristian Romero.
Before kick-off, the Madrid referee made history as the first official from the Spanish capital to take charge of the Madrid derby. The step ended a long-standing tradition tied to the principle of regionality in appointments by the referees' committee.
His decisions then triggered great anger inside the "Santiago Bernabéu" fortress. The Royal Club voiced its objection to his performance through comments by Portuguese coach José Mourinho, through the club's official channel, and in official statements from the administration.
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"The clubs blame us for defeats"
The official accounts of the Spanish Football Federation in Madrid then republished excerpts from an interview with Arias conducted before the start of the current season. He had spoken there about a number of refereeing issues, among them the tendency to blame referees for defeats rather than clubs looking for the real reasons behind their results.
Arias said, as quoted by the Spanish newspaper "Sport": "Referees are the easiest link. When I make mistakes and I don't want people to direct their criticism at me, I blame the referee for the mistake or the defeat, because he won't respond. And everyone will accept that discourse. There are many clubs that do this."
He added: "I understand that we make decisions in which we may sometimes be wrong, or which may be difficult for people to understand. And on many occasions we apply the regulations correctly, but people don't understand them, such as handball cases. In the end, we are not the ones who set the guidelines or the rules."
The referee continued: "We apply the rules just as a judge applies criminal law or civil law. We do the same thing."
He also spoke about the criticism referees face after matches, pointing out that the way questions are put to them differs greatly from the way players are treated.
He explained: "What will the journalist ask me? Why didn't you award the penalty? I don't know a journalist who asks a player: why did you miss the penalty? He wanted to score it."
Then came another point: "It's difficult for people to understand that I live through my success in making decisions. I want to get my decisions right, just as a footballer wants to succeed. And a player is never asked how he missed scoring a clear goal from inside the goal area and sent it over the crossbar."
He continued: "That player wanted to score the goal. And I want to get all the penalties right, all the red cards, and all the decisions I make, of course, because that will make me better at my profession. And I think people should understand that."
"The Negreira case caused great damage to refereeing"
Arias, who has appeared in the Spanish first division since 2021, turned to the Negreira case and its impact on Spanish referees. He stressed that it contributed to raising the intensity of the atmosphere surrounding officials.
He said: "There is a lot of violence now. I go to a stadium to watch my children and I hear chants accusing referees of corruption. The spotlight has been placed on us."
Ortiz Arias gave an example to clarify his point of view, saying: "Imagine you are an employee at a company, and that one of the company's officials committed things he should not have done. Does that make you corrupt? I certainly think not."
The referee stressed the need to separate the actions of officials from the rest of those working in the refereeing system, saying: "The matter is very clear. An official who committed extremely bad things should not be confused with others, and I hope, if everything that happened is true, that he pays the price for it, and this is what the judges will determine, because he caused us great damage."
Ortiz Arias concluded his remarks by saying: "That is why there is far more violence than there was before. I think we are beginning to come out of that tunnel a little, but it costs us a great deal."
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