Referees’ chief Howard Webb has refuted claims that referee Lisa Benn was demoted from FIFA’s international list due to her complaint against an assistant referee coach, attributing her ranking to performance.
According to a report from Sky Sports, referees’ chief Howard Webb has refuted allegations that former staff member Lisa Benn was demoted from her international referee position after raising a complaint.
Benn, 34, alleges she was “grabbed and threatened by an assistant referee coach” and unfairly removed from FIFA’s international officials list because she lodged a grievance with the Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL).
Months following the incident, Benn dropped from fifth to sixth in PGMOL’s nominations for the football governing body.
Appearing before an employment tribunal on Thursday, PGMOL’s chief refereeing officer, Webb, maintained that the WSL official received a lower ranking because she was “outperformed by others.”
FIFA only accepts five women’s referees, and the panel heard that PGMOL unsuccessfully pitched for the governing body to accept a sixth for that season.
Webb testified: “Unfortunately, highly regrettably, it wasn’t, but unfortunately, compared to the other officials in this ranking, she was correctly placed sixth based on the performance factors listed and the holistic view we’ve gone through.”
The claimant’s representative, Carla Fischer, put the assertion to Webb that the demotion was retaliatory:
“She made a second complaint that a male PGMOL coach made unwanted threatening remarks to a female referee in the women’s game and that is why she was ranked sixth isn’t it?” Webb’s response was a firm denial, saying: “No, that is not correct.”
The tribunal heard that Benn alleges former Premier League assistant referee Steve Child grabbed her arm and “forcefully pushed” her onto a pitch during a VAR training event in March 2023, and later told her:
“Your card has been marked.” Child has denied making the comment, describing any physical contact as a “guiding arm if anything.” The tribunal continues.