October 14 – FIFA President Sepp Blatter has condemned the latest attack against referees in Cyprus, one of the less publicised by most worrying trends in European football.
According to police, a pipe bomb was placed at the entrance to the Cyprus Referee Association’s Nicosia clubhouse on Monday, causing minor damage but heightening concerns about protecting match officials.
Cypriot referees are increasingly becoming the target of abuse and intimidation. Two weeks ago, according to CRA chairman Michalis Argyrou, a firebomb was tossed at a referee’s home in Limassol.
Back in February, the Cypriot FA postponed all first division matches for a weekend after a bomb damaged the car of Leontios Trattos, one of the country’s top referees, prompting a boycott by his colleagues.
Argyrou urged police to take action in order to stop this “repeated pattern of behaviour” while Blatter called the latest attack “cowardly” and offered his full support to the Cypriot FA.
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