Howard Webb has appeared at an employment tribunal to defend the Professional Game Match Officials Board (PGMOL) against claims by a former employee. The chief refereeing officer denied that Lisa Benn lost her position as an international referee because she had submitted a complaint against a colleague.
Benn, 34, alleges she was grabbed and threatened by assistant referee coach Steve Child at a VAR training tournament in March 2023, and that her complaint subsequently saw her demoted. She claims she was moved from fifth to sixth on the PGMOL's list of nominations for FIFA's international list, which led to her losing a contract as a women's select group match official. She is pursuing claims of sex-based discrimination, harassment, victimisation and unfair dismissal. The PGMOL denies all allegations.
Appearing before the tribunal on Thursday, Webb said PGMOL employees should be able to report concerns “without any fear of any consequence”. He added: “We want to know what’s on the minds of our officials and for them to speak to us without any fear of any form of consequence. We want the best officials out on the field and performing.”
Webb said he “fully understands” Benn's disappointment at the demotion, but explained that while FIFA accepts five places on their international officials list, it was hoped they would make an exception and add one more in 2024. “We had high expectations that would be accepted in that particular year, we thought she’d be accepted because of the growth of the women’s game, the noises we were hearing was that was likely to be case, it’s highly regrettable it wasn’t, Lisa is a good referee,” he said.
Benn alleged that Child grabbed her arm and “forcefully pushed” her on to a pitch, and later told her, “your card has been marked”. Child denied making the comment, and a PGMOL investigation found insufficient evidence for disciplinary action. At the tribunal on Wednesday, he denied manhandling Benn, describing it as “a guiding arm if anything”, and also denied saying her “card was marked”. Benn continues to work as a referee in the Women's Super League.
