Barnet head coach Dean Brennan has become the first EFL manager to be charged by the Football Association for making sexist comments towards a referee. The incident occurred during Barnet's League Two defeat to Shrewsbury Town on 6 September, when Brennan directed remarks at referee Kirsty Dowle.
Brennan was shown a red card for dissent in the first half, and Dowle noted his comments in her match report, triggering an FA investigation. The FA has charged Brennan with a breach of Rule E3, alleging he acted in an improper manner and used abusive or insulting words towards a match official, with an aggravated breach due to a reference to gender.
If found guilty, Brennan could face a minimum six-match ban, in line with FA sanctions for discriminatory language introduced after the Luis Suárez-Patrice Evra incident in 2013. The FA has given Brennan until 9 December to respond to the charge.
This is a rare case of alleged sexist comments in football. In a previous instance, Dorking Wanderers head coach Marc White received a six-match ban for remarks about female referees. Barnet, currently 14th in League Two, are next in action on 9 December against Bristol Rovers.
