Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea, the referee for the Copa del Rey final, expressed deep emotional strain in the face of pressure from Real Madrid TV, especially after they produced a video targeting him. With Real Madrid's recent accusations of bias in Spanish refereeing, Bengoetxea highlighted the personal impact this has on his family, equating such treatment to bullying. He urged reflection on how referees are treated, suggesting that current standards are unacceptable and calling for more serious measures to address referee abuse in all classes of football.
When a child of yours goes to school and there are kids telling him that his father is a thief... it's totally messed up.
This is really messed up but the day I leave (the job), I want my son to be proud of what his father is, and what refereeing is.
It's not right what we are going through, many colleagues, and not just in professional football, but also at grassroots level.
Everyone should reflect about where we want to go, about what we want from sport and from football.
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