Identity Theft: Banned Bulgarian Soccer Referee Assumes False Name to Work

In 2011, soccer referee Luchezar Yonov and his assistants Petar Tarulov and Emil Mitev were suspended by the Bulgarian Football Union (BFU) for failing to report their intent to officiate international matches in South America.

Yonov, serving his penalty for this bylaws violation, was reportedly so intent on continuing to work, he literally faked his way into the middle of this week's friendly between Werder Bremen and AZ Alkmaar.

NCAA Basketball: Arizona vs. Oregon State Shoving Match Leads to Technical Fouls and an Ejection

Referee Michael Eggers ejected Arizona Wildcats center Kyryl Natyazhko and Oregon State Beavers forward Joe Burton for leaving their respective team's bench area during a fight late in the Oregon State-Arizona basketball game. With the Wildcats leading 77-73 in overtime, Wildcats guard Kyle Fogg completed a fast break layup for two points while being fouled by Beavers guard Jered Cunningham. Fogg and Cunningham received a pair of technical fouls, while Natyazhko and Burton—on the bench at the time—were ejected for entering the court during a fight situation. At the time of the ejection, the Wildcats were leading, 79-73. The Wildcats ultimately won the contest,  81-73.

Basketball Ejections: Derek Richardson

Referee 3 (Umpire) Derek Richardson ejected Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra for arguing an intentional foul no-call during Overtime of the Heat-Clippers game. With the Lakers leading 92-89 and 12.6 remaining in OT, Heat player Shane Battier fouled Clippers forward Blake Griffin. The common foul was the Heat's first in the final two minutes and the Clippers were accordingly awarded the ball out of bounds. Clippers guard Chris Paul inbounded the ball to Chauncey Billups, who passed back to Paul before center DeAndre Jordan received the ball for an uncontested slam dunk with 5.6 seconds remaining. Spoelstra immediately left the Heat's bench area to argue with the nearest official (Richardson) about what he believed was a series of missed foul no-calls when Paul had the ball near half court.

Unusual Forfeit Leaves Confusion, Questions

Westlake High School boys varsity basketball coach Rob Bloom spent last Thursday in poor spirits after a ruling made by the California Interscholastic Federation-Southern Section (CIF-SS). The CIF-SS had ordered his team forfeit an apparent victory that had been earned the night before.

Bloom's team had come out on top, 73-67, during a Marmonte League contest against Agoura High last Wednesday, leaving the Westlake Warriors in first place. However, their victory was short-lived. The forfeit took them out of first place and came about due to a series of unfortunate events.

It all began in the game prior to the varsity contest. John Elliot, Westlake's junior varsity head coach, was ejected from last Wednesday's JV contest against the Agoura Chargers. Playing under National Federation of High School Associations (NFHS) rules, Elliot's ejection required him to "leave the vicinity...of the playing area."  Under NFHS Rule 10-4-5-Penalty Note, adult personnel must be "out of sight and sound...during the remainder of the game."  This, however, only applies to the specific game the adult was ejected from and has no ramifications that extend beyond the game in which the ejection occurred.

Knowing that Elliot had been ejected in the junior varsity contest, varsity head coach Bloom asked the game officials if Elliot could sit on the bench for the varsity game. The officials told Bloom that Elliot would indeed be allowed to sit on the bench. Elliot remained on the bench for the varsity game's entirety and saw Westlake pull out a six point victory. This was anything, but the end.

Good Call: Fan Fined $320,000 for Assaulting Referee (Denmark)

When Ronni Noervig—or as the Danish media calls him, "the football idiot"—ran onto a soccer pitch on June 2, 2007, in an attempt to attack referee Herbert Fander after Fander issued Danish defender Christian Poulsen a red card for punching a Swedish player, he was immediately arrested and the match was abandoned with the score, 3-3.

Several days later, the UEFA awarded Sweden a 3-0 victory, effectively forfeiting the game due to lax security. Additionally, the UEFA banned the Danish Football Federation (DBU) for two international games, costing the DBU an estimated 2.2 million Danish crowns ($360,000) in revenue.

NFL Referee Tony Corrente Begins Offseason Early, Continues Cancer Treatment

Officiating requires several attributes: an ability to be impartial, fair, knowledgable and sensible. It also requires a thick skin, putting up with rough conditions and being away from home, family and friends during evenings, weekends and occasionally full weeks or months at a time.

Not all people can be officials, but all officials must be people.

The NFL recently announced referee Tony Corrente—who recently worked the New Orleans Saints vs. Detroit Lions wild-card playoff game—will conclude his season early instead of continuing further into the playoffs.

Corrente is taking a leave of absence to continue his fight against cancer.

After a Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Baltimore Ravens mini-fight in Week 1, Corrente first became aware of an unusual feeling in his mouth.

Bruins-Canucks Fight: Former NHL Referee Kerry Fraser's Take

Hockey Ejections: The Boston Bruins and Vancouver Canucks held a Stanley Cup rematch on January 7, resulting in some wild scrums, fights, punches and ejections.

Game misconducts were issued to Vancouver's Maxim Lapierre and Alex Burrows, while Boston's Brad Marchand was ejected for a dangerous clipping penalty against Vancouver's Sami Salo. Marchand was later suspended five games for his actions.

Former on-ice official Kerry Fraser recently wrote about the heated contest that was full of controversy.

NFL Playoff Overtime Rule Makes Its Debut

The first non-sudden death overtime made its debut today in the Pittsburgh Steelers-Denver Broncos wildcard weekend match up. In the end, it was rather moot.

After trailing 20 to 6 at halftime, Pittsburgh managed to make a comeback topped off with a Ben Roethlisberger touchdown pass to Jerricho Cotchery with 3:56 left in regulation to tie the game, 23-23. Denver nor Pittsburgh were able to score on their ensuing possessions, sending the game into an overtime that did not last long.

The overtime was the debut for a rule that was adopted at the annual owners meeting prior to the 2010 NFL season. Since the rules committee decided not to apply the rule to the regular season and all postseason games last year ended in regulation, it went by the wayside until today.

Lions vs. Saints: Officials Make Correct Call in Wake of Inadvertent Whistle

For all the criticism levied against NFL officials this Wild Card Saturday, perhaps the strongest round of scoffing took place during the second quarter of the Detroit Lions vs. New Orleans Saints game.

With 5:39 remaining in the first half, Saints quarterback Drew Brees attempted to throw a pass (VIDEO), in part to avoid a sack at the hands of Detroit's Willie Young.

In a span of mere seconds, Brees was on the ground, the ball was loose past the original line of scrimmage and at least one whistle was being blown.

The Lions picked up the loose football and started running it towards the far end zone before being arrested by the familiar sounds of the pea-less mouthpiece.

At least one official had ruled the sequence an incomplete pass while another ruled a fumble and subsequent recovery by Detroit's Justin Durant.

HS Basketball Fouls Incorrectly Labeled Flagrant on Viral Video

Spectators, coaches and even players often second guess calls made by officials. Periodically—okay, frequently—these onlookers loudly make their opinions known through jeers, taunts, heckles and other uniquely sports-related behavior.

With each call sure to upset 50 percent of the enthusiasts gathered field- or court-side, accepting abuse is an inescapable necessity. Such is the nature of the beast, requiring officials to balance the distinct wants and whines of each side to ensure a fair game.

Officials must exist to perform this very intrinsic function—ensure fairness—and most commonly, complaints directed at officials imply that for one reason or another, one team is being treated unfairly.

Of course, these rules and regulations exist to assist officials in their primary role—ensuring player safety.

When a referee calls too many fouls, the official is accused of not allowing the players to play their sport.

When a referee neglects to call enough fouls or does not adequately address rough play, the official is accused of not ensuring a safe environment for the players.

Such is the case of a recent viral high school basketball video featuring an edited sequence of six fouls, called common or shooting on the floor, but labeled flagrant by the video's creator.