Referee’s conduct leads to reduced sentence for ‘soccer dad’

Following a boys’ soccer match dispute, a 52-year-old father has been given a mitigated sentence for assaulting a 77-year-old referee. Initially charged with a 30-day custodial sentence, the court in Roskilde ruled a 20-day suspended sentence, conditional on no further crimes for a year. The lighter sentence was influenced by the referee’s behavior, which may have been perceived as threatening by the father. Both the prosecutor and defense attorney noted the court considered the father’s reaction possibly defensive. Despite maintaining his innocence, the father accepted the sentence to end the exhausting proceedings. During the match and prior, the referee was seen as aggressive and threatening towards the children, escalating tensions that led to the post-match conflict, interpreted as a headbutt from a distance. The father’s clean record and personal standing also played a role in the sentence reduction, as he argued the incident was an accidental clash during an argument.