Refs Are Biased: Report

By News on the Net —— Bio and Archives July 30, 2010

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By JAVIER ESPINOZA LONDON—It's official: referees are biased.

An academic report in the U.K. has revealed what many sport aficionados have always suspected: referees are influenced by their nationality when it comes to making decisions on the pitch. After analyzing two major rugby competitions of opposing clubs from different countries—rugby union's Super 14 and rugby league's Super League—the researchers discovered that when the referee shared the same nationality as one of the teams playing, they were more prone to giving their nation's team a significant advantage. More...