What is Respect

Respect is the collective responsibility of everyone in Football to create a fair, safe and enjoyable environment for the game to take place

Since its launch in 2007, The FA’s Respect programme has helped achieve a real improvement in behaviour on and off the pitch from the top of the professional game through to the grassroots.

The highlight of the season to date has been the 9 per cent increase in the number of qualified referees with the number having risen to 25,502, compared to the same period for 2008/09. There has also been a 45 per cent increase in the recruitment of referees at Level Nine – the first step on the road to becoming a fully-fledged referee – with 5,197 new recruits taking to the field up and down the country.