Former Polish Football Association president Zbigniew Boniek has criticised top-flight assistant referee Paweł Sokolnicki after the official sent a scathing letter attacking Poland's new Video Assistant Referee system.
Sokolnicki, a prominent line judge in Poland's top division, wrote to senior football officials alleging that offside decisions had become akin to fortune-telling rather than an accurate evaluation of play. He also claimed that referee training was non-existent in practice and lacked professional management.
The controversy deepened when the 46-year-old was left off the referee appointment list for the fifth round of league fixtures running from August 21 to August 23. Speculation grew after the match official schedule was published unusually late, though Polish national team press spokesman Emil Kopański later explained on social media that the delay was due to an oversight on his part.
Critique from former association chief
Writing in his regular Zibi Top column for the Weszło sports portal, Boniek questioned the manner in which Sokolnicki raised his grievances. Boniek stated that while the referee might have numerous valid points, a member of the officiating structure should address disagreements internally with supervisors before going public, adding that the assistant referee's actions smelled somewhat like a coup.
Boniek also addressed claims that Sokolnicki was dropped from the upcoming round of matches as punishment for his comments. The former administrator noted that it was unclear if the official had been sidelined, pointing out that top-flight football features many assistant referees who do not officiate every week, and called suggestions of retaliation very biased.
Zbigniew Boniek served as president of the Polish Football Association, known as the PZPN, between 2012 and 2021 following a distinguished career as an international footballer. The PZPN oversees professional football in Poland, including the top-tier Ekstraklasa competition and match officiating development across the country.
Referees committee defends training and technology
The Chairman of the PZPN Referees Committee, Marcin Szulc, responded to the allegations in an interview with Sport.pl journalists Dawid Szymczak and Kacper Sosnowski. Szulc, who was among the addressees of the letter, stated that administrators were already aware of the technological issues and had encouraged match officials to report problems to help improve the system.
Szulc emphasized that Polish football had made a massive technological leap with its upgraded systems. Rejecting Sokolnicki's assertion that referees were not properly trained on the newly introduced Hawk-Eye technology, the committee chairman insisted that such complaints had no basis in fact.
Video Assistant Referee systems rely on multi-camera setups and specialized tracking tools like Hawk-Eye to assist on-field officials with crucial match decisions. Official explanations regarding referee selections for the upcoming fixtures remain unavailable beyond spokesperson statements.
