Is Liga MX Referees Commission applying double standards?

Referees in Liga MX had a rough year, with critics and columnists decrying poor officiating.

Retired ref Felipe Ramos Rizo has been one of the most prominent voices, pointing out mistakes and lousy calls from his perch in television studios and in his regular column for the sports daily “Record.”

Keep in mind that Ramos Rizo is not some hack. He was voted Best Liga MX Referee five consecutive years (1999-2003) and worked in seven consecutive Liga MX Finals; he was the first Concacaf official to ever call an Olympic Final (Sydney 2000) and he was a participant in the 2002 World Cup. FIFA thought so much of him that he was sent to Baghdad to ref the Iraq-Iran World Cup qualifier in 2001.

This week, Ramos Rizo went beyond his usual critique and analysis, exposing a more insidious episode that must be addressed if the integrity of Liga MX is to be sustained.

Liga MX bosses must face this head on

On June 15, Ramos Rizo revealed in his column that several Liga MX officials worked amateur tournaments, identifying two by name – César Ramos and Erick Yair Miranda. Working amateur events was one reason Liga MX officials provided for firing Adalid Maganda, an Afro-Mexican who accused the Referees Commission of racism before (and after) he was dismissed.

Another issue Ramos Rizo pointed out is the lack of verifiable Covid protocols in place at amateur events. This is particularly important since César Ramos is scheduled to work the Gold Cup in a few weeks, while Miranda will travel to Tokyo to work at the Olympics.

So even if the commission authorized the two officials in question to attend those events, the chances of being exposed to the virus potentially puts players and officials at the Gold Cup and the Olympics at risk. Another columnist suggested that Ramos and Miranda should immediately be sidelined, quarantined and tested, the same restrictions applied to Maganda when he was chastised for working an amateur event.

That aside, the apparent double standard with regard to Maganda – and his accusations – now take on a different significance.

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The Liga MX Referees Commission has long been accused of playing favorites, so this isn’t a controversy unique to the current group in charge, headed by Arturo Brizio since 2017.

Maganda – a native of Acapulco – first accused the Liga MX of racism when he was fired in 2018, accusing a league official of racist verbal abuse. A year later, he was reinstated while his case was still pending in the courts.

Last year just as the George Floyd protests were gaining momentum in the United States, Maganda brought attention to the issue of racism in Mexico by taking a knee before a Liga MX game.

Throughout the Guardianes 2020, the Acapulqueño was the subject of constant criticism although his performances were not noticeably worse than other Liga MX officials.

When Maganda was fired in February of this year, Brizio declared that there was not a “single egregious incident” for which he was dismissed, but rather it was for “falling below the standards required.” If that were honestly the case, Liga MX would have few referees available to call games.

However, one of the specifics offered by Brizio was working at an amateur event, which Brizio termed “beneath a professional referee.” With the revelation that two prominent officials committed the same “offense,” pundits are wondering why the Referees Commission has suddenly gone silent.