Interview: Cecilia Ekwall elite women referee 2022-08-23
Interview with Cecilia Ekwall, elite women's referee
Cecilia Ekwall is an experienced referee who referees next highest league for women's team in Sweden and is also the fourth referee in the highest women's league. Her whole family are involved in football. Her husband is a referee coach, the children play soccer and one of her sisters is also an elite women's referee. We wondered if only football is talked about in the family... read the full interview below.– Hello Cecilia. Can you start telling us who you are?
– Hello. Yes, my name is Cecilia and I'm called Cia and I am a football referee . I work for a state government agency in addition to football and here at home I have two children and a husband. We are a real football family where the son plays football and my husband has refereed football before and is now a coach for referees. It's full speed all the time and a lot to get everyone's different activities and times together.
– We'll save the state government thing for another time. Let's dive a little more into the subject of being a soccer referees, of course. Tell us how it all started!
– My first football club had that everyone who had turned 15 years of age should attend referee training and referee a boys' tournament that was there. To increase our understanding and knowledge of the rules and more, but also to help within the club. After that I found it very fun and stimulating. I heard parents and leaders standing around yelling and stuff. It spurred me on to help create a better environment for football. It's not fun to hear what was shouted at a referee at that age, it's not okay at all. I played soccer while refereeing, but really got hooked on being a referee.
– You got hooked up in being a referee, you say. Why do you think you got hooked?
– A bit of this feeling that you don't become a complete expert at some point, but that you can constantly strive to get better and to be able to communicate with players and leaders. I think communication and being able to communicate with players and managers is very interesting. Being able to explain your decisions even if you make them in a split second and being able to directly explain why you make that decision, in a good way. I think it's very exciting.
– Did you think anything when you heard that you were going to attend this first referee training? How did you feel before you started refereeing?
– I remember that I thought a lot about the referees I had myself. That not girls 15 years old or similar was perhaps not such a high priority and it could be an older gentleman who stood in the center circle and pointed. That I should try to make it better, because if he can, I certainly can. I think there are more referees who have felt the same when they started refereeing, or feel the same and have it as a spur to start refereeing.
– Something I also felt was that I, as a referee, should be able to talk to. Many players and managers have a thought right from the start that you can't talk to us referees. I love people to come forward before, during and after the match and ask or talk to me. But if they come up and shout instead of talking, you may not be so communicative back. But if they come and talk and ask, for example, why it happened like this, then I can absolutely talk. They are not used with referees doing that, i think. I thought about that a lot when I started refereeing, and still do. We referees are people you can actually talk to.
– You have a sister who is also an elite women's referee, a husband who is a referee coach and others who play football in the family. Is it football, football and football at the dinner table and so on?
– Yes, haha. We also have a third sister who refereed for a while. We have followed each other a lot and it almost became a thing. That first we all played, then we refereed. I analyze my matches myself, but clearly use the others in the family if there is a clip or situation you want to hear someone else's opinion on. Then it is easy to send to my husband or sister. You can at least say that the matches are being analyzed. A big advantage we referees have who referee matches that are televised is that we can look back and analyze.
– You referee the elite ladies divisions in Sweden. Do you referee anything more?
– The idea is that I will soon come in and referee the men's fouth division as well, but I have been on parental leave for two rounds and it is only now that I am starting to come back again, for the second time. It takes a little time for the body to get back to elite level. Then I go fourth referee in the women's highest league as well.
– Speaking of children, family... and life in general. How is it possible to combine all that with being a referee?
– It is going relatively well. It requires a lot of planning and enormous support all around. My husband has partly the same hours on weekends and so on, so it requires a lot of support from family and friends. We need to have clear schedules for each week, because the weeks also look different. It is beneficial to have flexible hours at your regular job, then it is easier to get away if there is something.
– We change the subject a bit. Many new rules in football, if we go back five years or more. Which rule change do you like as a referee?
– For one thing, I think it's a drop-down if you whistle off for a player that is hurt for example. That whoever has the ball gets the ball back approximately where they were. Unfortunately, not all players have really understood it and still want to hit the ball back. It is good because it speeds up the game and makes it a lot easier. Another change that is always talked about a lot is the rule of handball which is always difficult. No matter how many different video clips that is being shown. But yes, above all rules i like the drop-down and we also remove the responsibility from the players to take care of who had the ball and who didn't. It has turned out well!
– Handball yes... Isn't it a problem that the audience, players and leaders don't have a good knowledge of the rules? Everyone, even the referee, sees that it takes the hand. But these days is not a clear handball - handball. If it comes from your own foot and is natural movement for example. What do you think?
– Yes, of course. Then also between different divisions such as the Men's highest league, Allsvenskan, and the Women's highest league Allsvenskan, changes are made before the fall season where we play with those changes. While in the other divisions lower down, it has not changed yet and there will be a gap there. Because of course they watch matches on TV and then wonder why it doesn't turn out like that in their match. I like that we are working more and more with videos with hand-to-hand differences. I think that in some places you have meetings with associations where you show new changes and rules. But something in the communication between the person coming from the association to the players and the teams doesn't quite get through. Because when we then play the match, the teams have no idea of changes at all.
– Then we change the subject back to CIA again. Can you describe yourself as a judge?
– I find security in knowledge of the rules. When I see a situation, I know what decision I am making, which makes it easier for me as a judge when I have to sell my decisions. Which means that I am usually sure why I did what I did and can explain this. I can more easily find good communication with the players because rules knowledge is in the spinal cord. If you can explain it in a good way, it facilitates the dialogue with them. Even if they don't always agree, they buy into my decisions better if you sell them well. I think I can explain why I make certain decisions in a good way, it's a security for me. I want to talk to players and try to prevent as much as possible.
– What refereeing gear would you have been unable to do without at the match?
– The whistle! You can easily make yourself understood through the whistle, even if you don't always speak. You can take lighter signals with it or harder signals to also sell in decisions and, in a way, show what you stand for. I couldn't have done without the whistle!
– Do you have any future goals with your refereeing career?
– One goal I have is to get up in the women's league, now after parental leave. Then I want to go out and see more matches of different kinds. Even further ahead is to take step 5, to go the last step.
– Thank you Cia and good luck! Before we part, we'll do three quick ones with you:
- Best football player?
I think Filippa Angerdal. She has risen in recent years! She seems to be a good role model too. - Best referee role model?
Jenny Palmqvist was a big idol for me. She had a good communication with players and good authority. I actually went as the fourth referee in her closing match, it was big. As an active referee now, I like Tess Olofsson. - Which color of the referee shirt do you like best?
I liked the old navy blue and also the light blue that is available now. If I had to choose one that I miss, I would want the pink one.
