As the international footballing extravaganza Euro 2024 gets ready to kick off in Germany tomorrow, you may be surprised to learn that the European game has a “vocational crisis” on its hands. Grassroots football across the continent is struggling to attract and retain enough referees to support the ever-expanding men’s and women’s games – because of the appalling levels of verbal and physical abuse that referees face from players, spectators and coaches.

In our latest Insights long read, amateur referees describe the appalling abuse they routinely experience during and after matches. This includes child referees as young as 13 being shouted at and threatened by adult spectators and coaches. Our authors from Coventry University have been tracking levels of referee abuse throughout the world for the past two decades, and their latest survey suggests abuse of officials is now endemic at all levels. Around half the referees contacted said they are considering quitting the “beautiful game”.

Last night was the latest UK TV election special, with the two main party leaders grilled by Sky News’s Beth Rigby and members of a studio audience. Here we look at what experts have to say about some of the key questions Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer were asked.

Another major sporting event this summer, the Paris Olympics, could become a super-spreader event for dengue fever as more than 10 million athletes, spectators, officials and tourists descend on the French capital. And if you‘re think you’re good at spotting lies, you might want to think again. This piece explains why.

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