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Brazilian World Cup Ref Warns Players That He’s Learning English Profanity

Jun 10, 2010, 4:14 PM UTC

A World Cup referee has warned Enland’s National Team that he’s been studying English profanity in advance of this weekend’s game. Sometimes, stories don’t even need a joke (via Yahoo!‘s Dirty Tackle):

England’s players have been warned by the controversial Brazilian referee who will take charge of Saturday’s World Cup opener against the United States that he is learning English swear words in order to know whether he is being abused by players.

Now, it certainly sounds bad to spew a bunch profane bile at a referee that can’t understand you... But you know, can we really judge? Think of the referee’s role in the game. He’s the authority figure for them, always telling players what they can’t do, and getting people in trouble.

Not unlike the HR person in your office. Or, say, an editor, if you’re in journalism. Say, if my editor, Chris Mottram, couldn’t speak English, I would curse him out every f—ing day. Because GOD he’s annoying. And really, if your boss couldn’t understand a word you say, how could anyone resist occasionally peppering him or her with profanity?

Anyway, the story gets even better:

The referee Carlos Simon and his two assistants have revealed that they have been learning from a list of 20 obscenities while they have been training at the centre for the tournament’s referees in Pretoria. It could have a direct effect on Wayne Rooney, a habitual abuser of referees and linesmen, who has already been warned by a South African ref that he could find himself dismissed for bad language.

Now, that prompts two reactions:

What's on that list of 20 words? Is it all British curse words, like "wanker" or "tosser" or are we focusing on the broader, more classic realm of profanity, like the c-word, the f-word, etc? In the age of blogs and the internet, I don't think it's too much to ask for someone to please steal that list of 20 words and upload it to Deadspin ASAP.
Wayne Rooney has got to be NASTY. This isn't a case of Rick Reilly chiding Tiger Woods for saying "Goddamnit" on the golf course. Soccer's got the reputation of an effete sport, but it's not that bad. You'd have to think people curse all the time on "the pitch," which means... Wayne Rooney curses all the time, louder, and nastier than anyone else. A "habitual abuser of referees and linesman." Wow. Well done, Wayne.

I gotta say, though, it's sort of surprising to hear that Wayne Rooney's the player at the center of all this. He's always seemed like such a kind, refined young gentleman.