UEFA's refereeing chief Pierluigi Collina "has thrown his support behind the idea of implementing sin bins as a form of punishment to help curtail player's simulation and over-zealous protesting of refereeing decisions," according to Simon Curtis of REUTERS. The former World Cup final referee who is now UEFA's chief refereeing officer said that "the idea of punishing players with an enforced break on the sidelines, already popular in many sports including rugby and ice hockey, was one that was being considered by European football's governing body." UEFA President Michel Platini proposed that "'white cards' could be given to players who dive to earn a foul or argue too profusely with the referee."
Collina said that "the idea of sin bins could send a message to players that simulation or arguing with the referee was unacceptable." He said,
"It is important to give a message." UEFA has tested its use in various youth tournaments in the past year but Collina stressed that it was "still early in the process and there was a long way to go before such punishment was seen at the senior level" (REUTERS, 1/15).
