Dean says he always applied laws - but which matches did he play games in?
Summary
Mike Dean, a former Premier League referee, said he sometimes tried to see how long he could officiate without blowing his whistle. An investigation into his games found that he did hold the whistle for long periods but never as long as 20 minutes, and he still applied the rules properly.Key Facts
- Mike Dean refereed in the Premier League for 28 years and stopped officiating on-field in 2022.
- He told a podcast he played "mini-games" during matches by delaying whistle use, sometimes for 20-25 minutes.
- Another ex-referee, Mark Halsey, said staying silent that long is nearly impossible.
- BBC Sport checked Dean’s games from 2008-09 to 2018-19, before video referees were used.
- They looked at 214 matches where the score was 0-0 after 15 minutes to see if Dean delayed whistle use.
- Only four games had long whistle delays; the longest was 18 minutes and 20 seconds.
- The investigation found no evidence of missed fouls or unfair officiating in those games.
- Dean stated he always followed the rules and aimed to let the game flow naturally.
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