I love putting together a good list. The recent news about NBA referee Tim Donaghy has me thinking, "even if he wanted to, how much could an NBA referee influence the outcome of a game?" This lead me to come up with...
The Top 7 Sports Where Officials Have the MOST Influence
(1) Soccer - No other game has one person under such complete authoritarian tight-fisted control. Not even the score clock is immune from his ultimate control. There is only one chief referee. He (or she) controls the score clock, may overrule the assistant referees with a wave of the arm, and toss a player at any time for "ungentlemanly conduct". The referee can also award a penalty kick, which is virtually like awarding a goal. Given that many games end up scoreless, this means the referee could easily hand over a win to a team with just one call.
(2) Baseball - This is another game with one Uber-Boss: the Home Plate Umpire. This person's opinion determines the duration of your "at bat". He could call you out on three straight pitches, he could keep your at bat alive for more, increasing your chances for success. His personal strike zone could be large (favouring the pitcher), or scant (favouring the batter). Disagree with his opinion? By all means, express your displeasure, but be prepared to watch the rest of the game from the stands.
(3) Hockey - Finally a sport with two referees, both with equal power (although, technically, one is in charge). The NHL has adapted with the times, upping the number to two referees to compensate for an increasingly fast game. It's embraced technology: a ref may chat with a "video referee" for a second opinion. But either ref can still substantially influence a game if he dishes out power-plays willy-nilly. A disproportionate amount of power-plays gives a team a clear chance of winning. Blow a bunch of calls, you've effectively handcuffed the better team from winning.
(4) Football - Sometimes it seems there are more officials than players out there. So aren't the chances of officiating influence watered down? No way. The side judge can easily whip out his penalty hanky and confiscate a touchdown, even if undeserved. A team approaching the "red zone" can be pushed away with a few select "procedure" calls; a field goal try turns into a punt. But football teams do have a better chance at fighting through bad calls. You still do get multiple downs, and the video replay system is the best in pro sports.
(5) Basketball - Due to the sheer amount of referees, and the torrid pace of scoring, blowing one, or even five calls, is not likely to significantly give the edge to a woefully inferior team. Players can foul out, but coaches use bench management to work around this. Its possible, but not likely that a ref could hand victory to an unlikely team.
(6) Chuckwagon Racing - the barrel is either up, or it has been knocked down. The outrider is either inside the 150 foot line or outside. No referee could blow this call. Nuff said.
(7) Miss Hawaiian Tropics Swimsuit Pageant - who cares about the judging.
What was the title of famed NHL referee Red Storey's autobiography? "Black and White and Never Right".
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