Volunteer for referee? Match abandoned due to lack of fourth referee

During the recent match between Shrewsbury Town and Bromley FC, a particularly unusual situation occurred, which momentarily paralyzed the game and at the same time amused fans in the stadium and internet users around the world.

In the second half, one of the linesmen suffered an injury that prevented him from continuing the match. The problem was that there was no fourth official available to take over. The match organizers then decided to do something rarely seen in professional matches – an appeal to the crowd was made over the stadium loudspeakers: "Is there a qualified football referee in the stands?"

For several minutes, the stands were alive with this unusual call. Fans joked, took photos, and posted on social media with hashtags like #SędziaZTrybun, and the atmosphere in the stadium was both tense and humorous. After exactly 14 minutes of intermission, someone who met the requirements showed up – it turned out there was a licensed referee in the stands who was happy to take on the task.

After a brief check of his details and equipping him with the appropriate equipment, the match resumed. Due to the unusual stoppage, the referee decided to add 17 minutes of added time to the regular game, which sparked another wave of emotions both on the pitch and in the audience.

This event will certainly go down in the history of English football not only as an example of a sudden solution to an organisational problem, but also as a reminder that in football you always have to be ready for anything – even the fact that you can suddenly go from being a fan to being part of the refereeing team.