Mike Dean says he has 'no regrets' over referee career after 'mini-games' claim

MIKE DEAN said he has “no regrets” about his refereeing career in his first appearance since his sensational claims about playing ‘games’ during Prem fixtures.

Mike Dean says he has 'no regrets' over referee career after 'mini-games' claim

TL;DR

  • Mike Dean appeared on Sky Sports' Soccer Saturday to address recent controversy surrounding his 'mini-games' claims.
  • He stated he has "no regrets" about his 25-year refereeing career and always applied the laws of the game professionally.
  • Dean admitted he could have worded his previous comments better but maintained his intention was not to undermine refereeing integrity.
  • His approach involved allowing the game to flow with a high threshold for contact, which he believes players liked.
  • The controversy stemmed from claims that he would intentionally see how long he could go without blowing his whistle during matches.
  • Insiders from Jamie Vardy's podcast suggested they did not take Dean's claims seriously at the time, viewing them as banter.
  • A football content creator claimed to have found an instance where Dean officiated a match for 19 minutes before blowing his whistle.