Anthony Taylor says he considered QUITTING refereeing after family airport attack

View 2 Images

Premier League referee Anthony Taylor has admitted that being attacked by fans made him consider quitting the profession. The 46-year-old was surrounded by furious Italian fans in an airport shortly after officiating the 2023 Europa League final between Sevilla and Roma.

Taylor and his family were chased through the airport by fans who felt he had made a series of errors during the game. Police were forced to intervene in order to get the official to safety - with one fan in particular being arrested in the aftermath.

Speaking about the shocking scenes for the first time, Taylor has admitted that his family are now scared of attending matches, with the incident having had a lasting impact.

Speaking to BBC Sport, he said: “That's for sure the worst situation I’ve dealt with in terms of abuse. Not only because I was travelling with family members at the time, but it also highlights the impact of people's behaviour on others - and so yeah, there's always scrutiny around big, high-profile matches.

“But even in a match like that where there was actually no major mistakes in the game. We're trying to shift focus on to, for somebody to blame, and for me, that's a great source of disappointment, frustration, anger.”

Taylor went on to add that his family have not attended a game since the incident. And he has been left feeling as though he actually made an error in inviting his most-loved ones to attend the game, despite it arguably being one of his career highlights.

He added: “It makes you it makes you reflect back on whether you made a mistake travelling with your family in the first place. But considering your family as match officials our families don't really travel with us to matches, they only tend to come to the big final matches like that one in Budapest.

View 2 Images

“And for what should have been a night of them simply travelling home and having enjoyed the final the night before then, it’s really disappointing to see.”

While the impact on his family is abundantly clear, Taylor himself has admitted that the incident had even made him question whether he should remain as a referee. Although he has said that is a common issue among officials.

He said: “There's certainly been moments - and I won't be alone in this - there’s certainly been moments where you’re thinking, ‘is it is it worth it?’ And certainly, moments where you're thinking ‘what's being said is completely unfair’.”

Watch BBC Sport’s full Anthony Taylor interview on BBC Sport online, iPlayer, and listen on BBC Sounds.

Sky has slashed the price of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle ahead of the 2025/26 season, saving members £336 and offering more than 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more.