Chris Wilder charged by FA after ‘sandwich-gate’ comments

Chris Wilder has been charged by the Football Association with improper conduct in the fallout from his Sandwich-gate rant at refereeing.

The Sheffield United manager claimed after the 3-2 defeat at Crystal Palace last month that a Premier League referee told him to expect 50-50 decisions to go against his team, with his rant including a complaint over an assistant eating a sandwich when he spoke to the officials in the dressing room.

Wilder called the performance of Tony Harrington “ridiculous” and was widely reported to have said referees may base decisions on which teams they face next season and that they believe the club will be relegated.

“Maybe the thought process is that, ‘They won’t be long in this division and I might be refereeing the other team next year, so I don’t want to upset too many people’,” he was quoted as saying.

“It’s yet another ridiculous performance from the referee. I was told by a Premier League referee, who’s as honest as the day is long, ‘Get ready, because every tight decision will go against you, every 50-50 will go against you’.”

After the match, Wilder also accused the sandwich-eating official of a complete lack of respect. “One of his assistants was eating a sandwich at the time, which I thought was a complete lack of respect,” he said. “Hopefully he enjoyed his sandwich while he was talking to a Premier League manager.”

Wilder, 56, has until Friday to respond, which will go to an independent regulatory commission even if he accepts the charge.

“It is alleged that the manager’s comments constitute improper conduct in that they imply bias and/or attack the integrity of the referee, or referees generally, and/or bring the game into disrepute,” read an FA statement.

Under FA rules, it is stated that “post-match comments in the media or on social media are permitted if they solely criticise a match official’s performance or competence.

“However, if the comments imply bias, attack their integrity, are personally offensive, prolonged, or particularly unreasonable it could lead to us issuing a charge or formal  warning; reminding them of their responsibilities or taking no further action depending on the seriousness of the incident or track record of the ‘participant’.”