The Rooney Rule

Tony Montana

The NFL Rooney Rule states that at least one minority candidate should be considered for open head coaching roles and senior management positions. This has resulted in an increase in black American head coaches and coordinators in the NFL.

In English football there are currently only 2 black managers out of 92 clubs. The Kick-It-Out charity want the rule introduced into English football as a way of upping that number and the issue has been brought up before.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/29484593

Greg Clarke, the Football League Chairman, has been accused of dodging the issue at a recent AGM. In general there's been a lot of debate with most people thinking the rule should not be introduced, including well known football men like Trevor Booking and Mourinho. Even Keith Curle, one of the two black managers, doesn't think it will help.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/29490148

Personally i think it should be introduced. What do you guys think?

Klaus

I don't think it would matter much. I would welcome it but I suspect it would contribute to black managers being viewed as 'the token black guy' for interview processes, and I can see any such ruling being met with animosity from both sides because of that.

I think English football needs to focus more on management courses and proper education instead, and make sure that they end up with a fair reflection of the mix of ethnicities among the applicants. There seems to be a curious lack of scholarship among English managers compared to their French or Italian colleagues, which I assume contributes to the general feeling of unfairness when you look at the current hiring process. There's a lot of nepotism going around because people only trust known resumés. This is why Pardew and Warnock always find new jobs quickly.

Klaus

Mourinho is wrong, through (and not for the first time). There is blatant racism in football, and it extends to the upper levels of many clubs.

Tony Montana

But in the NFL black and minority head coaches have been hired and succeeded.

Klaus

NFL (and USA) is different from Premier League and football in general.

Tony Montana

Sure but that can't be an excuse. 15 years ago it was odd to have a league that was 55% plus black yet so few coaches were black. Although the numbers are lower here, it's weird that 25% of the league is non-white yet non-white managers and coaches are almost non-existant.

Klaus

I'm not saying it should be an excuse. I just said I'd welcome the Rooney ruling in England. I just don't think it will accomplish much unless you at the same time invest serious money in the education and propagation of football managers.

Make it worth something to have a coaching license, make sure that you have a good ethnic mix among the graduates, and that will be a good start. Every Italian manager has studied for at least three years at Coverciano by the time he's finished. The time any English manager spends on getting his coaching badges is insignificant compared to that. Not to mention English managers are different from many other in football in the way they function. The general lack of sporting directors in England means more responsibility, which in return puts a bigger demand on known competence and narrows the selection further for many of the concerned clubs.

Tony Montana

I also suspect that the English don't like the idea that a positive system could come from America as in general the English like to think they're more reasonable, fair and intelligent than their cousins.

Daz

This was not the topic I was anticipating when I saw the thread title!

Qwiss

I think/hope its something thats going to change in English football anyway in the next decade or so. There is no doubt the traditional types in English football are definitely racist in this regard. You would think though that all the foreign investment into the PL will eventually make a difference though. Get the old boys out and have more pragmatic people in charge.

Much like Klaus has said I'd happily see the Rooney rule introduced but I'm not sure it'd have the desired effect. It can't hurt though. What you need first is more black players retiring and taking their badges. And in addition to that you need the players well educated as they move through the academies so they are well equipped for furthering themselves by retirement age.

Burnwinter

I'm generally in favour of affirmative action as a concept. Fight asymmetry with asymmetry—dialectically. 😉

For example, despite all the scares about tokenism and unmerited advancement (invariably from those who haven't merited their own advancement!), where implemented, gender quotas don't seem to hurt political parties, parliaments, boardrooms or software development teams.

The details of policy implementation would be the real challenge here, but it's a problem that there are so many black players and so few black managers. Chris Hughton and … who else in top flight footy? Rijkaard and Gullit … probably a few others I'm missing.

However this measure's pretty unexceptional, it just says consider a minority candidate, there's no real imposition on the club, it's just inviting them to change their parameters a bit..

Qwiss

I suppose all the same concerns were probably raised before the Rooney Rule was put in place in the States yet it seems to have had a significant positive effect there.

goon

How many black players actually go into management and do their coaching badges?

Tony Montana

I don't know but currently 18% of players on coaching badges are from black and ethnic minority groups.

banduan

Any rule that makes Shrek coach is nuts #totallydidnotreadnothing

Bold Tone

Tony Montana wrote:
I also suspect that the English don't like the idea that a positive system could come from America as in general the English like to think they're more reasonable, fair and intelligent than their cousins.

It's not that much of an alien concept here either as we have used something similar to good effect in politics. Tokenism is better than nothing at all and it doesn't last forever.

http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2014/aug/22/-sp-should-there-be-all-women-shortlists

lorddulaarsenal

Silly rule

Tony Montana

@lorddulaarsenal wrote:
Silly rule

Care to elaborate?

Biggus

Daz wrote:
This was not the topic I was anticipating when I saw the thread title!

😆 Yeah, I thought there was some new rule that you could only go FUCK OFF!
FUCK OFF! FUCK OFF! in the referees face a couple of times before being told to calm down.

innervisionscm

People were just as skeptical about the Rooney rule in the NFL but it's worked mainly by getting people who are outside of established networks (and consequently lack the best resumes) a chance to present themselves to clubs. I think it would be a good thing.