Show HBCU Referee Bias the Red Card: Testing Communication Theory in Division I Women’s College Soccer

Abstract

The current study focused on the red cards and yellow cards that referees gave to historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) in Division I women’s college soccer for their in-game communicative actions. These cards are distributed to players who are perceived to have engaged in a reckless play or an action that involved excessive force. Within the United States, HBCUs are institutions of higher education that historically and primarily serve students who are of African American descent. Thus, the strong Black woman collective (SBWC) theory of communication was the theoretical frame because this study focused on small groups that were mostly comprised of African American women. Previous studies on referee bias were summarized in the literature review. Publicly available data on 19,360 soccer games were then analyzed. The findings indicated that referees gave more red cards to HBCU women’s college soccer teams relative to predominantly White institution (PWI) women’s college soccer teams at a statistically significant level. Yellow cards were also disproportionately distributed to HBCUs relative to PWIs. Implications for communication theory were noted in the study discussion as were interpretations on why referee bias against HBCUs continues to occur.