World Cup Refs Learn English Swear Words

They want to be prepared for Wayne Rooney
By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff
Posted Jun 10, 2010 10:25 AM CDT
World Cup Refs Learn English Swear Words
England striker Wayne Rooney, left, vies for the ball with Platinum Stars' Joseph Malongoane, during a training match at the Moruleng Stadium in Moruleng, South Africa, Monday June 7, 2010.   (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

The referees for Saturday’s US/England World Cup match have specifically brushed up on English profanity in an effort to crack down on foul language. In a move sure to terrify Wayne Rooney, Brazilian referee Carlos Eugenio Simon has had his team memorize 20 curse words. “We can’t do this in 11 different languages, but at least we have to know the swear words in English,” one assistant tells the Times.

Perhaps Simon is used to being cursed at. His selection as a World Cup referee has been controversial, notes the Times, because accusations of incompetence recently got him suspended in Brazil. (More 2010 World Cup stories.)

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