'Entitled' People Drive California Soccer Referee to Quit

It's game over for a California soccer referee, thanks to the rich and famous parents who sit on the sidelines.

Avery Krut, a referee administrator and game scheduler for the Beverly Hills American Youth Soccer Organization Beverly Hills, California, has resigned because of the "entitled" and "disrespectful" parents' behavior on the sidelines, The Guardian reported.

And his farewell letter to the parents is a real kick in the shins.

"Your behavior on the sidelines has, for far too long, been disrespectful and you are damaging the children," Krut wrote. "You have said nasty things to and about too many referees and it must come to an end."

Krut explained in his letter that the "vast majority" of people on the sidelines are "wonderful people," but said he has come to "despise" some of them because of their "[despicable]" and "threatening" behavior, and called the parents "entitled."

Krut, 57, has been a volunteer at the organization for 15 years and has helped run games for about 1,800 children from ages 4 to 17. The referee pointed out in his letter that he knew not many of the parents would like his tone of the letter, yet he wanted to express how "disrespectful" some of the parent's harsh comments were to their children playing soccer.

"Impulse control is incredibly hard, particularly when it involves our children.… Please let the coaches coach, the referees referee and the players play." Most parents were wonderful people but Krut said he needed to "depart the land of entitlement" because of the obnoxious minority. "You may not like my tone but everything I have written is the truth."

The soccer league did not agree. Regional commissioner of the league, Alex Grossman, later sent a message titled "Unfortunate E-mail today," stating that Krut's personal opinions do not represent the opinions of the board.

"While we respect and appreciate all of the years he has given to our region, the views stated in his e-mail are his personal opinions and do not represent the Beverly Hills Region 76 Board," he wrote.

Krut even compared some of the parent's behavior to President Donald Trump's by the way they yell at their children.

"The idea that parents have the right to yell at referees, what kind of message are they sending their kids? People are channeling their inner Donald Trump. They have no filter. Something has to change because we are damaging the children," Krut told The Guardian.

Krut wrote that he will continue to be a referee at the games, but will no longer be involved in administrative matters after December 17. He "may consider a return" if there is a "concerted effort to change the culture in Region 76."