We recently caught up with five-time Olympian and American water polo legend Tony Azevedo during the Singapore tournament to hear his thoughts on the state of the game. Tony shared candid and passionate insights on the recent rule changes, refereeing, and the sport’s professional evolution.
Refereeing Under Pressure
“I’ve actually been impressed by the referees, to be honest. With the rule changes being harder on them—and many coaches still not understanding all the new rules—the refs have remained consistent.
It’s not easy being a referee right now. The real concern is: if these new rules are already difficult for our top-level referees, how can we expect the rest of the world to get them right? The answer is—they won’t. We’ve now made
the game more subjective and more dependent on the referee.”
A Mess of Penalty Interpretations
“I’ve been very disappointed with the new rules. They’ve confused and frustrated even the most loyal water polo fans.
Take the penalty calls, for example. Traditionally, if a player was attacking the goal and you touched their arm, that was a penalty. Now, I’ve seen penalties called for touching a player’s lower back, just being close to them, or even for a pass that was too high to catch.
When I speak with coaches and players, every incident becomes a debate—which means there’s no clear rule.”
Clock Adjustments That Don’t Add Up
“The new shot clock timings—going from 30 to 28 and 20 to 18 seconds—are just confusing. Instead of clean, round numbers, we have 18 and 28, which don’t really make sense.
My question is: where’s the data that supports these numbers? In the past three years, we’ve had three World Championships. What is that data telling us? That’s what we should be using—not changing the rules on a whim.”
VAR: A Step Forward, But Misunderstood
“VAR has improved since last year, especially now that we don’t have underwater cameras showing every possible kick or hit. Referees are also acting quicker.
But again, it’s another example of changes being rushed. Most coaches don’t even know how to use the challenge system. Some don’t realize you can’t challenge a red card, or they don’t know how long after an incident you have to throw the flag. It’s confusing.”
The 2m Rule: A Personal Frustration
“This has been my pet peeve. Because of the new red zone rules, refs are being told to be extra strict about the 2-meter line.
The problem is, they’re calling turnovers for players who are just one inch inside the zone—even if they’re doing nothing. Sure, if a player is trying to gain an advantage, that’s one thing. But in many cases, they’re not. And these calls are ruining the attack.
Again, not a foot—but half an inch! How is that helping the game? It’s not. It’s just making it more complicated.”
The Bottom Line: Make It Professional
“In the end, rules are meant to bring order—but these are doing the opposite.
I’ll admit, I’m biased—I run a data company. But if we ever want water polo to become a bigger sport, we need to start acting like bigger sports. That means becoming more professional and using data.”
