A soccer ref in Salt Lake City was punched by a teen player on the field and the referee has died from his injuries after slipping into a coma.

Portillo was officiating a game at Eisenhower Junior High in Taylorsville, Utah when he called a foul.  The 17-year-old player in the recreational soccer league punched Ricardo Portillo in the face after the man called a foul on him and issued him a yellow card.

Portillo was writing down notes of the game and wasn't looking when the teen struck him on the side of his head.

Ricardo Portillo seemed fine at first, but then asked to be held because he felt dizzy. They sat him down and he started vomiting blood, triggering his friend to call an ambulance. The referee had slipped into a coma since and then died from his injuries on Saturday night.

The attack Saturday wasn't the first time Portillo has been assaulted by an angry player while refereeing. He's had his ribs and leg broken before.

His two daughters are outraged and heartbroken.  They say they have been wanting their dad to quit refereeing for a while.

'People don't know it's a game,' Johana Portillo said. 'We're all there to have fun, not to go and kill each other.'

His daughters begged him to stop refereeing, his second job, but he continued because he loved soccer.

'It was his passion,' she said. 'We could not tell him no.'

'It's just not fair,' said Johana Portillo, holding back tears. 'This person caused us a lot of pain. I want justice for my dad, and we're going to get it. ... If he spends time in jail forever, it's not enough. They are not going to bring my daddy back.'

James Yapias, the player's coach, said that children need to start learning the effects of violence. "Talk to them about sportsmanship. Talk to them about respecting the referees," he told KUTV.

The teen is currently being held at a juvenile detention facility and is charged with aggravated assault. If he is tried as an adult, he could face more serious charges.

The incident brings to mind a similar attack in the Netherlands in December.

In that incident, police charged two 15-year-olds and a 16-year-old who beat a 41-year-old linesman during an amateur soccer game.

The linesman's son was playing in the game when the incident occurred and witnessed the attack.

The linesman, Richard Nieuwenhuizen, fell into a coma and died the next day.

Why are these kids getting so violent for something so small as an intermural soccer game?  Is it the fights that break out in sports on TV, movies, video games ect?

One of the most revered soccer players in the world, Luis Suarez just bit another player on Chelsea United after he got angry about a call that a ref made.  These are the soccer role models?  Do you think professional players stirring violence on the field is a reason that teens lash out this way?