UEFA Europa League – Group Stage (Matchday 1)

20 September 2018

Villarreal – Rangers
Referee: István Kovács (ROU, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Vasile Marinescu (ROU)
Assistant Referee 2: Mihai Artene (ROU)
Fourth Official: Alexandru Cerei (ROU)
Additional AR 1: Marius Avram (ROU)
Additional AR 2: Horațiu Feșnic (ROU)
Referee Observer: Marián Ružbarský (SVK)

Rapid Wien – Spartak Moskva
Referee: Sandro Schärer (SUI)
Assistant Referee 1: Stéphane Almeida (SUI)
Assistant Referee 2: Bekim Zogaj (SUI)
Fourth Official: Raffael Zeder (SUI)
Additional AR 1: Alain Bieri (SUI)
Additional AR 2: Lukas Fähndrich (SUI)
Referee Observer: Marc Batta (FRA)

Olympique de Marseille – Eintracht Frankfurt
Referee: Matej Jug (SVN)
Assistant Referee 1: Matej Žunič (SVN)
Assistant Referee 2: Manuel Vidali (SVN)
Fourth Official: Tomislav Pospeh (SVN)
Additional AR 1: Nejc Kajtazovič (SVN)
Additional AR 2: Dejan Balažič (SVN)
Referee Observer: Oğuz Sarvan (TUR)

Lazio – Apóllon Limassol
Referee: Aliyar Agayev (AZE)
Assistant Referee 1: Zeynal Zeynalov (AZE)
Assistant Referee 2: Rza Mammadov (AZE)
Fourth Official: Mübariz Haşımov (AZE)
Additional AR 1: Rahim Hasanov (AZE)
Additional AR 2: Orxan Mammadov (AZE)
Referee Observer: Robert Sedlacek (AUT)

Beşiktaş – Sarpsborg
Referee: Tamás Bognár (HUN)
Assistant Referee 1: Balázs Buzás (HUN)
Assistant Referee 2: Péter Kóbor (HUN)
Fourth Official: Theodoros Georgiou (HUN)
Additional AR 1: Ádám Farkas (HUN)
Additional AR 2: Péter Solymosi (HUN)
Referee Observer: Leslie Irvine (NIR)

KRC Genk – Malmö FF
Referee: Aleksey Eskov (RUS)
Assistant Referee 1: Dmitri Mosyakin (RUS)
Assistant Referee 2: Anton Averyanov (RUS)
Fourth Official: Igor Demeshko (RUS)
Additional AR 1: Kirill Levnikov (RUS)
Additional AR 2: Mikhail Vilkov (RUS)
Referee Observer: Dragutin Poljak (CRO)

Sevilla FC – Standard de Liège
Referee: Gediminas Mažeika (LTU)
Assistant Referee 1: Vytautas Šimkus (LTU)
Assistant Referee 2: Vytenis Kazlauskas (LTU)
Fourth Official: Dovydas Sužiedėlis (LTU)
Additional AR 1: Donatas Rumšas (LTU)
Additional AR 2: Manfredas Lukjančukas (LTU)
Referee Observer: Petteri Kari (FIN)

Akhisarspor – Krasnodar
Referee: Ville Nevalainen (FIN)
Assistant Referee 1: Jan-Peter Aravirta (FIN)
Assistant Referee 2: Mika Lamppu (FIN)
Fourth Official: Sami Nykänen (FIN)
Additional AR 1: Petri Viljanen (FIN)
Additional AR 2: Dennis Antamo (FIN)
Referee Observer: Kevin Azzopardi (MLT)

Stade Rennais – FK Jablonec
Referee: Ola Hobber Nilsen (NOR)
Assistant Referee 1: Tom Harald Grønevik (NOR)
Assistant Referee 2: Geir Oskar Isaksen (NOR)
Fourth Official: Øystein Simon Ytterland (NOR)
Additional AR 1: Espen Andreas Eskås (NOR)
Additional AR 2: Kai Erik Steen (NOR)
Referee Observer: Markus Nobs (SUI)

Dynamo Kyiv – FC Astana
Referee: Halis Özkahya (TUR)
Assistant Referee 1: Ceyhun Sesigüzel (TUR)
Assistant Referee 2: Hakan Yemişken (TUR)
Fourth Official: Kerem Ersoy (TUR)
Additional AR 1: Ali Palabıyık (TUR)
Additional AR 2: Alper Ulusoy (TUR)
Referee Observer: Jens Larsen (DEN)

PAOK – Chelsea
Referee: Alberto Undiano Mallenco (ESP)
Assistant Referee 1: Raúl Cabañero Martínez (ESP)
Assistant Referee 2: Íñigo Prieto López (ESP)
Fourth Official: Javier Aguilar Rodríguez (ESP)
Additional AR 1: José Sánchez Martínez (ESP)
Additional AR 2: José González González (ESP)
Referee Observer: Laurent Duhamel (FRA)

Mol Vidi – Bate Borisov
Referee: Mads-Kristoffer Kristoffersen (DEN)
Assistant Referee 1: Dennis Rasmussen (DEN)
Assistant Referee 2: Victor Skytte (DEN)
Fourth Official: Niels Høg (DEN)
Additional AR 1: Jørgen Burchardt (DEN)
Additional AR 2: Morten Krogh (DEN)
Referee Observer: Stávros Tritsónis (GRE)

AEK Larnaca – FC Zürich
Referee: Jonathan Lardot (BEL)
Assistant Referee 1: Frédéric Godelaine (BEL)
Assistant Referee 2: Florian Lemaire (BEL)
Fourth Official: Laurent Conotte (BEL)
Additional AR 1: Nicolas Laforge (BEL)
Additional AR 2: Alexandre Boucaut (BEL)
Referee Observer: Kristinn Jakobsson (ISL)

PFC Ludogorets – Bayer Leverkusen
Referee: Paolo Mazzoleni (ITA)
Assistant Referee 1: Alessandro Costanzo (ITA)
Assistant Referee 2: Alberto Tegoni (ITA)
Fourth Official: Stefano Del Giovane (ITA)
Additional AR 1: Marco Di Bello (ITA)
Additional AR 2: Piero Giacomelli (ITA)
Referee Observer: Paulius Malžinskas (LTU)

RB Leipzig – Red Bull Salzburg
Referee: Andreas Ekberg (SWE)
Assistant Referee 1: Mehmet Cullum (SWE)
Assistant Referee 2: Stefan Hallberg (SWE)
Fourth Official: Fredrik Klyver (SWE)
Additional AR 1: Kristoffer Karlsson (SWE)
Additional AR 2: Glenn Nyberg (SWE)
Referee Observer: William Young (SCO)

Celtic – Rosenborg
Referee: Pawel Gil (POL)
Assistant Referee 1: Konrad Sapela (POL)
Assistant Referee 2: Marcin Borkowski (POL)
Fourth Official: Adam Kupsik (POL)
Additional AR 1: Krzysztof Jakubik (POL)
Additional AR 2: Piotr Lasyk (POL)
Referee Observer: Jan Carlsen (DEN)

FC København – FC Zenit
Referee: Georgi Kabakov (BUL)
Assistant Referee 1: Martin Margaritov (BUL)
Assistant Referee 2: Diyan Valkov (BUL)
Fourth Official: Georgi Todorov (BUL)
Additional AR 1: Nikola Popov (BUL)
Additional AR 2: Stanislav Todorov (BUL)
Referee Observer: Vadims Direktorenko (LVA)

Slavia Praha – Girondins de Bordeaux
Referee: Bas Nijhuis (NED)
Assistant Referee 1: Rob van de Ven (NED)
Assistant Referee 2: Charles Schaap (NED)
Fourth Official: Bas van Dongen (NED)
Additional AR 1: Jeroen Manschot (NED)
Additional AR 2: Siemen Mulder (NED)
Referee Observer: Michael Ross (NIR)

Spartak Trnava – RSC Anderlecht
Referee: Kevin Clancy (SCO)
Assistant Referee 1: Douglas Ross (SCO)
Assistant Referee 2: Sean Carr (SCO)
Fourth Official: Alastair Mather (SCO)
Additional AR 1: Steven McLean (SCO)
Additional AR 2: Alan Muir (SCO)
Referee Observer: Peter Sippel (GER)

GNK Dinamo – Fenerbahçe SK
Referee: Craig Pawson (ENG)
Assistant Referee 1: Lee Betts (ENG)
Assistant Referee 2: Ian Hussin (ENG)
Fourth Official: Harry Lennard (ENG)
Additional AR 1: Jonathan Moss (ENG)
Additional AR 2: Christopher Kavanagh (ENG)
Referee Observer: Vladimír Medved (SVK)

Sporting CP – Qarabağ FK
Referee: François Letexier (FRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Cyril Mugnier (FRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Mehdi Rahmouni (FRA)
Fourth Official: Bertrand Jouannaud (FRA)
Additional AR 1: Frank Schneider (FRA)
Additional AR 2: Karim Abed (FRA)
Referee Observer: Elmir Pilav (BIH)

Arsenal FC – Vorskla Poltava
Referee: Bart Vertenten (BEL)
Assistant Referee 1: Rien Vanyzere (BEL)
Assistant Referee 2: Thibaud Nijssen (BEL)
Fourth Official: Yves De Neve (BEL)
Additional AR 1: Lawrence Visser (BEL)
Additional AR 2: Bram Van Driessche (BEL)
Referee Observer: Bo Karlsson (SWE)

F91 Dudelange – AC Milan
Referee: Srdjan Jovanović (SRB)
Assistant Referee 1: Uroš Stojković (SRB)
Assistant Referee 2: Milan Mihajlović (SRB)
Fourth Official: Dragan Bogićević (SRB)
Additional AR 1: Lazar Lukić (SRB)
Additional AR 2: Zoran Široki (SRB)
Referee Observer: Tomasz Mikulski (POL)

Olympiakós FC – Real Betis
Referee: Daniel Stefański (POL)
Assistant Referee 1: Marcin Boniek (POL)
Assistant Referee 2: Dawid Golis (POL)
Fourth Official: Krzysztof Myrmus (POL)
Additional AR 1: Bartosz Frankowski (POL)
Additional AR 2: Zbigniew Dobrynin (POL)
Referee Observer: Goran Mihaljević (MNE)

UEFA Youth League – Group Stage (Matchday 1)

18 September 2018
AS Monaco – Atlético de Madrid
Referee: Stephan Klossner (SUI, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Marco Zürcher (SUI)
Assistant Referee 2: Efe Kurnazca (SUI)
Fourth Official: Faouzi Benchabane (FRA)
Referee Observer: Fredy Fautrel (FRA)

FC Barcelona – PSV Eindhoven
Referee: Jérôme Brisard (FRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Benjamin Pagès (FRA)
Assistant Referee 2: François Boudikian (FRA)
Fourth Official: Rubén Ávalos Barrera (ESP)
Referee Observer: Luis Medina Cantalejo (ESP)

Inter Milano – Tottenham Hotspur
Referee: Antti Munukka (FIN)
Assistant Referee 1: Jouni Lemmettinen (FIN)
Assistant Referee 2: Turkka Joonas Valjakka (FIN)
Fourth Official: Lorenzo Illuzzi (ITA)
Referee Observer: Alfredo Trentalange (ITA)

Club Brugge – Borussia Dortmund
Referee: Nikola Dabanović (MNE)
Assistant Referee 1: Vladan Todorović (MNE)
Assistant Referee 2: Marjan Paunović (MNE)
Fourth Official: Jasper Vergoote (BEL)
Referee Observer: Michel Piraux (BEL)

Liverpool FC – Paris St. Germain
Referee: Alexander Harkam (AUT)
Assistant Referee 1: Andreas Staudinger (AUT)
Assistant Referee 2: Martin Höfler (AUT)
Fourth Official: Peter Wright (ENG)
Referee Observer: Peter Jones (ENG)

Crvena Zvezda – SSC Napoli
Referee: Adrien Jaccottet (SUI)
Assistant Referee 1: Vital Jobin (SUI)
Assistant Referee 2: Carmine Sangiovanni (SUI)
Fourth Official: Ivan Stamenković (SRB)
Referee Observer: Zoran Petrović (SRB)

Galatasaray – Lokomotiv Moskva
Referee: Enea Jorgji (ALB)
Assistant Referee 1: Emigers Gançi (ALB)
Assistant Referee 2: Dojando Myftari (ALB)
Fourth Official: Can Cengiz (TUR)
Referee Observer: Murat Ilgaz (TUR)

FC Schalke – FC Porto
Referee: Kristo Tohver (EST)
Assistant Referee 1: Silver Kõiv (EST)
Assistant Referee 2: Karolin Kaivoja (EST)
Fourth Official: Thorben Siewer (GER)
Referee Observer: Edgar Steinborn (GER)

19 September 2018
Shakhtar Donetsk – TSG Hoffenheim
Referee: Irfan Peljto (BIH)
Assistant Referee 1: Davor Beljo (BIH)
Assistant Referee 2: Amer Macić (BIH)
Fourth Official: Dmytro Panchyshyn (UKR)
Referee Observer: Volodymyr Petrov (UKR)

Viktoria Plzeň – CSKA Moskva
Referee: Peter Královič (SVK)
Assistant Referee 1: Miroslav Benko (SVK)
Assistant Referee 2: Erik Weiss (SVK)
Fourth Official: Vojtěch Severýn (CZE)
Referee Observer: Karel Bohuněk (CZE)

AFC Ajax – AEK Athens
Referee: Mohammed Al-Hakim (SWE)
Assistant Referee 1: Magnus Sjöblom (SWE)
Assistant Referee 2: Mikael Hallin (SWE)
Fourth Official: Martin van den Kerkhof (NED)
Referee Observer: Hans Reijgwart (NED)

SL Benfica – Bayern München
Referee: Stuart Attwell (ENG)
Assistant Referee 1: Constantine Hatzidakis (ENG)
Assistant Referee 2: Neil Davies (ENG)
Fourth Official: Rui Piteira Rodrigues (POR)
Referee Observer: Bernardino González Vázquez (ESP)

Manchester City – Olympique Lyonnais
Referee: Petr Ardeleánu (CZE)
Assistant Referee 1: Tomáš Mokrusch (CZE)
Assistant Referee 2: Petr Caletka (CZE)
Fourth Official: Martin Coy (ENG)
Referee Observer: Iain Robertson Brines (SCO)

Valencia – Juventus
Referee: Radu Petrescu (ROU)
Assistant Referee 1: Radu Ghinguleac (ROU)
Assistant Referee 2: Mircea Grigoriu (ROU)
Fourth Official: Saúl Ais Reig (ESP)
Referee Observer: Manuel López Fernández (ESP)

Real Madrid – AS Roma
Referee: Fábio Veríssimo (POR)
Assistant Referee 1: Paulo Soares (POR)
Assistant Referee 2: Nuno Pereira (POR)
Fourth Official: Valentín Pizarro Gómez (ESP)
Referee Observer: Manuel Díaz Vega (ESP)

Young Boys – Manchester United
Referee: Fran Jović (CRO)
Assistant Referee 1: Ivica Modrić (CRO)
Assistant Referee 2: Hrvoje Radić (CRO)
Fourth Official: David Schärli (SUI)
Referee Observer: Cyril Zimmermann (SUI)

CONMEBOL Copa Sudamericana – Round of 16 (Matchday 2)

18-20 September 2018

Santa Fe – Millonarios
Referee: Fernando Rapallini (ARG, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Diego Bonfa (ARG)
Assistant Referee 2: Christian Navarro (ARG)
Fourth Official: Fernando Espinoza (ARG)
Referee Assessor: Imer Machado (COL)

Caracas – Atletico Paranaense
Referee: Andres Rojas (COL)
Assistant Referee 1: Eduardo Diaz (COL)
Assistant Referee 2: Humberto Clavijo (COL)
Fourth Official: Carlos Betancur (COL)
Referee Assessor: Carlos Herrera (ECU)

Deportivo Cali – LDU Quito
Referee: Diego Haro (PER)
Assistant Referee 1: Victor Raez (PER)
Assistant Referee 2: Coty Carrera (PER)
Fourth Official: Michael Espinoza (PER)
Referee Assessor: Sergio Cristiano (BRA)

Deportivo Cuenca – Fluminense
Referee: Alexis Herrera (VEN)
Assistant Referee 1: Carlos Lopez (VEN)
Assistant Referee 2: Jorge Urrego (VEN)
Fourth Official: Juan Soto (VEN)
Referee Assessor: Claudio Puga (CHI)

Bahia – Botafogo
Referee: Piero Maza (CHI)
Assistant Referee 1: Christian Schiemann (CHI)
Assistant Referee 2: Claudio Rios (CHI)
Fourth Official: Eduardo Gamboa (CHI)
Referee Assessor: Nilson Moncao (BRA)

CONMEBOL Copa Libertadores – Quarter-finals (First Leg)

18-20 September 2018

Atlético Tucuman – Gremio
Referee: Wilmar Roldan (COL, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Cristian De La Cruz (COL)
Assistant Referee 2: Alexander Leon (COL)
Fourth Official: Gustavo Murillo (COL)
VAR 1: Julio Bascuñan (CHI)
VAR 2: Roberto Tobar (CHI)
AVAR: Carlos Astroza (CHI)
Referee Assessor: Carlos Torres (PAR)

Independiente – River Plate
Referee: Wilton Sampaio (BRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Bruno Boschilia (BRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Rodrigo Correa (BRA)
Fourth Official: Ricardo Marques (BRA)
VAR 1: Raphael Claus (BRA)
VAR 2: Anderson Daronco (BRA)
AVAR: Emerson de Carvalho (BRA)
Referee Assessor: Francisco Mondria (CHI)

Boca Juniors – Cruzeiro
Referee: Eber Aquino (PAR)
Assistant Referee 1: Eduardo Cardozo (PAR)
Assistant Referee 2: Juan Zorrilla (PAR)
Fourth Official: Arnaldo Samaniego (PAR)
VAR 1: Mario Diaz de Vivar (PAR)
VAR 2: Gery Vargas (BOL)
AVAR: Milciades Saldivar (PAR)
Referee Assessor: Martin Vazquez (URU)

Colo Colo – Palmeiras
Referee: Andres Cunha (URU)
Assistant Referee 1: Nicolas Taran (URU)
Assistant Referee 2: Richard Trinidad (URU)
Fourth Official: Leodan Gonzalez (URU)
VAR 1: Mauro Vigliano (ARG)
VAR 2: Patricio Loustau (ARG)
AVAR: Hernan Maidana (ARG)
Referee Assessor: Ubaldo Aquino (PAR)

UEFA Champions League – Group Stage (Matchday 1)

18 September 2018
FC Barcelona – PSV Eindhoven
Referee: Anastásios Sidirópoulos (GRE, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Polychrónis Kostarás (GRE)
Assistant Referee 2: Lázaros Dimitriádis (GRE)
Fourth Official: Damianós Efthymiádis (GRE)
Additional AR 1: Anastásios Papapétrou (GRE)
Additional AR 2: Ioánnis Papadópoulos (GRE)
Referee Observer: Michael Riley (ENG)

Inter Milano – Tottenham Hotspur
Referee: Clément Turpin (FRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Nicolas Danos (FRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Cyril Gringore (FRA)
Fourth Official: Guillaume Debart (FRA)
Additional AR 1: Ruddy Buquet (FRA)
Additional AR 2: Nicolas Rainville (FRA)
Referee Observer: Konrad Plautz (AUT)

Club Brugge – Borussia Dortmund
Referee: Danny Makkelie (NED)
Assistant Referee 1: Mario Diks (NED)
Assistant Referee 2: Hessel Steegstra (NED)
Fourth Official: Jan de Vries (NED)
Additional AR 1: Kevin Blom (NED)
Additional AR 2: Jochem Kamphuis (NED)
Referee Observer: Levan Paniashvili (GEO)

AS Monaco – Atlético de Madrid
Referee: William Collum (SCO)
Assistant Referee 1: David McGeachie (SCO)
Assistant Referee 2: Graeme Stewart (SCO)
Fourth Official: Douglas Potter (SCO)
Additional AR 1: Andrew Dallas (SCO)
Additional AR 2: Nicolas Walsh (SCO)
Referee Observer: Kaj Østergaard (DEN)

Liverpool FC – Paris St. Germain
Referee: Cüneyt Çakır (TUR)
Assistant Referee 1: Bahattin Duran (TUR)
Assistant Referee 2: Tarık Ongun (TUR)
Fourth Official: Mustafa Eyisoy (TUR)
Additional AR 1: Hüseyin Göçek (TUR)
Additional AR 2: Barış Şimşek (TUR)
Referee Observer: Miroslav Liba (CZE)

Crvena Zvezda – SSC Napoli
Referee: Szymon Marciniak (POL)
Assistant Referee 1: Paweł Sokolnicki (POL)
Assistant Referee 2: Tomasz Listkiewicz (POL)
Fourth Official: Radosław Siejka (POL)
Additional AR 1: Paweł Raczkowski (POL)
Additional AR 2: Tomasz Musiał (POL)
Referee Observer: Sándor Piller (HUN)

Galatasaray – Lokomotiv Moskva
Referee: Gianluca Rocchi (ITA)
Assistant Referee 1: Mauro Tonolini (ITA)
Assistant Referee 2: Filippo Meli (ITA)
Fourth Official: Matteo Passeri (ITA)
Additional AR 1: Luca Banti (ITA)
Additional AR 2: Massimiliano Irrati (ITA)
Referee Observer: Vladimir Antonov (MDA)

FC Schalke – FC Porto
Referee: Jesús Gil Manzano (ESP)
Assistant Referee 1: Ángel Nevado Rodríguez (ESP)
Assistant Referee 2: Diego Barbero Sevilla (ESP)
Fourth Official: Javier Martínez Nicolás (ESP)
Additional AR 1: Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea (ESP)
Additional AR 2: José Munuera Montero (ESP)
Referee Observer: Frank De Bleeckere (BEL)

19 September 2018
AFC Ajax – AEK Athens
Referee: Carlos del Cerro Grande (ESP)
Assistant Referee 1: Juan Carlos Yusté Jiménez (ESP)
Assistant Referee 2: Roberto Alonso Fernández (ESP)
Fourth Official: Abrahám Álvarez Cantón (ESP)
Additional AR 1: Juan Martínez Munuera (ESP)
Additional AR 2: Santiago Jaime Latre (ESP)
Referee Observer: Luciano Luci (ITA)

Shakhtar Donetsk – TSG Hoffenheim
Referee: Jakob Kehlet (DEN)
Assistant Referee 1: Lars Hummelgaard (DEN)
Assistant Referee 2: Heine Sørensen (DEN)
Fourth Official: Niels Brixen (DEN)
Additional AR 1: Michael Tykgaard (DEN)
Additional AR 2: Jens Maae (DEN)
Referee Observer: Bertrand Layec (FRA)

SL Benfica – Bayern München
Referee: Antonio Mateu Lahoz (ESP)
Assistant Referee 1: Pau Cebrián Devís (ESP)
Assistant Referee 2: Roberto Díaz Pérez (ESP)
Fourth Official: Teodoro Sobrino Magán (ESP)
Additional AR 1: Xavier Estrada Fernández (ESP)
Additional AR 2: Alejandro Hernández Hernández (ESP)
Referee Observer: Emil Božinovski (MKD)

Manchester City – Olympique Lyonnais
Referee: Daniele Orsato (ITA)
Assistant Referee 1: Lorenzo Manganelli (ITA)
Assistant Referee 2: Fabiano Preti (ITA)
Fourth Official: Giorgio Peretti (ITA)
Additional AR 1: Marco Guida (ITA)
Additional AR 2: Daniele Doveri (ITA)
Referee Observer: Rune Pedersen (NOR)

Real Madrid – AS Roma
Referee: Björn Kuipers (NED)
Assistant Referee 1: Sander van Roekel (NED)
Assistant Referee 2: Erwin Zeinstra (NED)
Fourth Official: Joost van Zuilen (NED)
Additional AR 1: Dennis Higler (NED)
Additional AR 2: Pol van Boekel (NED)
Referee Observer: Marcel Vanelshocht (BEL)

Viktoria Plzeň – CSKA Moskva
Referee: Benoît Bastien (FRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Hicham Zakrani (FRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Frédéric Haquette (FRA)
Fourth Official: Julien Pacelli (FRA)
Additional AR 1: Benoît Millot (FRA)
Additional AR 2: Jérôme Miguelgorry (FRA)
Referee Observer: Eugen Strigel (GER)

BSC Young Boys – Manchester United
Referee: Deniz Aytekin (GER)
Assistant Referee 1: Eduard Beitinger (GER)
Assistant Referee 2: Rafael Foltyn (GER)
Fourth Official: Dominik Schaal (GER)
Additional AR 1: Tobias Welz (GER)
Additional AR 2: Benjamin Cortus (GER)
Referee Observer: Kaj Natri (FIN)

Valencia – Juventus
Referee: Felix Brych (GER)
Assistant Referee 1: Mark Borsch (GER)
Assistant Referee 2: Stefan Lupp (GER)
Fourth Official: Markus Häcker (GER)
Additional AR 1: Bastian Dankert (GER)
Additional AR 2: Marco Fritz (GER)
Referee Observer: Francesco Bianchi (SUI)

CAF has suspended 15 more referees

The videos have already been made available to the Confederation of African Football (CAF) and individual countries Football Associations. This time including referees from West, Central and Southern African Countries. The videos are being released as part of Tiger Eye PIs mantra of naming, shaming and jailing of corrupt people in society. It is also to deepen CAF president’s commitment to fight against corruption in African football. It will be recalled that following the showing of Number12 and betraying the Game by BBC World Service, Ahmad Ahmad told the BBC “We have started to fight corruption and have changed many rules”.

Madagascar. In the huge island nation off the southeast coast of Africa, FIFA referee Hamada Nampiandraza (photo) took $2,800 from fake football agents to officiate in favour of their team in the CAF 2018 Champions League in Ghana.

Sierra Leone. FIFA and CAF certified Sierra Leonean referee, Billy Konneh took $500 from fake football agents to officiate in favour of their team in the 2017 West African Football Union (WAFU) tournament.

Côte d’Ivoire. In Ivory Coast, four FIFA referees were caught; Dennis Dembélé, Tan Marius Donatien, Bi Vélère Gouho and Coulibally Abu engaging in corruption and conflict of interest contrary to FIFA and CAF code of ethics. The four were amongst the officials who took part in the CAF 2018 Champions League in Ghana. The four took $800 each from journalists pretending as football agents to officiate in favour of their team. Dennis Dembele has been banned for 6 years from all football related activities by CAF and the rest banned for 2 years.

Senegal. Senegalese referee David Daouda Gueye took $500 from fake football agents to officiate in favour of their team in the 2017 West African Football Union (WAFU) tournament. He has already been suspended by CAF awaiting outcome of investigations.

Togo. In the case of Togolese referee Bebou Yanissou, he took $500 from fake football agents to officiate in favour of their team in the 2017 West African Football Union (WAFU) tournament.

DR Congo. In Congo, four referees were caught engaging in bribery and corruption as well as conflict of interest. They are Fitial Charel Just Kokolo, Blaise Boutamba, Yamba Armand Gildas and Messie Jessie Oved Nkounkou Mvoutou. The four took $800 each from journalists pretending as football agents to officiate in favour of their team in the in the CAF 2018 Champions League in Ghana.

Niger. Assistant referee Maman Raja Abba Malan Ouseini took $500 from fake football agents to officiate in favour of their team in the 2017 West African Football Union (WAFU) tournament. CAF in July handed him a 5-year ban from all CAF related football activities.

Liberia. FIFA referee Jerry Yekeh took $500 from fake football agents to officiate in favour of their team in the 2017 West African Football Union (WAFU) tournament. He has provisionally be banned by CAF and the Liberian Football Referees Association pending investigations.

Gambia. Gambian referee Ebrima Jallow also took $500 from fake football agents to officiate in favour of their team in the 2017 West African Football Union (WAFU) tournament. (CAF) has since banned him Gambian for 10 years after concluding with investigations.

Mauritania. Mauritanian assistant referee Boubou Cheikhna Demba also took $500 from fake football agents to officiate in favour of their team in the 2017 West African Football Union (WAFU) tournament. Demba Boubou has been banned for 5 years by CAF.

Benin. Referee Aboudou Razak Bello from Benin took $500 from fake football agents to officiate in favour of their team in the 2017 West African Football Union (WAFU) tournament. He has been provisionally suspended pending their appearance in front of the next meeting of the Disciplinary Board of CAF.

Burkina Faso. Referee Boukari Ouedraogo took $500 from fake football agents to officiate in favour of their team in the 2017 West African Football Union (WAFU) tournament. He has been banned by CAF for 5 years.

Guinea Bissau. Referee Adento Maria Barbosa da Silva of Guinea Bissau also took $500 from fake football agents to officiate in favour of their team in the 2017 West African Football Union (WAFU) tournament contrary to FIFA/CAF code of ethics on corruption and conflict of interest.

Mali. Assistant referee Moriba Diakite took $500 from fake football agents to officiate in favour of their team in the 2017 West African Football Union (WAFU) tournament contrary to FIFA/CAF code of ethics on corruption and conflict of interest. He has already been banned.

Source: FootballLive

Futsal player arrested after a brutal attack that left a referee with a fractured skull

Alcione Marcelino headbutted the official and kicked him in the face as he lay on the ground after he objected to a decision. The ace is facing charges of grievous bodily harm over the terrifying incident, with referee Marcos Nogueira allegedly suffering potentially life-threatening injuries. 

Fluminense da Bahia and Atletico Brasileense's Acreano Futsal Championship match in Rio Branco, north Brazil, was nearly over when the attack was captured. Nogueira was kept in hospital overnight for observation and the following day underwent a series of examinations and tests by the Institute of Legal Medicine. IML experts will submit their findings to criminal investigators who have opened a case against the Atletico Brasileense midfielder, 34. The referee’s lawyer Fabio Santos said: “According to Marcos, Alcione complained about a foul as Fluminense da Bahia scored their sixth goal. "Marcos told the player his decision was correct, and he should play on. He didn’t expect the footballer’s reaction. You can see things happened suddenly. Alcione appears to run up to my client who stands still on the spot. Marcos never expected anything like this to happen, so he didn’t react when the player came towards him. He was surprised by the player’s aggressive attitude. Before he knew it, he was head-butted and kicked in the face as he fell to the ground”.

The cup final, which ended with a 6 to 4 win to Fluminense da Bahia, was stopped 16 minutes into the second half as anxious colleagues rushed to tend to the injured ref. Santos added: “Marcos has suffered extremely serious head injuries and x-rays show a crack in his skull. He was hospitalized to avoid trauma and there is a real risk this injury could develop with more serious and life-threatening consequences. We are talking about a serious bodily injury and my client is in a great deal of pain. Depending on the intensity of the injury this could lead to grievous bodily harm charges. We will wait for the investigation to be completed in 30 days before reaching a decision. In the meantime, I just hope the health of my client doesn’t deteriorate”. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for 26 September at a Special Criminal Court, which is a body that promotes conciliation and adjudication. But Santos intends to push for the case to be transferred to a criminal court.

Source: The Sun

Geiger: Key takeaways from the 2018 FIFA World Cup

Soccer players aren’t the only ones who spend their life dreaming of emerging from the tunnel at the World Cup. Referees devote just as much time and energy to the grind of qualifying for the world’s biggest stage. Despite an award-laden career full of officiating some of the world’s most illustrious tournaments, Mark Geiger is still buzzing from his experience in Russia, even though it wasn’t his first rodeo. “My favorite memories will be meeting, collaborating with and working with the best referees from each continent,” Geiger recently told ussoccer.com. “I will also always remember the excitement of walking out of the tunnel and leading the teams out onto the pitch to the sounds of the incredible crowd and the anthem playing in the stadium.”

Geiger became an MLS referee at the age of 30 in 2004. Following his arrival at the top of the American game, the New Jersey native quickly ascended to new heights, obtaining his FIFA badge in 2008. In 2011, Geiger was awarded MLS Referee of the year. He repeated that feet in 2014, capping off an impressive season where he also oversaw three matches at the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil. In Brazil, Geiger became the first American to officiate a knock-out round match when he took charge of France-Nigeria in the Round of 16. In 2017, Geiger was back refereeing on the world stage, taking the reins of Australia vs. Germany and New Zealand vs. Portugal at the FIFA Confederations Cup. Based on his success at the World Cup’s dress rehearsal and his consistently excellent performances in MLS, Geiger was invited back to Russia by FIFA for the 2018 World Cup. According to the FIFA press release, the appointment of the 36 referees and 63 assistant referees “selected to officiate at the 2018 FIFA World Cup was based on each referee’s skills and personality, as well as his level of understanding of football and ability to read both the game and the various tactics employed by teams.” Yet, the calls Geiger received to go to Russia for the Confederations Cup and subsequent World Cup were not out of the blue. The release on FIFA’s website also stated that “Over the last three years, preparatory seminars have taken place for referees and assistant referees focusing on fair play, protecting players and the image of the game, as well as consistency and uniformity.” Geiger not only needed to be a top performer in the classroom at these events, but he had to consistently translate those principals into match settings on both the domestic and international stage. It was this consistency that allowed him to join Jair Marrufo, Corey Rockwell and Frank Anderson as the American officials that were tasked with keeping order in Russia. “We are always learning as a referee,” Geiger noted of these seminars. “We learn about player and team tactics, we learn how to effectively manage players and the game, we learn how to apply the Laws of the Game to both standard and non-routine situations. The referees never have all the answers and it is through the preparation, debriefs and collaboration with others that we continue to grow and make ourselves better.” 

Geiger was a busy man at the 2018 World Cup. In addition to being the center referee for Portugal vs. Morocco and South Korea vs. Germany in the group stage as well as for England vs. Colombia in the Round of 16, Geiger also served as the head Video Assistant Referee for five matches, including the third-place match between Belgium and England. Adding the two matches where the former math teacher held the Assistant Video Assistant Referee #3 position, Geiger helped oversee 10 matches at the world’s most prestigious tournament. After just over a year and a half in existence, the Video Assistant Referee was used for the first time in a World Cup. Due to his heavy involvement with VAR in MLS, Geiger was always in line to play a crucial role in Russia. “Even though we use it here in the United States and it is used in a few other countries around the world, all the referees and VARs were learning how to best utilize this tool,” Geiger reflected. “The line of intervention, the situations in which it would be most beneficial to the game, and more importantly, the communication that is most effective between the referee and the VAR were things that were constantly evaluated and practiced leading up to and throughout the entire World Cup.” Despite VAR being relatively new, Geiger believed it was used to great effect in Russia. “The VARs understood when they should intervene and open up communication with the referee, and a very high bar was maintained throughout the tournament so only clear and obvious errors were corrected. The successful implementation of the VAR has taken the big controversial decisions or scandals out of the game,” Geiger continued. “There will always be discussions about whether a 50/50 referee decision is correct or not. However, the decisions that are clearly wrong, where virtually 100% of the population agrees, are gone.” 

Source: USSF

International Friendly Matches

September 2018

Scotland – Belgium
Referee: Luca Banti (ITA, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Mauro Tonolini (ITA)
Assistant Referee 2: Elenito Di Liberatore (ITA)
Fourth Official: Marco Di Bello (ITA)

Austria – Sweden
Referee: Paweł Gil (POL)
Assistant Referee 1: Konrad Sapela (POL)
Assistant Referee 2: Marcin Borkowski (POL)
Fourth Official: Paweł Raczkowski (POL)

Slovakia – Denmark
Referee: Julian Weinberger (AUT)
Assistant Referee 1: Andreas Heidenreich (AUT)
Assistant Referee 2: Maximilian Kolbitsch (AUT)
Fourth Official: Boris Marhefka (SVK)

Netherlands – Peru
Referee: Tobias Stieler (GER)

Japan – Chile 
Referee: Alireza Faghani (IRN)

Portugal – Croatia
Referee: Javier Estrada Fernández (ESP)
Assistant Referee 1: Javier Aguilar Rodríguez (ESP)
Assistant Referee 2: Teodoro Sobrino Magán (ESP)
Additional AR 1: Alejandro Hernández Hernández (ESP)
Additional AR 2: José Munuera Montero (ESP)
Fourth Official: Francisco Martín García (ESP)

Germany – Peru
Referee: Robert Schörgenhofer (AUT)
Assistant Referee 1: Andreas Staudinger (AUT)
Assistant Referee 2: Stefan Kühr (AUT)
Fourth Official: Christopher Jäger (AUT)

Russia – Czech Republic
Referee: Aliyar Agayev (AZE)
Assistant Referee 1: Zeynal Zeynalov (AZE)
Assistant Referee 2: Rza Mammadov (AZE)

Saudi Arabia – Bolivia
Referee: Antonio Mateu Lahoz (ESP)
Assistant Referee 1: Pau Cebrián Devís (ESP)
Assistant Referee 2: Javier Aguilar Rodríguez (ESP)

England – Switzerland
Referee: Clément Turpin (FRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Nicolas Danos (FRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Cyril Gringore (FRA)
Fourth Official: Jérôme Brisard (FRA)

Northern Ireland – Israel
Referee: Bas Nijhuis (NED)
Assistant Referee 1: Rob van de Ven (NED)
Assistant Referee 2: Joost van Zuilen (NED)

Ecuador – Jamaica
Referee: Ted Unkel (USA)
Assistant Referee 1: Adam Wienckowski (USA)
Assistant Referee 2: Charles Morgante (USA)
Fourth Official: Mark Geiger (USA)

USA – Brazil
Referee 1: Fernando Guerrero (MEX)
Assistant Referee 1: Alberto Morin (MEX)
Assistant Referee 2: Andres Hernandez (MEX)
Fourth Official: Ivan Barton (SLV)

Colombia – Argentina
Referee: Ismail Elfath (USA)
Assistant Referee 1: Charles Morgante (USA)
Assistant Referee 2: Adam Wienckowski (USA)
Fourth Official: Ted Unkel (USA)

Brazil – El Salvador
Referee: Jair Marrufo (USA)
Assistant Referee 1: Corey Rockwell (USA)
Assistant Referee 2: Corey Parker (USA)
Fourth Official: Mark Geiger (USA)

USA – Mexico
Referee: Ricardo Montero (CRC)
Assistant Referee 1: Juan Mora (CRC)
Assistant Referee 2: Gerson Lopez (GUA)
Fourth Official: Juan Calderon (CRC)

UEFA Nations League – Group Stage (Matchday 2)

9-11 September 2018

League A
France – Netherlands
Referee: Alberto Undiano Mallenco (ESP, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Roberto Alonso Fernández
Assistant Referee 2: Raúl Cabañero Martínez (ESP)
Additional AR 1: Juan Martínez Munuera (ESP)
Additional AR 2: José Sánchez Martínez (ESP)
Fourth Official: Diego Barbero Sevilla (ESP)
Referee Observer: Darko Čeferin (SVN)

Portugal – Italy
Referee: William Collum (SCO)
Assistant Referee 1: David McGeachie (SCO)
Assistant Referee 2: Graeme Stewart (SCO)
Additional AR 1: Andrew Dallas (SCO)
Additional AR 2: Nicolas Walsh (SCO)
Fourth Official: Stuart Stevenson (SCO)
Referee Observer: Marc Batta (FRA)

Iceland – Belgium
Referee: Sergey Karasev (RUS)
Assistant Referee 1: Igor Demeshko (RUS)
Assistant Referee 2: Aleksey Lunev (RUS)
Additional AR 1: Sergey Ivanov (RUS)
Additional AR 2: Vladimir Moskalev (RUS)
Fourth Official: Aleksey Vorontsov (RUS)
Referee Observer: Jouni Hyytiä (FIN)

Spain – Croatia
Referee: Benoît Bastien (FRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Hicham Zakrani (FRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Frédéric Haquette (FRA)
Additional AR 1: Benoît Millot (FRA)
Additional AR 2: Jérôme Miguelgorry (FRA)
Fourth Official: Philippe Jeanne (FRA)
Referee Observer: Vladimir Šajn (SVN)

League B
Ukraine – Slovakia
Referee: Anastásios Sidirópoulos (GRE)
Assistant Referee 1: Polychrónis Kostarás (GRE)
Assistant Referee 2: Lázaros Dimitriádis (GRE)
Additional AR 1: Ioánnis Papadópoulos (GRE)
Additional AR 2: Athanásios Tzílos (GRE)
Fourth Official: Damianós Efthymiádis (GRE)
Referee Observer: Michel Piraux (BEL)

Denmark – Wales
Referee: Deniz Aytekin (GER)
Assistant Referee 1: Eduard Beitinger (GER)
Assistant Referee 2: Rafael Foltyn (GER)
Additional AR 1: Tobias Welz (GER)
Additional AR 2: Harm Osmers (GER)
Fourth Official: Dominik Schaal (GER)
Referee Observer: Levan Paniashvili (GEO)

Sweden – Turkey
Referee: Jesús Gil Manzano (ESP)
Assistant Referee 1: Ángel Nevado Rodríguez (ESP)
Assistant Referee 2: Juan Yuste Jiménez (ESP)
Additional AR 1: Carlos del Cerro Grande (ESP)
Additional AR 2: Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea (ESP)
Fourth Official: Prieto López de Ceraín (ESP)
Referee Observer: Herbert Fandel (GER)

Bosnia and Herzegovina – Austria
Referee: Ruddy Buquet (FRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Guillaume Debart (FRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Julien Pacelli (FRA)
Additional AR 1: Amaury Delerue (FRA)
Additional AR 2: Frank Schneider (FRA)
Fourth Official: Bertrand Jouannaud (FRA)
Referee Observer: Tomasz Mikulski (POL)

League C
Bulgaria – Norway
Referee: Daniel Stefański (POL)
Assistant Referee 1: Marcin Boniek (POL)
Assistant Referee 2: Dawid Golis (POL)
Additional AR 1: Bartosz Frankowski (POL)
Additional AR 2: Zbigniew Dobrynin (POL)
Fourth Official: Krzysztof Myrmus (POL)
Referee Observer: Miroslav Liba (CZE)

Cyprus – Slovenia
Referee: Andris Treimanis (LVA)
Assistant Referee 1: Haralds Gudermanis (LVA)
Assistant Referee 2: Aleksejs Spasjonņikovs (LVA)
Additional AR 1: Aleksandrs Golubevs (LVA)
Additional AR 2: Edgars Maļcevs (LVA)
Fourth Official: Raimonds Tatriks (LVA)
Referee Observer: Geórgios Bíkas (GRE)

Scotland – Albania
Referee: Matej Jug (SVN)
Assistant Referee 1: Tomaž Klančnik (SVN)
Assistant Referee 2: Andraž Kovačič (SVN)
Additional AR 1: Rade Obrenović (SVN)
Additional AR 2: Roberto Ponis (SVN)
Fourth Official: Matej Žunič (SVN)
Referee Observer: Bo Karlsson (SWE)

Montenegro – Lithuania
Referee: Jakob Kehlet (DEN)
Assistant Referee 1: Heine Sørensen (DEN)
Assistant Referee 2: Christian Brixen (DEN)
Additional AR 1: Jens Maae (DEN)
Additional AR 2: Peter Kjaersgaard (DEN)
Fourth Official: Lars Hummelgaard (DEN)
Referee Observer: Costas Kapitanis (CYP)

Serbia – Romania
Referee: Vladislav Bezborodov (RUS)
Assistant Referee 1: Valeri Danchenko (RUS)
Assistant Referee 2: Maksim Gavrilin (RUS)
Additional AR 1: Aleksei Eskov (RUS)
Additional AR 2: Kirill Levnikov (RUS)
Fourth Official: Dmitri Mosiakin (RUS)
Referee Observer: Dušan Krchňák (SVK)

Hungary – Greece
Referee: Aleksei Kulbakou (BLR)
Assistant Referee 1: Dmitrj Žuk (BLR)
Assistant Referee 2: Alieh Maslianka (BLR)
Additional AR 1: Dzianis Ščarbakou (BLR)
Additional AR 2: Dmitrj Dmitryjeu (BLR)
Fourth Official: Jurj Chomčanka (BLR)
Referee Observer: Draženko Kovačić (CRO)

Finland – Estonia
Referee: Orel Grinfeld (ISR)
Assistant Referee 1: Dvir Shimon (ISR)
Assistant Referee 2: Roi Hassan (ISR)
Additional AR 1: Erez Papir (ISR)
Additional AR 2: Ziv Adler (ISR)
Fourth Official: Idan Yarkoni (ISR)
Referee Observer: Michael Riley (ENG)

League D
Georgia – Latvia
Referee: Anastásios Papapétrou (GRE)
Assistant Referee 1: Trýfon Petrópoulos (GRE)
Assistant Referee 2: Iordánis Aptósoglou (GRE)
Additional AR 1: Ángelos Evangélou (GRE)
Additional AR 2: Praxitélis Zachariádis (GRE)
Fourth Official: Ilías Alexéas (GRE)
Referee Observer: Jens Larsen (DEN)

FYR Macedonia – Armenia
Referee: Manuel Schüttengruber (AUT)
Assistant Referee 1: Roland Brandner (AUT)
Assistant Referee 2: Roland Riedel (AUT)
Additional AR 1: René Eisner (AUT)
Additional AR 2: Dieter Muckenhammer (AUT)
Fourth Official: Markus Gutschi (AUT)
Referee Observer: Francesco Bianchi (SUI)

Liechtenstein – Gibraltar
Referee: Alan Mario Sant (MLT)
Assistant Referee 1: Edward Spiteri (MLT)
Assistant Referee 2: Jurgen Spiteri (MLT)
Additional AR 1: Fyodor Zammit (MLT)
Additional AR 2: Trustin Farrugia Cann (MLT)
Fourth Official: Duncan Sultana (MLT)
Referee Observer: Lassin Isaksen (FRO)

Andorra – Kazakhstan
Referee: Vilhjálmur Thórarinsson (ISL)
Assistant Referee 1: Gunnar Gudmundsson (ISL)
Assistant Referee 2: Birkir Sigurdarson (ISL)
Additional AR 1: Thóroddur Hjaltalín (ISL)
Additional AR 2: Ívar Kristjánsson (ISL)
Fourth Official: Frosti Gunnarsson (ISL)
Referee Observer: Carmel Agius (MLT)

Kosovo – Faroe Islands
Referee: Bart Vertenten (BEL)
Assistant Referee 1: Rien Vanyzere (BEL)
Assistant Referee 2: Thibaud Nijssen (BEL)
Additional AR 1: Lawrence Visser (BEL)
Additional AR 2: Bram Van Driessche (BEL)
Fourth Official: Yves De Neve (BEL)
Referee Observer: Leslie Irvine (NIR)

Malta – Azerbaijan
Referee: Nikola Dabanović (MNE)
Assistant Referee 1: Milutin Djukić (MNE)
Assistant Referee 2: Jovica Tatar (MNE)
Additional AR 1: Milovan Milačić (MNE)
Additional AR 2: Miloš Bošković (MNE)
Fourth Official: Aleksandar Djikanović (MNE)
Referee Observer: Luc Wilmes (LUX)

San Marino – Luxembourg
Referee: Filip Glova (SVK)
Assistant Referee 1: František Ferenc (SVK)
Assistant Referee 2: Peter Kováč (SVK)
Additional AR 1: Ivan Kružliak (SVK)
Additional AR 2: Michal Očenáš (SVK)
Fourth Official: Ján Pozor (SVK)
Referee Observer: Kevin Azzopardi (MLT)

Moldova – Belarus
Referee: Mario Zebec (CRO)
Assistant Referee 1: Borut Križarić (CRO)
Assistant Referee 2: Jerko Crnčić (CRO)
Additional AR 1: Fran Jović (CRO)
Additional AR 2: Igor Pajač (CRO)
Fourth Official: Ivica Modrić (CRO)
Referee Observer: Muharrem Aksoy (TUR)