Copa Libertadores – Group Stage (Matchday 10)

3 April 2012
Alianza Lima – Vasco da Gama

Referee: Saul Laverni (ARG, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Hernan Maidana (ARG)
Assistant Referee 2: Ernesto Uziga (ARG)
Fourth Official: Henry Gambetta (PER)

Lanus – Olimpia

Referee: Victor Rivera (PER)
Assistant Referee 1: Jonny Bossio (PER)
Assistant Referee 2: Cesar Escano (PER)
Fourth Official: Pablo Lunati (ARG)

Deportivo Tachira – Cruz Azul
Referee: Dario Ubriaco (URU)
Assistant Referee 1: Mauricio Espinosa (URU)
Assistant Referee 2: Marcelo Costa (URU)
Fourth Official: Marlon Escalante (VEN)

4 April 2012
Godoy Cruz – Universidad de Chile
Referee: Carlos Amarilla (PAR)
Assistant Referee 1: Rodney Aquino (PAR)
Assistant Referee 2: Cesar Franco (PAR)
Fourth Official: German Delfino (ARG)

Internacional – Santos
Referee: Sandro Ricci (BRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Roberto Braatz (BRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Fabricio Silva (BRA)
Fourth Official: Pericles Cortes (BRA)

Emelec – Flamengo
Referee: Martin Vazquez (URU)
Assistant Referee 1: Carlos Pastorino (URU)
Assistant Referee 2: Carlos Changala (URU)
Fourth Official: Daniel Salazar (ECU)

Junior – Universidad Catolica
Referee: Paulo Oliveira (BRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Altemir Hausmann (BRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Dibert Pedrosa (BRA)
Fourth Official: Juan Restrepo (COL)

5 April 2012
Libertad – Nacional
Referee: Omar Ponce (ECU)
Assistant Referee 1: Juan Cedeno (ECU)
Assistant Referee 2: Carlos Herrera (ECU)
Fourth Official: Julio Quintana (PAR)

Juan Aurich – The Strongest
Referee: Alfredo Intriago (ECU)
Assistant Referee 1: Luis Alvarado (ECU)
Assistant Referee 2: Byron Romero (ECU)
Fourth Official: Manuel Garay (PER)

Iturralde retired early: "My honesty is above all"

"I am very grateful to the football and refereeing, but my honesty and my credibility are above all", explains Eduardo Iturralde Gonzelez his farewell from refereeing. The referee with the most matches in Primera Division has decided to hang up his whistle early, although he would have been age-eligible until the end of 2012. The referee from Vizcaya has taken this decision after a disagreement with the Spanish Referees Committee following his injury during the game Betis Sevilla – Real Madrid. Iturralde suffered a puncture in the muscle during the first half of the match and was replaced at half time by the fourth official, Gorka Sagues. After recovering from the injury, he has not been appointed to any matches due to a somewhat surreal situation: the Referees Committee requested a medical proof for his injury, but Iturralde was not able to provide it because he had not requested any medical certificate.

"The truth has to be ahead of everything. I cannot provide a certificate because I do not have one. How can I cheat by submitting a certificate that did not exist in the first place? My honesty and my credibility are above all this", said Iturralde Gonzalez. After 31 years of refereeing, he chose to retire instead of providing a document that would distort the reality. The recommendations to reconsider this decision did not make ​​him change his mind. He had consulted with his wife and daughters, and always came to the same point: "Lying? Never!" Iturralde spent 15 years (1998 - 2012) on the FIFA List and was selected for the 2002 UEFA U-21 Euro, 2003 FIFA U-20 World Cup and 2004 OFC Nations Cup. He did El Clasico, Real – Barcelona, three times: 1999, 2005 and 2010. Iturralde goes into the history of Spanish refereeing with the record for the most games refereed in the Spanish First Division, 291, since his debut on 3 September 1995, Espanyol – Salamanca. It also carries two other records: the most yellow cards (1647), and most penalty kicks awarded (104). He hang up his whistle with a feeling of profound gratitude to the football and refereeing, but convinced that his conscience would not let him carry out what he was demanded by the Referees Committee. When he ended the first half of the Primera Division match Betis Sevilla – Real Madrid, on 10 March 2012, Iturralde Gonzalez blew the last whistle of his career.

Source: Marca

UEFA Europa League – Quarter-finals (First Leg)

29 March 2012
FC Schalke – Athletic Bilbao
Referee: Pedro Proenca (POR, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Bertino Miranda (POR)
Assistant Referee 2: Ricardo Santos (POR)
Additional AR 1: Manuel De Sousa (POR)
Additional AR 2: Duarte Gomes (POR)
Fourth Official: Joao Capela (POR)

AZ Alkmaar – Valencia CF
Referee: Martin Atkinson (ENG)
Assistant Referee 1: Michael Mullarkey (ENG)
Assistant Referee 2: Peter Kirkup (ENG)
Additional AR 1: Michael Oliver (ENG)
Additional AR 2: Michael Jones (ENG)
Fourth Official: Andre Marriner (ENG)

Atletico Madrid – Hannover

Referee Stephane Lannoy (FRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Eric Dansault (FRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Frederic Cano (FRA)
Additional AR 1: Fredy Fautrel (FRA)
Additional AR 2: Ruddy Buquet (FRA)
Fourth Official: Antony Gautier (FRA)

Sporting – Metalist
Referee: Wolfgang Stark (GER)
Assistant Referee 1: Jan-Hendrik Salver (GER)
Assistant Referee 2: Guido Kleve (GER)
Additional AR 1: Florian Meyer (GER)
Additional AR 2: Deniz Aytekin (GER)
Fourth Official: Manuel Grafe (GER)

CONCACAF Champions League – Semi-finals (First Leg)

28 March 2012
Toronto FC – Santos Laguna

Referee: Ricardo Salazar (USA, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Kermit Quisenberry (USA)
Assistant Referee 2: Adam Wienckowski (USA)
Fourth Official: Terry Vaughn (USA)

Monterrey – Pumas
Referee: Jose Penaloza (MEX)
Assistant Referee 1: Victor Calderon (MEX)
Assistant Referee 2: Miguel Vizcaya (MEX)
Fourth Official: Fabricio Morales (MEX)

UEFA Euro 2012 Match Officials

UEFA has announced the full list of assistant referees and additional assistant referees who will join the 12 referees who were chosen by the UEFA Referees Committee last December. The committee has come to its decision on the assistant referees and additional assistant referees after closely monitoring their progress in recent UEFA club competition matches. Each team is made up of five match officials from the same country: one main referee, two additional assistant referees who are also FIFA referees, and two FIFA assistant referees. In addition, a third assistant referee from each country has also been named and he will remain on standby until the start of the tournament to take the place of a colleague if required. A total of 80 match officials – the six officials in each team, as well as the previously selected four fourth officials and four reserve ARs – will attend the UEFA Euro 2012 Referee Preparatory Workshop which will be held in Warsaw from 30 April to 3 May. During this course, on 2 May, all officials will undergo the FIFA fitness test and the final selection of quintets will follow that test.

England

Referee: Howard Webb (1971, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Michael Mullarkey (1970)
Assistant Referee 2: Peter Kirkup (1970)
Additional AR 1: Martin Atkinson (1971)
Additional AR 2: Mark Clattenburg (1975)
Standby AR: Stephen Child (1973)

France

Referee: Stephane Lannoy (1969)
Assistant Referee 1: Eric Dansault (1968)
Assistant Referee 2: Frederic Cano (1973)
Additional AR 1: Fredy Fautrel (1971)
Additional AR 2: Ruddy Buquet (1977)
Standby AR: Michael Annonier (1972)

Germany

Referee: Wolfgang Stark (1969)
Assistant Referee 1: Jan-Hendrik Salver (1969)
Assistant Referee 2: Mike Pickel (1975)
Additional AR 1: Florian Meyer (1968)
Additional AR 2: Deniz Aytekin (1978)
Standby AR: Mark Borsch (1977)

Hungary
Referee: Viktor Kassai (1975)
Assistant Referee 1: Gabor Eros (1971)
Assistant Referee 2: Gyorgy Ring (1981)
Additional AR 1: Istvan Vad (1979)
Additional AR 2: Tamas Bognar (1978)
Standby AR: Robert Kispal (1969)

Italy
Referee: Nicola Rizzoli (1971)
Assistant Referee 1: Renato Faverani (1969)
Assistant Referee 2: Andrea Stefani (1969)
Additional AR 1: Gianluca Rocchi (1973)
Additional AR 2: Paolo Tagliavento (1972)
Standby AR: Luca Maggiani (1968)

Netherlands
Referee: Bjorn Kuipers (1973)
Assistant Referee 1: Sander van Roekel (1974)
Assistant Referee 2: Erwin Zeinstra (1977)
Additional AR 1: Pol van Boekel (1975)
Additional AR 2: Richard Liesveld (1973)
Standby AR: Berry Simons (1969)

Portugal
Referee: Pedro Proenca Oliveira (1970)
Assistant Referee 1: Bertino Cunha Miranda (1972)
Assistant Referee 2: Ricardo Ferreira Santos (1973)
Additional AR 1: Manuel Moreira De Sousa (1975)
Additional AR 2: Duarte Pereira Gomes (1973)
Standby AR: Tiago Garcias Trigo (1972)

Scotland
Referee: Craig Thomson (1972)
Assistant Referee 1: Alasdair Ross (1975)
Assistant Referee 2: Derek Rose (1974)
Additional AR 1: William Collum (1979)
Additional AR 2: Euan Norris (1977)
Standby AR: Graham Chambers (1971)

Slovenia
Referee: Damir Skomina (1976)
Assistant Referee 1: Primoz Arhar (1968)
Assistant Referee 2: Marko Stancin (1968)
Additional AR 1: Matej Jug (1980)
Additional AR 2: Slavko Vincic (1979)
Standby AR: Matej Zunic (1983)

Spain
Referee: Carlos Velasco Carballo (1971)
Assistant Referee 1: Roberto Alonso Fernandez (1976)
Assistant Referee 2: Juan Yuste Jimenez (1975)
Additional AR 1: David Fernandez Borbalan (1973)
Additional AR 2: Carlos Clos Gomez (1972)
Standby AR: Jesus Calvo Guadamuro (1968)

Sweden
Referee: Jonas Eriksson (1974)
Assistant Referee 1: Stefan Wittberg (1968)
Assistant Referee 2: Mathias Klasenius (1975)
Additional AR 1: Markus Strombergsson (1975)
Additional AR 2: Stefan Johannesson (1971)
Standby AR: Fredrik Nilsson (1972)

Turkey
Referee: Cuneyt Cakir (1976)
Assistant Referee 1: Bahattin Duran (1975)
Assistant Referee 2: Tarik Ongun (1973)
Additional AR 1: Huseyin Gocek (1976)
Additional AR 2: Bulent Yildirim (1972)
Standby AR: Mustafa Eyisoy (1980)

Fourth Officials
1. Marcin Borski (POL, 1973)
2. Tom Harald Hagen (NOR, 1978)
3. Pavel Kralovec (CZE, 1977)
4. Viktor Shvetsov (UKR, 1969)

Reserve Assistant Referees
1. Marcin Borkowski (POL, 1979)
2. Damien MacGraith (IRL, 1980)
3. Roman Slysko (SVK, 1973)
4. Oleksandr Voytyuk (UKR, 1972)

UEFA Champions League – Quarter-finals (First Leg)

27 March 2012
Benfica Lisbon – Chelsea London

Referee: Paolo Tagliavento (ITA, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Andrea Stefani (ITA)
Assistant Referee 2: Luca Maggiani (ITA)
Additional AR 1: Daniele Orsato (ITA)
Additional AR 2: Luca Banti (ITA)
Fourth Official: Paolo Valeri (ITA)

Apoel Nicosia – Real Madrid

Referee: Felix Brych (GER)
Assistant Referee 1: Mark Borsch (GER)
Assistant Referee 2: Stefan Lupp (GER)
Additional AR 1: Markus Wingenbach (GER)
Additional AR 2: Peter Sippel (GER)
Fourth Official: Knut Kircher (GER)

28 March 2012
Olympique Marseille – Bayern Munchen
Referee: Carlos Velasco Carballo (ESP)
Assistant Referee 1: Roberto Alonso Fernandez (ESP)
Assistant Referee 2: Juan Yuste Jimenez (ESP)
Additional AR 1: David Fernandez Borbalan (ESP)
Additional AR 2: Carlos Clos Gomez (ESP)
Fourth Official: Fernando Teixeira Vitienes (ESP)

AC Milan – FC Barcelona
Referee: Jonas Eriksson (SWE)
Assistant Referee 1: Stefan Wittberg (SWE)
Assistant Referee 2: Mathias Klasenius (SWE)
Additional AR 1: Markus Strombergsson (SWE)
Additional AR 2: Stefan Johannesson (SWE)
Fourth Official: Daniel Stalhammar (SWE)

Bulgarian referee quits after being threatened by Stoichkov

Litex Lovech coach Hristo Stoichkov has been accused of threatening and insulting the referee in a telephone call after the Bulgarian champions' 1-0 league win over Slavia Sofia on Saturday. Bogomil Marinov said he had filed a police complaint after Stoichkov phoned him three days after the tense league match.

"He called me on Tuesday night, introduced himself and began to insult and threaten me," Marinov told the Association of Bulgarian football referees' website. "He told me that it had been my last match as a referee". Marinov, who said he now planned to give up refereeing professional games, sent off Litex striker Marcelo Nicasio early in the second half after the Brazilian made minimal contact with Slavia defender Daniel Zlatkov. Nicasio, who has scored six goals since joining Litex in January, had received a yellow card for shirt-pulling while celebrating his goal in the first half. Nicasio missed Litex's match at Beroe Stara Zagora on Wednesday after the Bulgarian Football Union (BFU) rejected an appeal from the club. The champions were held to a 1-1 draw after five straight victories and are fifth in the standings with 38 points, seven behind leaders Ludogorets. Marinov, 34, said: "I have decided to quit professional refereeing but I love football so much and I can't imagine my life without football. "I will continue in amateur football, though I know the pay difference is huge." Former Barcelona striker Stoichkov, known for his aggressive manner in his playing days, declined to comment. "I will not comment on such groundless accusations," Stoichkov, 46, said in a statement. "I will only say that since returning to Bulgaria to take charge of Litex, I am showing much more tolerance toward referees than when I was a footballer".

Source: Yahoo Sports

Copa Libertadores – Group Stage (Matchday 9)

27 March 2012
Deportivo Tachira – Nacional
Referee: Raul Orosco (BOL, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Efrain Castro (BOL)
Assistant Referee 2: Arol Valda (BOL)
Fourth Official: Marlon Escalante (VEN)

Nacional – Alianza Lima
Referee: Nestor Pitana (ARG)
Assistant Referee 1: Diego Bonfa (ARG)
Assistant Referee 2: Gustavo Rossi (ARG)
Fourth Official: Daniel Fedorczuk (URU)

Universidad de Chile – Penarol
Referee: Leandro Vuaden (BRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Emerson Carvalho (BRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Dibert Pedrosa (BRA)
Fourth Official: Julio Bascunan (CHI)

28 March 2012
Universidad Catolica – Union Espanola
Referee: Patricio Polic (CHI)
Assistant Referee 1: Sergio Roman (CHI)
Assistant Referee 2: Juan Maturana (CHI)
Fourth Official: Jorge Osorio (CHI)

Defensor Sporting – Chivas
Referee: Enrique Caceres (PAR)
Assistant Referee 1: Carlos Caceres (PAR)
Assistant Referee 2: Dario Gaona (PAR)
Fourth Official: Roberto Silvera (URU)

Olimpia – Flamengo
Referee: Enrique Osses (CHI)
Assistant Referee 1: Francisco Mondria (CHI)
Assistant Referee 2: Carlos Astroza (CHI)
Fourth Official: Carlos Amarilla (PAR)

29 March 2012
Boca Juniors – Arsenal
Referee: Patricio Loustau (ARG)
Assistant Referee 1: Hernan Maidana (ARG)
Assistant Referee 2: Juan Belatti (ARG)
Fourth Official: German Delfino (ARG)

Zamora – Fluminense
Referee: Carlos Vera (ECU)
Assistant Referee 1: Luis Alvarado (ECU)
Assistant Referee 2: Byron Romero (ECU)
Fourth Official: Candelario Andarcia (VEN)

Dallas: “I would love to referee again the Old Firm clash”

Hugh Dallas wasn’t shocked when his bloodied face and stunned expression became a global image on Old Firm day in 1999. Scotland’s most famous referee had been warned a year before that television would change his life for ever. And it certainly did. By the time the craziest night in Glasgow derby history had come to a close the windows of Dallas’ Lanarkshire home had been put in by a crazed supporter. And the referee’s performance during the game that won Rangers the title was about to be sent to a behavioural psychologist in London for analysis by Celtic’s chief executive at the time, Alan McDonald. Now Dallas has spoken for the first time since leaving his job at the SFA a year and a half ago. And he admitted that far from having any regrets about anything which happened to him during a career in refereeing that started when he was 20 and peaked when he became the first Scot to officiate at a World Cup Final in 2002, he would do it all over again. That would include taking charge of the Old Firm showdown at Ibrox on Sunday which threatens to be the most volcanic meeting of the sides since Dallas stepped into the middle of an eruption at Celtic Park on May 2, 1999. He had to send three players off, Stephane Mahe and Vidar Riseth of Celtic and Rangers’ Rod Wallace, while mayhem would have been an understatement to describe what else was going on around him. Dallas was felled by a coin propelled from the crowd and had to receive treatment while the predominantly foreign players of both sides looked on in bewilderment. But he had been prepared for the worldwide attention the night of madness attracted.

Dallas said: “I had gone to work at the World Cup finals in France the year before. Scottish football was about to break historic new ground by having the first league match to be televised live by Sky and one of my English colleagues, Paul Durkin, warned me the lives of our referees would change forever because of the heightened profile television would give them. Paul told me we’d be recognised wherever we went and become part of the showbiz element attached to the game. How right he was. I was the referee when Hearts faced Rangers at Tynecastle in August that year, a game that was Dick Advocaat’s first match as Rangers’ manager and satellite television’s opening match for live consumption. The following May I was handling the Old Firm match which decided that same championship. It was the 12th Glasgow derby I had taken charge of and remains the only one people want to talk about. It was also a match which defined the ground rules for the Old Firm referee and what was true for me in May, 1999 will still be the case on Sunday at Ibrox for Callum Murray. Players can either make life difficult, or easy, for the referee. They can show him suitable respect or else everything can explode. I won’t be at Ibrox on Sunday because I’ll be abroad doing my job for UEFA and working on Euro 2012 issues regarding referees. But I’d love to be there – and I mean right there in the middle handling the match. You ask any of the players who were involved in the game at Celtic Park that night 13 years ago and they’ll give you the same answer. Henrik Larsson would give anything to come out of retirement and play for Celtic at the weekend and so would big Jorg Albertz if he could wear Rangers’ jersey once again. The Old Firm derby means a magnificent stage inside a fantastic theatre.” Dallas refuses to believe that any Old Firm game could ever be described as unmanageable for the ref, no matter how extraordinary the circumstances might be. He said: “The first thing Callum has to do is handle the occasion as best he can and hope he’s not involved in some big call that’s analysed for years to come. I can categorically say he’s the right guy for the job because I know from my time as a referee, and my stint at the SFA, Callum is respected by all players. He’s an intelligent man, calm and composed under pressure. Callum worked with me when I was in the latter stages of my refereeing career and I know him to be a nice guy until somebody crosses him. He’s not an actor. He just gets the job done. I also believe he’ll be dealing with two well-disciplined teams. Rangers are out of the title race but there’s no such thing as a meaningless Glasgow derby. This is still one of the biggest games in the world”, concluded Hugh Dallas.

Source: Record Sport

Diego Abal suspended in Argentina

Argentinian FIFA Referee Diego Abal caused a storm in a match played last weekend by awarding a goal after the players had stopped for an offside flag. He was in charge of the Primera Division clash between San Lorenzo and Colon in Buenos Aires and sparked ugly scenes on the pitch by awarding a goal in controversial circumstances.

Colon were looking for an equaliser with just over 20 minutes left, but their latest attack seemed to fizzle out when winger Federico Higuain was flagged for offside on the right touchline. With the assistant referee's flag raised, the players stopped and began walking upfield for an expected free-kick. But Higuain had already crossed before he realised this and Colon striker Ariel Garce tapped the incoming ball home without any hope that it would be awarded as a goal. Abal saw things differently and overruled the AR Julio Fernandez. He decided that Higuain was not offside, allowed play to continue and then pointed to the centre spot to indicate that Garce's strike would stand. It was enough to earn Colon a 1-1 draw. Furious San Lorenzo players surrounded the referee to argue their case, to no avail. The San Lorenzo fans attacked Abal, who took an hour and a half to leave the stadium, with police escorting him home.
Former World Cup referees Horacio Elizondo and Angel Sanchez, two of the leading referees in the last quarter century in Argentina, publicly expressed their views on the play: Abal was wrong. He admitted his error in a meeting with members of the Referees Committee and was suspended. After having been appointed last year to the U-17 World Cup, Diego Abal has been regarded as Argentina’s candidate for the next FIFA World Cup in Brazil.

Source: Yahoo Sports

FIFA Futsal World Cup 2012 – Play-offs (First Leg)

25 March 2012
Hungary – Serbia

Referee 1: Ivan Shabanov (RUS)
Referee 2: Mark Birkett (ENG)

26 March 2012
Belarus – Portugal

Referee 1: Sebastian Stawicki (POL)
Referee 2: Abdallah Benazzi (NED)

Slovenia – Czech Republic

Referee 1: Francesco Massini (ITA, photo)
Referee 2: Alessandro Malfer (ITA)

Slovakia – Spain
Referee 1: Bogdan Sorescu (ROU)
Referee 2: Timo Onatsu (FIN)

27 March 2012
Romania – Ukraine
Referee 1: Pascal Lemal (BEL)
Referee 2: Gerd Bylois (BEL)

Azerbaijan – Russia

Referee 1: Borut Sivic (SVN)
Referee 2: Dejan Nikolic (SVN)

28 March 2012
Norway – Italy
Referee 1: Stephan Kammerer (GER)
Referee 2: Swen Eichler (GER)

Webb praised for his quick actions

On 17 March 2012, Howard Webb was appointed to referee the FA Cup match between Tiottenham and Bolton, with Chis Foy, who was also in the South Yorkshire Police Force with Webb, as fourth official. In the 41st minute of the match, at the score 1-1, Bolton midfielder Fabrice Muamba collapsed in the middle of the pitch while Bolton goalkeeper Adam Bogdan was preparing to take a goal kick. After many minutes of paramedics attempting to revive Muamba from a possible cardiac arrest or epileptic fit, Webb called the game off with many former and current officials praising Webb's actions and quick thinking. After a session with a psychologist, Webb was later excused by the Premier League as fourth official for the following day's match between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Manchester United.

The high level of emergency medical care Fabrice Muamba received at White Hart Lane was the result of measures the Premier League put in place after Petr Cech suffered his serious head injury in 2006. The medical teams from both Tottenham and Bolton received praise for the treatment they administered during those shocking scenes, as did the match officials. As senior refereeing official Dermot Gallagher said, it helped enormously that Webb and fourth official Chris Foy are police officers. But the level of care Muamba received from medical staff owed much to the way the Premier League reacted to the Cech incident at Reading. Chelsea made an official complaint that led to a Premier League and FA review. As a result the following measures were introduced:

• An ambulance must be located at the ground for exclusive use of players.
• Each club must have their doctor at Premier League games.
• The doctor must be seated on the trainers’ bench.
• All doctors and physiotherapists must complete AREA (Advanced Resuscitation and Emergency Aid) training course.
• At least two paramedics must be available pitchside to deal with on-field emergencies.
• The home club must provide the away club with a medical information sheet containing key contact numbers and the location of nearest hospital.
• Home club must have available mandatory medical equipment as prescribed by Premier League.
• Annual medical examinations must be carried out on all players.

After last Sunday’s incident, Premier League chief executive Richard Scudamore said: “We would like to praise the players, match officials, staff and medical teams of both clubs for their swift actions in attending to Fabrice”. On 19 March, it was revealed that Muamba's heart was beating without medication and he had begun moving his arms and legs. During the afternoon he was still listed as being in critical condition and being closely observed, but by the evening his condition was being described as serious and he was also able to recognize family members and respond to questions appropriately.

Source: Daily Mail

Copa Libertadores – Group Stage (Matchday 8)

20 March 2012
Emelec – Lanus
Referee: Enrique Osses (CHI, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Francisco Mondria (CHI)
Assistant Referee 2: Julio Diaz (CHI)
Fourth Official: Alfredo Intriago (ECU)

Bolivar – Junior
Referee: Victor Rivera (PER)
Assistant Referee 1: Jonny Bossio (PER)
Assistant Referee 2: Raul Lopez (PER)
Fourth Official: Johnny Cuellar (BOL)

21 March 2012
The Strongest – Internacional
Referee: Omar Ponce (ECU)
Assistant Referee 1: Carlos Herrera (ECU)
Assistant Referee 2: Juan Cedeno (ECU)
Fourth Official: Gery Vargas (BOL)

Corinthians – Cruz Azul
Referee: Martin Vazquez (URU)
Assistant Referee 1: Mauricio Espinosa (URU)
Assistant Referee 2: Marcelo Costa (URU)
Fourth Official: Paulo Oliveira (BRA)

Vasco da Gama – Libertad
Referee: Wilmar Roldan (COL)
Assistant Referee 1: Wilmar Navarro (COL)
Assistant Referee 2: Alexander Guzman (COL)
Fourth Official: Ricardo Marques (BRA)

22 March 2012
Velez Sarsfield – Deportivo Quito
Referee: Wilson Seneme (BRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Alessandro Rocha (BRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Alteir Hausmann (BRA)
Fourth Official: Hernan Maidana (ARG)

Santos – Juan Aurich
Referee: Patricio Loustau (ARG)
Assistant Referee 1: Diego Bonfa (ARG)
Assistant Referee 2: Ernesto Uziga (ARG)
Fourth Official: Marcelo Henrique (BRA)

Atletico Nacional – Godoy Cruz
Referee: Heber Lopes (BRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Roberto Braatz (BRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Marcelo Van Gasse (BRA)
Fourth Official: Adrian Velez (COL)

Disillusioned Conroy quits top-class Scottish refereeing

The 45-year-old Steve Conroy notified the Scottish Football Association of his decision to resign after being overlooked for a top-flight match for three months. Conroy refused to comment on his decision but it is believed he is considering legal action against the SFA's referee department. His last Scottish Premier League match was Rangers - Dunfermline on 3 December 2011. This was the game in which Conroy, a category one official for 12 years, awarded Rangers a penalty kick after Sone Aluko went down inside the box under a challenge from Martin Hardie. An SFA fast-track tribunal subsequently banned Aluko for two matches for diving, a decision that infuriated Rangers manager Ally McCoist. "The three gentlemen on the panel have effectively called my player a cheat and a liar, neither of which he is", he said. "It's an absolutely incredible decision, given that the referee is literally five yards from the incident. The panel agreed there was contact, so for them to uphold the decision and go against their own referee, who had a particularly good game, is ridiculous". That Ibrox fixture was Conroy's eighth and last top-flight fixture this season as he has since been sent to the lower leagues to officiate. The referee supervisor at Ibrox that day was Donald McVicar, the former SFA head of referees, who complimented Conroy's performance immediately after the game.

Conroy, a doctor by profession, decided to end his career when he was allocated Saturday's Third Division fixture between Berwick Rangers and Queen's Park. Only two years ago he was given the responsibility of refereeing the New Year Old Firm derby. He was regularly seen as the man in the middle of other high-profile matches, including the Edinburgh derby between Hearts and Hibernian. Conroy, who became a referee in 1993 and achieved category one status in 2000, is highly respected by managers and players in the Scottish game, particularly for his communication with players. He is regularly at the lower end of the red and yellow card table. He has taken charge of close to 300 senior matches, including almost 100 in the SPL, as a category one referee.

Source: BBC

UEFA Europa League – Round of 16 (Second Leg)

15 March 2011
Olympiacos – Metalist Kharkov
Referee: Ovidiu Hategan (ROU, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Zoltan Skekely (ROU)
Assistant Referee 2: Octavian Sovre (ROU)
Additional AR 1: Alexandru Tudor (ROU)
Additional AR 2: Cristian Balaj (ROU)
Fourth Official: Sebastian Coltescu (ROU)

Manchester City – Sporting Lisbon
Referee: Tom Harald Hagen (NOR)
Assistant Referee 1: Dag Nebben (NOR)
Assistant Referee 2: Frank Andas (NOR)
Additional AR 1: Tommy Skjerven (NOR)
Additional AR 2: Espen Berntsen (NOR)
Fourth Official: Brage Sandmoen (NOR)

Hannover – Standard Liege
Referee: Pavel Kralovec (CZE)
Assistant Referee 1: Martin Wilczek (CZE)
Assistant Referee 2: Antonin Kordula (CZE)
Additional AR 1: Miroslav Zelinka (CZE)
Additional AR 2: Radek Prihoda (CZE)
Fourth Official: Libor Kovarik (CZE)

PSV Eindhoven – Valencia CF
Referee: William Collum (SCO)
Assistant Referee 1: Derek Rose (SCO)
Assistant Referee 2: Martin Cryans (SCO)
Additional AR 1: Alan Muir (SCO)
Additional AR 2: Robert Madden (SCO)
Fourth Official: Allan Crawford (SCO)

Athletic Bilbao – Manchester United
Referee: Cuneyt Cakir (TUR)
Assistant Referee 1: Tarik Ongun (TUR)
Assistant Referee 2: Emre Eyisoy (TUR)
Additional AR 1: Huseyin Gocek (TUR)
Additional AR 2: Bulent Yildirim (TUR)
Fourth Official: Suleyman Abay (TUR)

Udinese – AZ Alkmaar
Referee: Milorad Mazic (SRB)
Assistant Referee 1: Milovan Ristic (SRB)
Assistant Referee 2: Igor Radojcic (SRB)
Additional AR 1: Vlado Glodjovic (SRB)
Additional AR 2: Milenko Vukadinovic (SRB)
Fourth Official: Bosko Jovanetic (SRB)

FC Schalke – FC Twente
Referee: Viktor Kassai (HUN)
Assistant Referee 1: Gyorgy Ring (HUN)
Assistant Referee 2: Robert Kispal (HUN)
Additional AR 1: Istvan Vad (HUN)
Additional AR 2: Tamas Bognar (HUN)
Fourth Official: Mihaly Fabian (HUN)

Besiktas Istanbul – Atletico Madrid
Referee: Paolo Tagliavento (ITA)
Assistant Referee 1: Massimiliano Grilli (ITA)
Assistant Referee 2: Gianluca Cariolato (ITA)
Additional AR 1: Christian Brighi (ITA)
Additional AR 2: Gabriele Gava (ITA)
Fourth Official: Antonio Damato (ITA)

UEFA Women’s Champions League – Quarter-finals

First Leg (14-15 March 2012)

Arsenal – Goteborg

Referee: Teodora Albon (ROU, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Petruta Iugulescu (ROU)
Assistant Referee 2: Mihaela Gomoescu (ROU)

Potsdam – Rossiyanka
Referee: Silvia Spinelli (ITA)
Assistant Referee 1: Romina Santuari (ITA)
Assistant Referee 2: Lucia Abruzzese (ITA)

Lyon – Brondby
Referee: Christine Baitinger (GER)
Assistant Referee 1: Inka Muller (GER)
Assistant Referee 2: Christina Biehl (GER)

Malmo – Frankfurt
Referee: Cristina Dorcioman (ROU)
Assistant Referee 1: Monica Rigo (ROU)
Assistant Referee 2: Carmen Neagu (ROU)

Second Leg (21-22 March 2012)

Frankfurt – Malmo
Referee: Esther Staubli (SUI)
Assistant Referee 1: Eveline Bolli (SUI)
Assistant Referee 2: Belinda Drem (SUI)

Brondby – Lyon
Referee: Efthalia Mitsi (GRE)
Assistant Referee 1: Panagiota Koutsoumpou (GRE)
Assistant Referee 2: Chrysoula Kourompylia (GRE)

Goteborg – Arsenal
Referee: Bibiana Steinhaus (GER)
Assistant Referee 1: Marina Wozniak (GER)
Assistant Referee 2: Katrin Rafalski (GER)

Rossiyanka – Potsdam
Referee: Jenny Palmqvist (SWE)
Assistant Referee 1: Helen Karo (SWE)
Assistant Referee 2: Anna Nystrom (SWE)

CONCACAF Champions League – Quarter-finals (Second Leg)

13 March 2012
Monterrey – Morelia

Referee: Roberto Garcia (MEX, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Marcos Quintero (MEX)
Assistant Referee 2: Juan Rangel (MEX)
Fourth Official: Marco Rodriguez (MEX)

14 March 2012
Santos Laguna – Seattle
Referee: Joel Aguilar (SLV)
Assistant Referee 1: William Torres (SLV)
Assistant Referee 2: Juan Zumba (SLV)
Fourth Official: Elmer Bonilla (SLV)

LA Galaxy – Toronto FC
Referee: Roberto Moreno (PAN)
Assistant Referee 1: Daniel Williamson (PAN)
Assistant Referee 2: Jaime Smith (PAN)
Fourth Official: Jafeth Perea (PAN)

15 March 2012
Pumas Unam – Isidro Metapan
Referee: Mark Geiger (USA)
Assistant Referee 1: Mark Hurd (USA)
Assistant Referee 2: Eric Boria (USA)
Fourth Official: Jair Marrufo (USA)

UEFA Champions League – Round of 16 (Second Leg)

13 March 2012
Bayern Munchen – FC Basel
Referee: Mark Clattenburg (ENG, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Mike Mullarkey (ENG)
Assistant Referee 2: Stephen Child (ENG)
Additional AR 1: Martin Atkinson (ENG)
Additional AR 2: Andre Marriner (ENG)
Fourth Official: Michael Oliver (ENG)

Inter Milano – Olympique Marseille
Referee: Pedro Proenca (POR)
Assistant Referee 1: Bertino Miranda (POR)
Assistant Referee 2: Ricardo Santos (POR)
Additional AR 1: Manuel de Sousa (POR)
Additional AR 2: Duarte Gomes (POR)
Fourth Official: Joao Capela (POR)

14 March 2012
Chelsea London – SSC Napoli
Referee: Felix Brych (GER)
Assistant Referee 1: Mike Pickel (GER)
Assistant Referee 2: Mark Borsch (GER)
Additional AR 1: Florian Meyer (GER)
Additional AR 2: Deniz Aytekin (GER)
Fourth Official: Felix Zwayer (GER)

Real Madrid – CSKA Moskow
Referee: Stephane Lannoy (FRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Eric Dansault (FRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Frederic Cano (FRA)
Additional AR 1: Fredy Fautrel (FRA)
Additional AR 2: Ruddy Buquet (FRA)
Fourth Official: Antony Gautier (FRA)

Copa Libertadores – Group Stage (Matchday 7)

13 March 2012
Internacional – The Strongest
Referee: Antonio Arias (PAR, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Nicolas Yegros (PAR)
Assistant Referee 2: Dario Gaona (PAR)
Fourth Official: Leandro Vuaden (BRA)

Lanus – Emelec
Referee: Victor Carrillo (PER)
Assistant Referee 1: Jonny Bossio (PER)
Assistant Referee 2: Jorge Yupanqui (PER)
Fourth Official: Diego Abal (ARG)

Nacional – Deportivo Tachira
Referee: Alfredo Intriago (ECU)
Assistant Referee 1: Christian Lescano (ECU)
Assistant Referee 2: Byron Romero (ECU)
Fourth Official: Julio Quintana (PAR)

Alianza Lima – Nacional Montevideo
Referee: Wilmar Roldan (COL)
Assistant Referee 1: Humberto Clavijo (COL)
Assistant Referee 2: Eduardo Diaz (COL)
Fourth Official: Manuel Garay (PER)

Chivas Guadalajara – Defensor Sporting
Referee: Marlon Escalante (VEN)
Assistant Referee 1: Rafael Yanez (VEN)
Assistant Referee 2: Jorge Urrego (VEN)
Fourth Official: Fabricio Morales (MEX)

14 March 2012
Arsenal – Boca Juniors
Referee: Pablo Lunati (ARG)
Assistant Referee 1: Hernan Maidana (ARG)
Assistant Referee 2: Gustavo Rossi (ARG)
Fourth Official: German Delfino (ARG)

Fluminense – Zamora
Referee: Patricio Polic (CHI)
Assistant Referee 1: Julio Diaz (CHI)
Assistant Referee 2: Sergio Roman (CHI)
Fourth Official: Marcelo Henrique (BRA)

Cruz Azul – Corinthians
Referee: Carlos Vera (ECU)
Assistant Referee 1: Juan Cedeno (ECU)
Assistant Referee 2: Douglas Bustamante (ECU)
Fourth Official: Alfredo Penaloza (MEX)

Libertad – Vasco da Gama
Referee: Enrique Osses (CHI)
Assistant Referee 1: Carlos Astroza (CHI)
Assistant Referee 2: Juan Maturana (CHI)
Fourth Official: Enrique Caceres (PAR)

15 March 2012
Juan Aurich – Santos
Referee: Roberto Silvera (URU)
Assistant Referee 1: Mauricio Espinosa (URU)
Assistant Referee 2: Gabriel Popovits (URU)
Fourth Official: Henry Gambetta (PER)

Flamengo – Olimpia
Referee: Jose Buitrago (COL)
Assistant Referee 1: Wilmar Navarro (COL)
Assistant Referee 2: Alexader Guzman (COL)
Fourth Official: Pericles Cortez (BRA)

Greek FIFA Referee escaped bomb explosion

An unknown person blew the furnace of Petros Konstantineas’s bakery in Kalamata. The store was completely destroyed, while the well-known FIFA referee escaped by a miracle. The explosive device exploded at 1:20 in the morning in the oven kept on the famous Messinian referee in Kalamata, who escaped miraculously as he usually begins his work in the shop by 1:00 a.m., but Wednesday night he was late to go to work. The furnace was destroyed. The powerful explosion also caused considerable damage to cars parked near the spot, but also in adjoining buildings and shops. Fortunately, due to the late night hour, there was no human trauma, and Konstantineas escaped by chance.

Petros Konstantineas (34) is the newest Greek FIFA referee, receiving his international badge at the beginning of 2012. The Greek Football Federation sent out a press release: "The Central Referee Committee condemns in the strongest possible terms the murderous attack against the international referee Petros Konstantineas, which resulted in the destruction of his business. Indiscriminate attacks, as this one against Petros Konstantineas, are a blow to the Greek football and create conditions for halting the progress sought by all forces. We expect the competent national authorities to clarify the causes and the identity of the perpetrators and instigators of the attack. We are positive that the authorities are in a position to quickly discover the truth about the attack against Petros Konstantineas in order to offer valuable assistance to the Greek football in its attempt to correct the wrong doings and improve its public image."

Source: Referee Revolution

Walton leaves EPL for PRO

The U.S. Soccer Federation and Major League Soccer announced the formation of the Professional Referee Organization (PRO) that will be responsible for managing the referee program in professional soccer leagues in the United States and Canada. The creation of PRO is designed to increase the quality of officiating in U.S. and Canadian professional leagues, develop more professional quality officials at a younger age and develop officials who will represent the United States and Canada in FIFA competitions. Veteran English referee Peter Walton has been named General Manager of PRO. All current U.S. Soccer professional referee staff positions will transition to PRO and report to Walton, who begins full-time on 2 April 2012 and will be based in New York City through the conclusion of the MLS season. U.S. Soccer and MLS will govern and fund the organization, with ongoing collaborative support from the Canadian Soccer Association and other professional leagues. Beginning this year, PRO will manage officials in the MLS and MLS Reserve games, the North American Soccer League, USL PRO and the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup.

Peter Walton has been involved with professional football since he joined the Football League as an assistant referee in 1993. Walton, 52, advanced onto the Referees panel of the Football League in 1998 and accepted a full-time position as a referee on the English Premier League in 2003. He has refereed close to 200 EPL matches, including the 2008 Community Shield between Manchester United and Portsmouth. In 2007, Walton completed the Advanced Course for Referee Instructors hosted by CONMEBOL and FIFA in Ecuador. “I’m looking forward to the next stage of my career as the general manager of the Professional Referee Organization,” said Walton. “The formation of PRO by U.S. Soccer and MLS provides a great opportunity to increase the development of referees and improve the overall quality of refereeing in the U.S. professional leagues. It’s a worthy challenge and I’m excited to get started.”
The PRO model allows for more funding toward the referee program, hiring of more experienced technical staff, increased training opportunities for officials, additional identification and training opportunities for up-and-coming officials and increased investment toward sports science. The number of full-time referees is expected to increase as a result of this transition. With a more robust training program and full-time duties in place, the referee program’s professionalization will increase, whereas in previous years some officials have had to juggle their referee duties with an additional full-time occupation.
U.S. Soccer and MLS took significant steps in 2011 to create a U.S. Soccer professional referee department and relocate to New York. Seven new rookie referees were introduced to MLS last year, participating in almost 20 percent of the league’s regular season games. The use of quantitative analysis and video also were substantial last year as referees were evaluated in real time at the newly constructed command center in New York. Former players and coaches served as in-stadium professional match evaluators, providing a more complete evaluation of the referees. U.S. Soccer recently transitioned Herb Silva to the new role of Director of Referee Identification and Training in December of 2011. Silva, who had served as U.S. Soccer’s Director of Professional Referees, will work with a panel of former FIFA and professional officials to attend events around the country to identify and train the most promising young officials and provide them with additional training to accelerate their development. Silva will work closely with PRO to look for similar types of officials and make sure the training reinforces the officiating philosophy.

Source: U.S. Soccer

UEFA Europa League – Round of 16 (First Leg)

8 March 2012
Sporting Lisbon – Manchester City

Referee: Carlos Velasco Carballo (ESP, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Juan Yuste Jimenez (ESP)
Assistant Referee 2: Fermin Martinez Ibanez (ESP)
Additional AR 1: Carlos Clos Gomez (ESP)
Additional AR 2: Carlos del Cerro Grande (ESP)
Fourth Official: Javier Turienzo Alvarez (ESP)

FC Twente – Schalke
Referee: Craig Thomson (SCO)
Assistant Referee 1: Alasdair Ross (SCO)
Assistant Referee 2: Graham Chambers (SCO)
Additional AR 1: William Collum (SCO)
Additional AR 2: Steven McLean (SCO)
Fourth Official: Robert Madden (SCO)

Metalist Kharkov – Olympiacos Piraeus
Referee: Istvan Vad (HUN)
Assistant Referee 1: Gabor Eros (HUN)
Assistant Referee 2: Gyorgy Ring (HUN)
Additional AR 1: Mihaly Fabian (HUN)
Additional AR 2: Tamas Bognar (HUN)
Fourth Official: Sandor Ando-Szabo (HUN)

Manchester United – Athletic Bilbao
Referee: Florian Meyer (GER)
Assistant Referee 1: Holger Henschel (GER)
Assistant Referee 2: Jan-Hendrik Salver (GER)
Additional AR 1: Deniz Aytekin (GER)
Additional AR 2: Markus Wingenbach (GER)
Fourth Official: Michael Weiner (GER)

Atletico Madrid – Besiktas
Referee: Jonas Eriksson (SWE)
Assistant Referee 1: Fredrik Nilsson (SWE)
Assistant Referee 2: Mathias Klasenius (SWE)
Additional AR 1: Markus Strombergsson (SWE)
Additional AR 2: Stefan Johannesson (SWE)
Fourth Official: Daniel Stalhammar (SWE)

AZ Alkmaar – Udinese
Referee: David Fernandez Borbalan (ESP)
Assistant Referee 1: Raul Cabanero Martinez (ESP)
Assistant Referee 2: Jorge Canelo Prieto (ESP)
Additional AR 1: Eduardo Iturralde Gonzalez (ESP)
Additional AR 2: Javier Estrada Fernandez (ESP)
Fourth Official: Ignacio Iglesias Villanueva (ESP)

Standard Liege – Hannover
Referee: Tony Chapron (FRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Emmanuel Boisdenghien (FRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Fredji Harchay (FRA)
Additional AR 1: Said Ennjimi (FRA)
Additional AR 2: Clement Turpin (FRA)
Fourth Official: Alexandre Castro (FRA)

Valencia – PSV Eindhoven
Referee: Manuel Grafe (GER)
Assistant Referee 1: Markus Hacker (GER)
Assistant Referee 2: Guido Kleve (GER)
Additional AR 1: Christian Dingert (GER)
Additional AR 2: Tobias Welz (GER)
Fourth Official: Peter Sippel (GER)

CONCACAF Champions League – Quarter-finals (First Leg)

6 March 2012
Morelia – Monterrey

Referee: Francisco Chacon (MEX, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Jose Camargo (MEX)
Assistant Referee 2: Alberto Morin (MEX)
Fourth Official: Jose Penaloza (MEX)

7 March 2012
Seattle Sounders – Santos
Referee: Walter Quesada (CRC)
Assistant Referee 1: Leonel Leal (CRC)
Assistant Referee 2: Octavio Jara (CRC)
Fourth Official: Jeffrey Solis (CRC)

Toronto FC – Los Angeles Galaxy
Referee: Courtney Campbell (JAM)
Assistant Referee 1: Ricardo Morgan (JAM)
Assistant Referee 2: Kedlee Powell (JAM)
Fourth Official: Kevin Morrison (JAM)

8 March 2012
Metapan – Pumas
Referee: Walter Lopez (GUA)
Assistant Referee 1: Gerson Lopez (GUA)
Assistant Referee 2: Ronaldo De La Cruz (GUA)
Fourth Official: Oscar Reyna (GUA)

AFC Champions League – Group Stage (Matchday 1)

6 March 2012
Al Rayyan – Esteghlal

Referee: Benjamin Williams (AUS, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Matthew Cream (AUS)
Assistant Referee 2: Hakan Anaz (AUS)
Fourth Official: Jameel Abdulhusain (BHR)

Nasaf Qarshi – Al Jazeera
Referee: Choi Myung-Yong (KOR)
Assistant Referee 1: Yang Byoung-Eun (KOR)
Assistant Referee 2: Lee Jong-Min (KOR)
Fourth Official: Kim Dae-Yong (KOR)

Baniyas – Al Arabi
Referee: Alireza Faghani (IRN)
Assistant Referee 1: Muhammadreza Abdulfazli (IRN)
Assistant Referee 2: Said Alinezhadian (IRN)
Fourth Official: Mukhtar Al Yarimi (YEM)

Al Ittihad – Pakhtakor
Referee: Minoru Tojo (JPN)
Assistant Referee 1: Toshiyuki Nagi (JPN)
Assistant Referee 2: Haruhiro Otsuka (JPN)
Fourth Official: Jumpei Iida (JPN)

Bunyodkor – Adelaide United
Referee: Andre El Haddad (LIB)
Assistant Referee 1: Ziad Birak (LIB)
Assistant Referee 2: Hadi El Kassir (LIB)
Fourth Official: Radwan Ghandour (LIB)

Gamba Osaka – Pohang Steelers
Referee: Abdulrahman Hussain (QAT)
Assistant Referee 1: Hassan al-Thawadi (QAT)
Assistant Referee 2: Yasser Al Naimi (QAT)
Fourth Official: Muhammad Al Kuwari (QAT)

Ulsan Hyundai – Beijing Guoan
Referee: Muhammad Al Zarouni (UAE)
Assistant Referee 1: Muhammad Al Jallaf (UAE)
Assistant Referee 2: Muhammad Al Nahlawi (SYR)
Fourth Official: Hamad Al Hashmi (UAE)

Brisbane Roar – FC Tokyo
Referee: Valentin Kovalenko (UZB)
Assistant Referee 1: Rafael Ilyasov (UZB)
Assistant Referee 2: Andrey Bukatin (UZB)
Fourth Official: Suhaizi Shukri (MAS)

7 March 2012
Lekhwiya – Al Ahli
Referee: Ali Abdulnabi (BHR)
Assistant Referee 1: Muhammad Salman (BHR)
Assistant Referee 2: Nawaf Mussa (BHR)
Fourth Official: Hasan Abdulshaheed (BHR)

Sepahan – Al Nasr
Referee: Tan Hai (CHN)
Assistant Referee 1: Su Jige (CHN)
Assistant Referee 2: Huo Weiming (CHN)
Fourth Official: Wang Zhe (CHN)

Al Shabab – Al Gharafa
Referee: Abdul Malik Bashir (SIN)
Assistant Referee 1: Jeffrey Gek Pheng (SIN)
Assistant Referee 2: Tzu Edwin Lee (SIN)
Fourth Official: Sukhbir Singh (SIN)

Al Hilal – Persepolis
Referee: Lee Min-Hu (KOR)
Assistant Referee 1: Yoon Kwang-Yeol (KOR)
Assistant Referee 2: Kim Sung-Il (KOR)
Fourth Official: Tong Kui Sum (HKG)

Nagoya Grampus – Seongnam FC
Referee: Nawaf Shukrallah (BHR)
Assistant Referee 1: Ibrahim Salah (BHR)
Assistant Referee 2: Fahad Al Amri (KSA)
Fourth Official: Fahad Al Mirdasi (KSA)

Tianjin Teda – Central Coast Mariners
Referee: Abdullah Al Hilali (OMA)
Assistant Referee 1: Hamad Al Mayahi (OMA)
Assistant Referee 2: Khalid Al Hinai (OMA)
Fourth Official: Yaqoub Abdulbaki (OMA)

Buriram United – Kashiwa Reysol
Referee: Ravshan Irmatov (UZB)
Assistant Referee 1: Abdukhamidullo Rasulov (UZB)
Assistant Referee 2: Bakhadyr Kochkarov (KGZ)
Fourth Official: Hettikamkanamge Perera (SRI)

Joenbuk Hyundai – Guangzhou FC
Referee: Said Yazdi (IRN)
Assistant Referee 1: Reza Sukhandan (IRN)
Assistant Referee 2: Alireza Kahouri (IRN)
Fourth Official: Akbar Bakhshizadih (IRN)

Copa Libertadores – Group Stage (Matchday 6)

6 March 2012
Penarol – Universidad de Chile
Referee: Omar Ponce (ECU, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Juan Cedeno (ECU)
Assistant Referee 2: Carlos Herrera (ECU)
Fourth Official: Martin Vazquez (URU)

Vasco da Gama – Alianza Lima
Referee: Diego Abal (ARG)
Assistant Referee 1: Diego Bonfa (ARG)
Assistant Referee 2: Juan Belatti (ARG)
Fourth Official: Pericles Cortes (BRA)

Union Espanola – Universidad de Chile
Referee: Claudio Puga (CHI)
Assistant Referee 1: Julio Diaz (CHI)
Assistant Referee 2: Marcelo Barraza (CHI)
Fourth Official: Eduardo Gamboa (CHI)

7 March 2012
Santos – Internacional
Referee: Evandro Roman (BRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Dibert Pedrosa (BRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Rodrigo Joia (BRA)
Fourth Official: Ricardo Marques (BRA)

Deportivo Quito – Velez Sarsfield
Referee: Jose Buitrago (COL)
Assistant Referee 1: Humberto Clavijo (COL)
Assistant Referee 2: Alexander Guzman (COL)
Fourth Official: Roddy Zambrano (ECU)

Corinthians – Nacional
Referee: Enrique Osses (CHI)
Assistant Referee 1: Carlos Astroza (CHI)
Assistant Referee 2: Juan Maturana (CHI)
Fourth Official: Paulo Oliveira (BRA)

Boca Juniors – Fluminense
Referee: Carlos Amarilla (PAR)
Assistant Referee 1: Carlos Caceres (PAR)
Assistant Referee 2: Cesar Franco (PAR)
Fourth Official: German Delfino (ARG)

8 March 2012
Flamengo – Emelec
Referee: Dario Ubriaco (URU)
Assistant Referee 1: Carlos Pastorino (URU)
Assistant Referee 2: Nicolas Taran (URU)
Fourth Official: Marcelo Henrique (BRA)

Godoy Cruz – Atletico Nacional
Referee: Leandro Vuaden (BRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Alessandro Rocha (BRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Emerson Carvalho (BRA)
Fourth Official: Saul Laverni (ARG)

Atletico Junior – Bolivar
Referee: Juan Soto (VEN)
Assistant Referee 1: Rafael Yanez (VEN)
Assistant Referee 2: Jorge Urrego (VEN)
Fourth Official: Juan Restrepo (COL)

UEFA Champions League – Round of 16 (Second Leg)

6 March 2012
Arsenal – AC Milan
Referee: Damir Skomina (SVN, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Primoz Arhar (SVN)
Assistant Referee 2: Marko Stancin (SVN)
Additional AR 1: Matej Jug (SVN)
Additional AR 2: Slavko Vincic (SVN)
Fourth Official: Mitja Zganec (SVN)

Benfica – Zenit St. Petersburg
Referee: Howard Webb (ENG)
Assistant Referee 1: Michael Mullarkey (ENG)
Assistant Referee 2: Stephen Child (ENG)
Additional AR 1: Martin Atkinson (ENG)
Additional AR 2: Mark Clattenburg (ENG)
Fourth Official: Michael Dean (ENG)

7 March 2012
Apoel – Olympique Lyon
Referee: Alberto Undiano Mallenco (ESP)
Assistant Referee 1: Roberto Alonso Fernandez (ESP)
Assistant Referee 2: Jesus Calvo Guadamuro (ESP)
Additional AR 1: Antonio Mateu Lahoz (ESP)
Additional AR 2: Cesar Muniz Fernandez (ESP)
Fourth Official: Fernando Teixeira Vitienes (ESP)

FC Barcelona – Bayer Leverkusen
Referee: Svein Oddvar Moen (NOR)
Assistant Referee 1: Kim Thomas Haglund (NOR)
Assistant Referee 2: Frank Andas (NOR)
Additional AR 1: Tom Harald Hagen (NOR)
Additional AR 2: Ken Henry Johnsen (NOR)
Fourth Official: Tommy Skjerven (NOR)

IFAB approved further GLT tests

The International Football Association Board (IFAB) convened for its Annual General Meeting on 3 March 2012, at the Pennyhill Park Hotel in Surrey, England.

The IFAB received a general evaluation of eight available Goal Line Technology (GLT) systems by EMPA (Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology). The first phase of GLT testing was conducted between November and December 2011. Of the eight companies, two companies, Hawk-Eye and GoalRef - following the set criteria and recommendation by EMPA - were approved by the IFAB to take part in the second phase of testing. Hawk-Eye’s system uses Optical recognition with cameras, whilst GoalRef utilises a magnetic field with a special ball to identify a goal situation. The second test phase – to take place between March and June 2012 – will rigorously assess the reliability and accuracy of each system, as well as how robust the technology is. Following the conclusion of Test Phase 2, should one or more companies fulfil the criteria, a Special Meeting of the IFAB in Kiev on 2 July 2012 will decide on a definitive approval of GLT.
In relation to the proposed amendments to the Laws of the Game, approval was granted by the IFAB to amend Law 1 (The Field of Play, Commercial Advertising), clearly defining the location of upright advertising. Approval was also granted to The FA’s proposal regarding modifications to the number of substitutions allowed in amateur football. An option was offered to all four British Associations to carry out a two-year experiment.
FIFA agreed to withdraw the proposed amendment to Law 3 (The Numbers of Players) in relation to a fourth substitution being used during extra time, and the proposal regarding Law 12 (Fouls and Misconduct) concerning the so-called “Triple Punishment” will be reviewed further.
In other matters, the IFAB received a presentation on the Additional Assistant Referees (AAR) experiment. Experiments are ongoing in the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League, as well as competitions in Brazil, Morocco and Qatar. A final report will be made at the Special Meeting of the IFAB on 2 July, following the conclusion of the UEFA Euro 2012 competition, in order that a definitive decision on the future of AAR can also be made.
Finally, a presentation regarding the wearing of headscarves by female players was made to the IFAB. The IFAB agreed to the proposal in principle that headscarves be allowed, pending an accelerated review of health and safety issues. Therefore, a final endorsement will be made at the Special Meeting of the IFAB on 2 July.

The following amendments were approved by the IFAB:

Law 4 – The Players’ Equipment
Stockings – if tape or similar material is applied externally it must be the same colour as that part of the stocking it is applied to.

Law 8 – The Start and Restart of Play
If the ball enters the goal:
• if a dropped ball is kicked directly into the opponents’ goal, a goal kick is awarded
• if a dropped ball is kicked directly into the teams’ own goal, a corner kick is awarded to the opposing team.

The decisions concerning the Laws of the Game taken by the IFAB will come into effect on 1 June 2012.

Source: FIFA

Euro 2012 Referee Teams

Referee: Cuneyt Cakir (TUR, 1976, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Bahattin Duran (TUR, 1975)
Assistant Referee 2: Tarik Ongun (TUR, 1973)
Additional AR 1: Huseyin Gocek (TUR, 1976)
Additional AR 2: Bulent Yildirim (TUR, 1972)

Referee: Jonas Eriksson (SWE, 1974)
Assistant Referee 1: Stefan Wittberg (SWE, 1968)
Assistant Referee 2: Mathias Klasenius (SWE, 1975)
Additional AR 1: Markus Strombergsson (SWE, 1975)
Additional AR 2: Stefan Johannesson (SWE, 1971)

Referee: Viktor Kassai (HUN, 1975)
Assistant Referee 1: Gabor Eros (HUN, 1971)
Assistant Referee 2: Gyorgy Ring (HUN, 1981)
Additional AR 1: Istvan Vad (HUN, 1979)
Additional AR 2: Tamas Bognar (HUN, 1978)

Referee: Bjorn Kuipers (NED, 1973)
Assistant Referee 1: Sander van Roekel (NED, 1974)
Assistant Referee 2: Erwin Zeinstra (NED, 1977)
Additional AR 1: Pol van Boekel (NED, 1975)
Additional AR 2: Richard Liesveld (NED, 1973)

Referee: Stephane Lannoy (FRA, 1969)
Assistant Referee 1: Eric Dansault (FRA, 1968)
Assistant Referee 2: Frederic Cano (FRA, 1973)
Additional AR 1: Fredy Fautrel (FRA, 1971)
Additional AR 2: Ruddy Buquet (FRA, 1977)

Referee: Pedro Proenca Oliveira (POR, 1970)
Assistant Referee 1: Bertino Cunha Miranda (POR, 1972)
Assistant Referee 2: Ricardo Ferreira Santos (POR, 1973)
Additional AR 1: Manuel Moreira De Sousa (POR, 1975)
Additional AR 2: Duarte Pereira Gomes (POR, 1973)

Referee: Nicola Rizzoli (ITA, 1971)
Assistant Referee 1: Renato Faverani (ITA, 1969)
Assistant Referee 2: Andrea Stefani (ITA, 1969)
Additional AR 1: Gianluca Rocchi (ITA, 1973)
Additional AR 2: Paolo Tagliavento (ITA, 1972)

Referee: Damir Skomina (SVN, 1976)
Assistant Referee 1: Primoz Arhar (SVN, 1968)
Assistant Referee 2: Marko Stancin (SVN, 1968)
Additional AR 1: Matej Jug (SVN, 1980)
Additional AR 2: Slavko Vincic (SVN, 1979)

Referee: Wolfgang Stark (GER, 1969)
Assistant Referee 1: Jan-Hendrik Salver (GER, 1969)
Assistant Referee 2: Mike Pickel (GER, 1975)
Additional AR 1: Florian Meyer (GER, 1968)
Additional AR 2: Deniz Aytekin (GER, 1978)

Referee: Craig Thomson (SCO, 1972)
Assistant Referee 1: Alasdair Ross (SCO, 1975)
Assistant Referee 2: Derek Rose (SCO, 1974)
Additional AR 1: William Collum (SCO, 1979)
Additional AR 2: Euan Norris (SCO, 1977)

Referee: Carlos Velasco Carballo (ESP, 1971)
Assistant Referee 1: Roberto Alonso Fernandez (ESP, 1976)
Assistant Referee 2: Juan Yuste Jimenez (ESP, 1975)
Additional AR 1: David Fernandez Borbalan (ESP, 1973)
Additional AR 2: Carlos Clos Gomez (ESP, 1972)

Referee: Howard Webb (ENG, 1971)
Assistant Referee 1: Michael Mullarkey (ENG, 1970)
Assistant Referee 2: Peter Kirkup (ENG, 1970)
Additional AR 1: Martin Atkinson (ENG, 1971)
Additional AR 2: Mark Clattenburg (ENG, 1975)

Fourth Officials
1. Marcin Borski (POL, 1973)
2. Tom Harald Hagen (NOR, 1978)
3. Pavel Kralovec (CZE, 1977)
4. Viktor Shvetsov (UKR, 1969)

From 30 April to 3 May 2012, all referees and assistant referees will attend a preparatory workshop in Warsaw. The referee quintets will train together in their team base camp. They will also undergo fitness tests and review the application of the technical instructions they have received.

American AR pelted with rubbish

Fans pelted a match official with rubbish, forcing an early abandonment of the international friendly match Estonia – El Salvador, played on Wednesday at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, with the European team awarded a 2-0 win. Referee Ricardo Salazar (USA, photo) suspended the match in the 89th minute when the heavily Salvadorian crowd of nearly 15,000 people began to pelt one of his assistant referees with trash. Salvadorian fans were protesting an earlier decision and began throwing objects at the assistant referee.

Source: The Associated Press

Damon recovered, but lost his FIFA badge

South African referee Jerome Damon has breathed a sigh of relief now that he is back in action after five months in limbo. Damon, who refereed at the FIFA World Cup 2010, passed the fitness tests with flying colours and will soon be back in action. The tests were conducted by the South African Football Association Referees Technical Committee in Cape Town. "I'm hoping to be back sooner than later. It has been frustrating in the past five months. I'm happy to have fully recovered", Damon said.

The popular Cape Town school teacher missed the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations finals in Equatorial Guinea and Gabon because of injury. South Africa was represented by referee Daniel Bennett and assistant referee Zakhele Siwela at the event. Damon completed the required 12 laps in line with international standards, which SAFA has adopted as a national standard. He was recuperating from a calf muscle injury that made him pull out of a fitness test in September last year. "We warmly welcome the return of Damon as this will further strengthen the existing group of match officials. It is our wish that he gets back to action as soon as possible because his officiating has been sorely missed by all. The more good referees we have the better for our country, especially in international competition”, said Adeel Carelse, head of the Referees Department at SAFA. Because of his injury, Jerome Damon lost his FIFA badge in less than two years after he refereed at the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa.

Source: Sowetan