Referees and assistant referees from Asia, Oceania and Europe met for a week-long seminar at the Home of FIFA in Zurich in preparation for the FIFA World Cup Brazil 2014.
Between 24 and 28 March, the 17 referees and 31 assistant referees have undergone several medical, physical, psychological and technical checks, in order to give them an impression of their current status. There has also been a new approach to the technical side, where video analysis of match situations have been used with the aim of offering uniformity, consistency and changing mentalities towards tactics, with the referees expressing themselves, sharing their opinions for reading the game and understanding different mentalities. The match officials also practiced a number of real game type scenarios, using U-21 and U-18 players from FC Zurich, as they sought to find uniformity in their decision-making process and positioning. “We had a group of referees and assistant referees here in the Home of FIFA this week, who were really motivated," FIFA's Head of Refereeing, Massimo Busacca said. "I’m very happy about their dedication and work this week".
The next seminar, starting on Monday 7 April, will see the remaining referees and assistant referees from Africa, North, Central America and the Caribbean and South America in Zurich.
Source: FIFA
