UEFA Youth League Final 2017: Palabiyik (TUR)

Semi-finals (21 April 2017)

FC Barcelona – FC Salzburg
Referee: Andris Treimanis (LVA)
Assistant Referee 1: Haralds Gudermanis (LVA)
Assistant Referee 2: Aleksejs Spasjonnikovs (LVA)
Fourth Official: Alain Bieri (SUI)
Referee Observer: Paulius Malzinskas (LTU)

Real Madrid – SL Benfica

Referee: Bartosz Frankowski (POL)
Assistant Referee 1: Marcin Boniek (POL)
Assistant Referee 2: Jakub Winkler (POL)
Fourth Official: Sandro Schärer (SUI)
Referee Observer: Paulius Malzinskas (LTU)



Final (24 April 2017)

Barcelona/Salzburg – Real/Benfica
Referee: Ali Palabıyık (TUR, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Cem Satman (TUR)
Assistant Referee 2: Kerem Ersoy (TUR)
Fourth Official: Alper Ulusoy (TUR)

Recopa Sudamericana 2017 (First Leg)

4 April 2017

Chapecoense – Atletico National
Referee: Mario Diaz de Vivar (PAR, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Milciades Saldivar (PAR)
Assistant Referee 2: Roberto Canete (PAR)
Fourth Official: Jose Mendez (PAR)
Referee Assessor: Enrique Osses (CHI)

UEFA Futsal Cup Finals 2017

Kairat, 28-30 April 2017

Referees
1. Gabor Kovacs (HUN, 1978)
2. Alessandro Malfer (ITA, 1975)
3. Bogdan Sorescu (ROU, 1974, photo)
4. Sasa Tomic (CRO, 1975)

UEFA Women’s Champions League – Quarter-finals (Second Leg)

29-30 March 2017

FC Barcelona – FC Rosengard
Referee: Kateryna Monzul (UKR, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Maryna Striletska (UKR)
Assistant Referee 2: Oleksandra Ardasheva (UKR)
Fourth Official: Anastasia Romaniuk (UKR)

Paris St. Germain – Bayern Munchen
Referee: Carina Vitulano (ITA)
Assistant Referee 1: Lucia Abruzzese (ITA)
Assistant Referee 2: Ella De Vries (BEL)
Fourth Official: Maria Marotta (ITA)

Olympique Lyonnais – VfL Wolfsburg
Referee: Monika Mularczyk (POL)
Assistant Referee 1: Anna Gorska (POL)
Assistant Referee 2: Michelle O'Neill (IRL)
Fourth Official: Karolina Radzik-Johan (POL)

Manchester City – Fortuna Hjørring
Referee: Anastasia Pustovoitova (RUS)
Assistant Referee 1: Ekaterina Kurochkina (RUS)
Assistant Referee 2: Biljana Atanasovski (MKD)
Fourth Official: Vera Opeykina (RUS)

FIFA World Cup 2018 Qualifiers – CONMEBOL (Matchday 14)

28 March 2017

Bolivia – Argentina
Referee: Wilmar Roldan (COL, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Alexander Guzman (COL)
Assistant Referee 2: Christian De la Cruz (COL)
Fourth Official: Gustavo Murillo (COL)

Ecuador – Colombia
Referee: Nestor Pitana (ARG)
Assistant Referee 1: Hernan Maidana (ARG)
Assistant Referee 2: Juan Belatti (ARG)
Fourth Official: German Delfino (ARG)

Chile – Venezuela
Referee: Andres Cunha (URU)
Assistant Referee 1: Nicolas Taran (URU)
Assistant Referee 2: Mauricio Espinosa (URU)
Fourth Official: Oscar Rojas (URU)

Brazil – Paraguay
Referee: Víctor Carrillo (PER)
Assistant Referee 1: Jonny Bossio (PER)
Assistant Referee 2: Coty Carrera (PER)
Fourth Official: Miguel Santivañez (PER)

Peru – Uruguay
Referee: Julio Bascunan (CHI)
Assistant Referee 1: Carlos Astroza (CHI)
Assistant Referee 2: Christian Schiemann (CHI)
Fourth Official: Jorge Osorio (CHI)

FIFA World Cup 2018 Qualifiers – CONCACAF (Round 5, Matchday 4)

28 March 2017

Honduras – Costa Rica
Referee: Joel Aguilar (SLV, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: William Torres (SLV)
Assistant Referee 2: Juan Zumba (SLV)
Fourth Official: Mario Escobar (GUA)

Panama – USA
Referee: Cesar Ramos (MEX)
Assistant Referee 1: Marvin Torrentera (MEX)
Assistant Referee 2: Miguel Hernandez (MEX)
Fourth Official: Erick Miranda (MEX)
Referee Assessor: Neftalí Recinos (SLV)

Trinidad & Tobago – Mexico
Referee: Valdin Legister (JAM)
Assistant Referee 1: Richard Washington (JAM)
Assistant Referee 2: Philippe Briere (CAN)
Fourth Official: Adrian Skeete (BRB)

FIFA World Cup 2018 Qualifiers – AFC (Round 3, Matchday 7)

28 March 2017 

Japan – Thailand
Referee: Kim Dong Jin (KOR, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Park Sang Jun (KOR)
Assistant Referee 2: Park In Sun (KOR)
Fourth Official: Kim Dae Yong (KOR)

Australia – UAE
Referee: Ahmed Al Kaf (OMA)
Assistant Referee 1: Hamed Al Mayahi (OMA)
Assistant Referee 2: Abu Al Amri (OMA)
Fourth Official: Mahmoud Al Majarafi (OMA)

Korea – Syria
Referee: Adham Makhadmeh (JOR)
Assistant Referee 1: Ahmad Al-Roalle (JOR)
Assistant Referee 2: Issa Al-Amawi (JOR)
Fourth Official: Ahmed Al-Ali (JOR)

Iran – China
Referee: Muhammad Bin Jahari (SIN)
Assistant Referee 1: Tzu Liang Lee (SIN)
Assistant Referee 2: Min Kiat Koh (SIN)
Fourth Official: Muhammad Nasaruddin (SIN)

Uzbekistan – Qatar
Referee: Mohanad Sarray (IRQ)
Assistant Referee 1: Muayad Ali (IRQ)
Assistant Referee 2: Watheq Al-Swaiedi (IRQ)
Fourth Official: Zaid Mohammed (IRQ)

Saudi Arabia – Iraq
Referee: Valentin Kovalenko (UZB)
Assistant Referee 1: Mamur Saidkasimov (UZB)
Assistant Referee 2: Husniddin Shodmonov (UZB)
Fourth Official: Sherzod Kasimov (UZB)

FIFA World Cup 2018 Qualifiers – AFC (Round 3, Matchday 6)

23 March 2017

UAE – Japan
Referee: Ravshan Irmatov (UZB, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Abduxamidullo Rasulov (UZB)
Assistant Referee 2: Jakhongir Saidov (UZB)
Fourth Official: Dmitri Pislegin (UZB)

Iraq – Australia
Referee: Jong Hyeok Kim (KOR)
Assistant Referee 1: Kwang Yeol Yoon (KOR)
Assistant Referee 2: Young Ha Kim (KOR)
Fourth Official: Woo Sung Kim (KOR)

Qatar – Iran
Referee: Kwok Man Liu (HKG)
Assistant Referee 1: Chun Kit Chow (HKG)
Assistant Referee 2: Nai Kei Lam (HKG)
Fourth Official: Fong Hei Lau (HKG)

China – Korea
Referee: Peter Green (AUS)
Assistant Referee 1: Paul Cetrangolo (AUS)
Assistant Referee 2: Ashley Beecham (AUS)
Fourth Official: Alan Milliner (AUS)

Syria – Uzbekistan
Referee: Abdulla Mohamed (EAU)
Assistant Referee 1: Mohamed Al-Hammadi (EAU)
Assistant Referee 2: Hasan Al-Mahri (EAU)
Fourth Official: Khamis Al-Naqbi (EAU)

Thailand – Saudi Arabia
Referee: Ali Al-Samaheeji (BHR)
Assistant Referee 1: Mohamed Salman (BHR)
Assistant Referee 2: Nawaf Moosa (BHR)
Fourth Official: Ammar Mahfoodh (BHR)

FIFA World Cup 2018 Qualifiers – OFC (Round 3, Matchday 4)

28 March 2017 

Tahiti – Papua New Guinea
Referee: Matt Conger (NZL, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Tevita Makasini (TGA)
Assistant Referee 2: Mark Rule (NZL)
Fourth Official: Joel Hopkken (TGA)

New Zealand – Fiji
Referee: Abdelkader Zitouni (TAH)
Assistant Referee 1: Folio Moeaki (TGA)
Assistant Referee 2: Sione Teu (TGA)
Fourth Official: Nelson Sogo (SOL)

FIFA World Cup 2018 Qualifiers – OFC (Round 3, Matchday 3)

23-25 March 2017

Fiji – New Zealand
Referee: Norbert Hauata (TAH. photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Philippe Revel (TAH)
Assistant Referee 2: Hilmon Sese (VAN)
Fourth Official: George Time (SOL)

Papua New Guinea – Tahiti
Referee: Salesh Chand (FIJ)
Assistant Referee 1: Avinesh Narayan (FIJ)
Assistant Referee 2: Bertrand Brial (NCL)
Fourth Official: Mederic Lacour (NCL)

FIFA World Cup 2018 Qualifiers – UEFA (Matchday 5)

24-26 March 2017

Ireland – Wales
Referee: Nicola Rizzoli (ITA, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Lorenzo Manganelli (ITA)
Assistant Referee 2: Filippo Meli (ITA)
Fourth Official: Davide Massa (ITA)
Referee Assessor: Ichko Lozev (BUL)

Austria – Moldova
Referee: István Vad (HUN)
Assistant Referee 1: István Albert (HUN)
Assistant Referee 2: Péter Berettyán (HUN)
Fourth Official: Ferenc Karakó (HUN)
Referee Assessor: Lassin Isaksen (FRO)

Georgia – Serbia
Referee: Felix Zwayer (GER)
Assistant Referee 1: Thorsten Schiffner (GER)
Assistant Referee 2: Marco Achmüller (GER)
Fourth Official: Christian Dingert (GER)
Referee Assessor: Vítor Melo Pereira (POR)

Italy – Albania
Referee: Slavko Vinčić (SVN)
Assistant Referee 1: Tomaž Klančnik (SVN)
Assistant Referee 2: Andraž Kovačič (SVN)
Fourth Official: Matej Jug (SVN)
Referee Assessor: Oguz Sarvan (Turkey)

Liechtenstein – Macedonia
Referee: Jonathan Lardot (BEL)
Assistant Referee 1: Laurent Conotte (BEL)
Assistant Referee 2: Frédéric Godelaine (BEL)
Fourth Official: Alexandre Boucaut (BEL)
Referee Assessor: Nicolae Grigorescu (ROU)

Spain – Israel
Referee: Michael Oliver (ENG)
Assistant Referee 1: Jake Collin (ENG)
Assistant Referee 2: Gary Beswick (ENG)
Fourth Official: Robert Madley (ENG)
Referee Assessor: Gylfi Thor Orasson (ISL)

Croatia – Ukraine

Referee: Antonio Mateu Lahoz (ESP)
Assistant Referee 1: Pau Cebrián Devís (ESP)
Assistant Referee 2: Javier Aguilar Rodríguez (ESP)
Fourth Official: Carlos Clos Gómez (ESP)
Referee Assessor: Andreas Schluchter (SUI)

Kosovo – Iceland
Referee: Artur Soares Dias (POR)
Assistant Referee 1: Rui Tavares (POR)
Assistant Referee 2: Paulo Santos (POR)
Fourth Official: João Pinheiro (POR)
Referee Assessor: Jørn West Larsen (DEN)

Turkey – Finland
Referee: Jesús Gil Manzano (ESP)
Assistant Referee 1: Roberto Alonso Fernández (ESP)
Assistant Referee 2: Juan Yuste Jiménez (ESP)
Fourth Official: Carlos Del Cerro Grande (ESP)
Referee Assessor: László Vágner (HUN)

Bulgaria – Netherlands

Referee: William Collum (SCO)
Assistant Referee 1: Francis Connor (SCO)
Assistant Referee 2: Douglas Ross (SCO)
Fourth Official: John Beaton (SCO)
Referee Assessor: Zbigniew Przesmycki (POL)

Luxembourg – France
Referee: Andris Treimanis (LVA)
Assistant Referee 1: Haralds Gudermanis (LVA)
Assistant Referee 2: Aleksejs Spasjonnikovs (LVA)
Fourth Official: Aleksandrs Golubevs (LVA)
Referee Assessor: Terje Hauge (NOR)

Sweden – Belarus

Referee: Harald Lechner (AUT)
Assistant Referee 1: Andreas Heidenreich (AUT)
Assistant Referee 2: Maximilian Kolbitsch (AUT)
Fourth Official: Alexander Harkam (AUT)
Referee Assessor: Alan Snoddy (NIR)

Andorra – Faroe Islands
Referee: Ognjen Valjić (BIH)
Assistant Referee 1: Senad Ibrisimbegović (BIH)
Assistant Referee 2: Sreten Udovičić (BIH)
Fourth Official: Edin Jakupović (BIH)
Referee Assessor: Kaj Natri (FIN)

Portugal – Hungary
Referee: Szymon Marciniak (POL)
Assistant Referee 1: Paweł Sokolnicki (POL)
Assistant Referee 2: Tomasz Listkiewicz (POL)
Fourth Official: Paweł Raczkowski (POL)
Referee Assessor: Manuel Díaz Vega (ESP)

Switzerland – Latvia
Referee: Vladislav Bezborodov (RUS)
Assistant Referee 1: Maksim Gavrilin (RUS)
Assistant Referee 2: Valeri Danchenko (RUS)
Fourth Official: Aleksei Eskov (RUS)
Referee Assessor: Plarent Kotherja (ALB)

Belgium – Greece
Referee: Felix Brych (GER)
Assistant Referee 1: Mark Borsch (GER)
Assistant Referee 2: Stefan Lupp (GER)
Fourth Official: Marco Fritz (GER)
Referee Assessor: Jozef Marko (SVK)

Bosnia and Herzegovina – Gibraltar
Referee: Svein-Erik Edvartsen (NOR)
Assistant Referee 1: Jan Engan (NOR)
Assistant Referee 2 : Jon Knutsen (NOR)
Fourth Official: Espen Eskås (NOR)
Referee Assessor: Iain Brines (SCO)

Cyprus – Estonia
Referee: Ville Nevalainen (FIN)
Assistant Referee 1: Jan-Peter Aravirta (FIN)
Assistant Referee 2: Sami Nykänen (FIN)
Fourth Official: Dennis Antamo (FIN)
Referee Assessor: Drago Kos (SVN)

Azerbaijan – Germany
Referee: Daniele Orsato (ITA)
Assistant Referee 1: Mauro Tonolini (ITA)
Assistant Referee 2: Riccardo Di Fiore (ITA)
Fourth Official: Marco Guida (ITA)
Referee Assessor: Aleksei Spirin (RUS)

Northern Ireland – Norway
Referee: Hüseyin Göçek (TUR)
Assistant Referee 1: Mustafa Eyisoy (TUR)
Assistant Referee 2: Kemal Yilmaz (TUR)
Fourth Official: Mete Kalkavan (TUR)
Referee Assessor: Victor Mintoff (MLT)

San Marino – Czech Republic
Referee: Kristo Tohver (EST)
Assistant Referee 1: Hannes Reinvald (EST)
Assistant Referee 2: Sten Klaasen (EST)
Fourth Official: Juri Frischer (EST)
Referee Assessor: Gevorg Hovhannisyan (ARM)

Armenia – Kazakhstan
Referee: Aleksandar Stavrev (MKD)
Assistant Referee 1: Marjan Kirovski (MKD)
Assistant Referee 2: Dejan Kostadinov (MKD)
Fourth Official: Dejan Jakimovski (MKD)
Referee Assessor: John Ward (IRL)

Montenegro – Poland
Referee: Viktor Kassai (HUN)
Assistant Referee 1: György Ring (HUN)
Assistant Referee 2: Vencel Tóth (HUN)
Fourth Official: Tamás Bognár (HUN)
Referee Assessor: Robert Sedlacek (AUT)

Romania – Denmark
Referee: Martin Atkinson (ENG)
Assistant Referee 1: Stephen Child (ENG)
Assistant Referee 2: Stuart Burt (ENG)
Fourth Official: Anthony Taylor (ENG)
Referee Assessor: Bosko Jovanetic (SRB)

England – Lithuania
Referee: Ruddy Buquet (FRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Frédéric Cano (FRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Guillaume Debart (FRA)
Fourth Official: Amaury Delerue (FRA)
Referee Assessor: Eugen Strigel (GER)

Malta – Slovakia
Referee: Ali Palabıyık (TUR)
Assistant Referee 1: Çem Satman (TUR)
Assistant Referee 2: Serkan Olguncan (TUR)
Fourth Official: Halil Meler (TUR)
Referee Assessor: Ray Ellingham (WAL)

Scotland – Slovenia

Referee: Björn Kuipers (NED)
Assistant Referee 1: Sander van Roekel (NED)
Assistant Referee 2: Erwin Zeinstra (NED)
Fourth Official: Pol van Boekel (NED)
Referee Assessor: Michel Vautrot (FRA)

FIFA World Cup 2018 Qualifiers – CONCACAF (Round 5, Matchday 3)

24 March 2017

USA – Honduras 

Referee: Walter Lopez (GUA, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Gerson Lopez (GUA)
Assistant Referee 2: Hermenerito Leal (GUA)
Fourth Official: Oscar Reyna (GUA)

Mexico – Costa Rica
Referee: John Pitti (PAN)
Assistant Referee 1: Gabriel Victoria (PAN)
Assistant Referee 2: Christian Ramirez (HON)
Fourth Official: Jafeth Perea (PAN)

Trinidad & Tobago – Panama
Referee: Melvin Matamoros (HON)
Assistant Referee 1: Melvyn Cruz (HON)
Assistant Referee 2: Jesus Taborda (HON)
Fourth Official: Hector Rodriguez (HON)

FIFA World Cup 2018 Qualifiers – CONMEBOL (Matchday 13)

23 March 2017

Uruguay – Brazil
Referee: Patricio Loustau (ARG, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Diego Bonfa (ARG)
Assistant Referee 2: Gustavo Rossi (ARG)
Fourth Official: Fernando Rapallini (ARG)

Paraguay – Ecuador
Referee: Jose Argote (VEN)
Assistant Referee 1: Luis Murillo (VEN)
Assistant Referee 2: Carlos Lopez (VEN)
Fourth Official: Marlon Escalante (VEN)


Colombia – Bolivia
Referee: Ricardo Marques (BRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Fabricio Vilarinho (BRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Rodrigo Correa (BRA)
Fourth Official: Wagner Magalhaes (BRA)

Venezuela – Peru
Referee: Enrique Caceres (PAR)
Assistant Referee 1: Eduardo Cardozo (PAR)
Assistant Referee 2: Juan Zorrilla (PAR)
Fourth Official: Eber Aquino (PAR)

Argentina – Chile
Referee: Sandro Ricci (BRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Emerson De Carvalho (BRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Marcelo Van Gasse (BRA)
Fourth Official: Dewson Freitas (BRA)

UEFA Women’s Champions League – Quarter-finals (First Leg)

22-23 March 2017

FC Rosengard – FC Barcelona
Referee: Stephanie Frappart (FRA, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Manuela Nicolosi (FRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Angela Kyriakou (CYP)
Fourth Official: Florence Guillemin (FRA)

Fortuna Hjørring – Manchester City
Referee: Riem Hussein (GER)
Assistant Referee 1: Christina Biehl (GER)
Assistant Referee 2: Chrysoula Kourompylia (GRE)
Fourth Official: Angelika Soeder (GER)

Bayern München – Paris St. Germain
Referee: Pernilla Larsson (SWE)
Assistant Referee 1: Julia Magnusson (SWE)
Assistant Referee 2: Annica Johansson (SWE)
Fourth Official: Lina Lehtovaara (FIN)

VfL Wolfsburg – Olympique Lyonnais
Referee: Jana Adamkova (CZE)
Assistant Referee 1: Lucie Ratajova (CZE)
Assistant Referee 2: Maria Sukenikova (SVK)
Fourth Official: Olga Zadinova (CZE)

International Friendly Matches

22-28 March 2017

France – Spain
Referee: Felix Zwayer (GER, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Thorsten Schiffner (GER)
Assistant Referee 2: Marco Achmüller (GER)
Fourth Official: Daniel Siebert (GER)
VAR: Tobias Stieler (GER)

Germany – England
Referee: Damir Skomina (SVN)
Assistant Referee 1: Jure Praprotnik (SVN)
Assistant Referee 2: Robert Vukan (SVN)
Fourth Official: Matej Jug (SVN)

Russia – Cote d’Ivoire
Referee: Ovidiu Hațegan (ROU)
Assistant Referee 1: Octavian Șovre (ROU)
Assistant Referee 2: Sebastian Gheorghe (ROU)

Netherlands – Italy
Referee: Jonas Eriksson (SWE)
Assistant Referee 1: Mathias Klasenius (SWE)
Assistant Referee 2: Daniel Wärnmark (SWE)

Portugal – Sweden
Referee: Clément Turpin (FRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Nicolas Danos (FRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Cyril Gringore (FRA)
Fourth Official: Hugo Miguel (POR)

Russia – Belgium
Referee: Szymon Marciniak (POL)
Assistant Referee 1: Paweł Sokolnicki (POL)
Assistant Referee 2: Tomasz Listkiewicz (POL)

Austria – Finland
Referee: Miroslav Zelinka (CZE)
Assistant Referee 1: Ondřej Pelikán (CZE)
Assistant Referee 2: Jan Paták (CZE)
Fourth Official: Zbyněk Proske (CZE)

Turkey – Moldova
Referee: Genc Nuza (KVX)
Assistant Referee 1: Fatlum Berisha (KVX)
Assistant Referee 2: Bujar Selimaj (KVX)
Fourth Official: Alper Ulusoy (TUR)

San Marino – Moldova

Referee: Paolo Valeri (ITA)
Assistant Referee 1: Francesco Lunardon (SMR)
Assistant Referee 2: Salvatore Tuttifrutti (SMR)
Fourth Official: Marco Avoni (SMR)

Scotland – Canada
Referee Jacok Kehlet (DEN)

Cyprus – Kazakhstan

Referee: Robert Harvey (IRL)
Assistant Referee 1: Robert Clarke (IRL)
Assistant Referee 2: Wayne McDonnell (IRL)
Fourth Official: Lucas Sotiriou (CYP)

Czech Republic – Lithuania
Referee: Alain Bieri (SUI)
Assistant Referee 1: Remy Zgraggen (SUI)
Assistant Referee 2: Alain Heiniger (SUI)
Fourth Official: Pavel Orel (CZE)

Albania – Bosnia and Herzegovina
Referee: Dimitar Mečkarovski (MKD)
Assistant Referee 1: Dejan Nedelkoski (MKD)
Assistant Referee 2: Goce Petreski (MKD)
Fourth Official: Enea Jorgji (ALB)

FIFA U-20 World Cup 2017

Korea, 20 May – 11 June 2017

AFC
Referee: Abdulrahman Al Jassim (QAT, 1987)
Assistant Referee 1: Taleb Al Marri (QAT, 1988)
Assistant Referee 2: Saoud Al Maqaleh (QAT, 1988)

Referee: Jong Hyeok Kim (KOR, 1983, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Kwangyeol Yoon (KOR, 1976)
Assistant Referee 2: Young Ha Kim (KOR, 1976)

Referee: Abdulla Mohamed (EAU, 1978)
Assistant Referee 1: Mohamed Al-Hammadi (EAU, 1984)
Assistant Referee 2: Hasan Al-Mahri (EAU, 1978)

Video Assistant Referees
1. Muhammad Bin Jahari (SIN, 1986)
2. Ryuji Sato (JPN, 1977)
3. Nawaf Shukralla (BHR, 1976)

Support Referee
Ahmed Al Kaf (OMA, 1983)

CAF
Referee: Alioum Alioum (CMR, 1982)
Assistant Referee 1: Evarist Menkouande (CMR, 1974)
Assistant Referee 1: Elvis Noupue (CMR, 1983)

Referee: Ghead Grisha (EGY, 1976)
Assistant Referee 1: Redouane Achik (MAR, 1972)
Assistant Referee 2: Waleed Ahmed (SDN, 1974)

Referee: Janny Sikazwe (ZAM, 1979)
Assistant Referee 1: Jerson Dos Santos (ANG, 1983)
Assistant Referee 2: Berhe Tesfagiorghis (ERI, 1975)

Video Assistant Referees
1. Mehdi Abid Charef (ALG, 1980)
2. Bernard Camille (SEY, 1975)
3. Eric Otogo Castane (GAB, 1976)

Support Referee
Bamlak Tessema (ETH, 1980)

CONCACAF
Referee: Joel Aguilar (SLV, 1975)
Assistant Referee 1: Juan Zumba (SLV, 1982)
Assistant Referee 2: William Torres (SLV, 1975)

Referee: Walter Lopez (GUA, 1980)
Assistant Referee 1: Leonel Leal (CRC, 1976)
Assistant Referee 2: Gerson Lopez (GUA, 1983)

Referee: Cesar Ramos (MEX, 1983)
Assistant Referee 1: Marvin Torrentera (MEX, 1971)
Assistant Referee 2: Miguel Hernandez (MEX, 1977)

Video Assistant Referees
1. Roberto García (MEX, 1974)
2. Ricardo Montero (CRC, 1986)
3. John Pitti (PAN, 1978)

Support Referee
Yadel Martinez (CUB, 1985)

CONMEBOL
Referee: Julio Bascunan (CHI, 1978)
Assistant Referee 1: Carlos Astroza (CHI, 1976)
Assistant Referee 2: Christian Schiemann (CHI, 1977)

Referee: Andres Cunha (URU, 1976)
Assistant Referee 1: Nicolas Taran (URU, 1980)
Assistant Referee 2: Mauricio Espinosa (URU, 1972)

Referee: Diego Haro (PER, 1982)
Assistant Referee 1: Jonny Bossio (PER, 1975)
Assistant Referee 2: Raul Lopez (PER, 1977)

Referee: Roddy Zambrano (ECU, 1978)
Assistant Referee 1: Christian Lescano (ECU, 1983)
Assistant Referee 2: Byron Romero (ECU, 1980)

Video Assistant Referees
1. Jose Argote (VEN, 1980)
2. Wilton Sampaio (BRA, 1981)
3. Gery Vargas (BOL, 1981)
4. Mauro Vigliano (ARG, 1975)

Support Referee
Mario Diaz de Vivar (PAR, 1983)

OFC
Referee: Matthew Conger (NZL, 1978)
Assistant Referee 1: Simon Lount (NZL, 1981)
Assistant Referee 2: Tevita Makasini (TGA, 1976)

Referee: Norbert Hauata (TAH, 1979)
Assistant Referee 1: Philippe Revel (TAH, 1982)
Assistant Referee 2: Bertrand Brial (NCL, 1979)

Video Assistant Referee
Nicholas Waldron (NZL, 1982)

UEFA
Referee: Cuneyt Cakir (TUR, 1976)
Assistant Referee 1: Bahattin Duran (TUR, 1975)
Assistant Referee 2: Tarik Ongun (TUR, 1973)

Referee: Jonas Eriksson (SWE, 1974)
Assistant Referee 1: Mathias Klasenius (SWE, 1975)
Assistant Referee 2: Daniel Warnmark (SWE, 1974)

Referee: Sergey Karasev (RUS, 1979)
Assistant Referee 1: Anton Averianov (RUS, 1973)
Assistant Referee 2: Tikhon Kalugin (RUS, 1974)

Referee: Viktor Kassai (HUN, 1975)
Assistant Referee 1: Gyorgy Ring (HUN, 1981)
Assistant Referee 2: Vencel Toth (HUN, 1978)

Referee: Bjorn Kuipers (NED, 1973)
Assistant Referee 1: Sander van Roekel (NED, 1974)
Assistant Referee 2: Erwin Zeinstra (NED, 1977)


Referee: Szymon Marciniak (POL, 1981)
Assistant Referee 1: Pawel Sokolnicki (POL, 1980)
Assistant Referee 2: Tomasz Listkiewicz (POL, 1978)

Referee: Antonio Mateu Lahoz (ESP, 1977)
Assistant Referee 1: Pau Cebrian Devis (ESP, 1979)
Assistant Referee 2: Roberto Diaz Perez (ESP, 1976)

Video Assistant Referees
1. William Collum (SCO, 1979)
2. Pavel Kralovec (CZE, 1977)
3. Danny Makkelie (NED, 1983)
4. Svein Oddvar Moen (NOR, 1979)
5. Daniele Orsato (ITA, 1975)
6. Anastasios Sidiropoulos (GRE, 1979)
7. Felix Zwayer (GER, 1981)

Support Referee
Ivan Kruzliak (SVK, 1984)

Referee Lamptey banned for life due to match manipulation

The FIFA Disciplinary Committee has decided to ban the Ghanaian match official Joseph Odartei Lamptey (photo) from taking part in any kind of football-related activity (administrative, sports or any other) at national and international level for life. The referee was found guilty of breaching art. 69 par. 1 (unlawfully influencing match results) of the FIFA Disciplinary Code during the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia qualifying match between South Africa and Senegal played on 12 November 2016.
On the other hand, all charges against the Ghanaian assistant referee David Lionheart Nii Lartey Laryea, whose behaviour had also been the subject of investigations, were dismissed by the FIFA Disciplinary Committee. Further information concerning the South Africa - Senegal match in question will be provided once the decision becomes final and binding.
FIFA follows a zero-tolerance policy on match manipulation and is committed to protecting the integrity of football. As a result, FIFA will continue with its ongoing efforts to combat match manipulation through a variety of initiatives, which include the monitoring of international betting and a confidential reporting system with a dedicated integrity hotline and e-mail address. 

Source: FIFA

FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup 2017

Bahamas, 27 April - 7 May 2017

AFC
1. Ebrahim Al-Mansory (UAE, 1973)
2. Bakhtiyor Namazov (UZB, 1974)
3. Liang Shao (CHN, 1979)
4. Yuichi Hatano (JPN, 1981, photo)

CAF
1. Issam Bousbih (TUN, 1977)
2. Said Hachim (MAD, 1979)
3. Jelili Ogunmuyiwa (NGA, 1979)

CONCACAF
1. Juan Angeles (DOM, 1979)
2. Gonzalo Carballo (SLV, 1982)
3. Miguel Lopez (GUA, 1977)

CONMEBOL
1. Pablo Cadenasso (URU, 1983)
2. Jorge Martinez (PAR, 1983)
3. Ivo Moraes (BRA, 1977)
4. Micke Palomino (PER, 1981)
5. Mariano Romo (ARG, 1981)

OFC
1. Hugo Pado (SOL, 1980)

UEFA
1. Laurynas Arzuolaitis (LTU, 1985)
2. Sofien Benchabane (FRA, 1984)
3. Eduards Borisevics (LVA, 1982)
4. Sergio Gomes (POR, 1979)
5. Ago Kartmann (EST, 1977)
6. Gionni Matticoli (ITA, 1975)
7. Lukasz Ostrowski (POL, 1985)
8. Jude Utulu (MLT, 1983)

Mexican referees affected by injuries

Top Mexican FIFA referee and World Cup candidate Roberto Garcia was injured in December 2016, few days before he refereed the FIFA Club World Cup Final in Japan, for which he had already been assigned. He had a muscle discomfort that turned out to be a muscular tear from which he began to be rehabilitated once he returned from the Far East. However, despite the medical care provided, he has not fully recovered yet. Recently, Garcia (photo) attempted the required fitness tests, but felt pain and chose not to finish. As a consequence, CONCACAF decided to replace him with Cesar Ramos for the FIFA World Cup qualifier Panama – USA on 28 March 2017.
Another international referee, Paul Delgadillo, is also out of the circuit since he was injured on Matchday 5 of the Clausura 2017. Same as Garcia, he took the rehabilitation as recommended; however, when he wanted to do the fitness tests could not finish because he had pain in the affected body part.
Finally, Francisco Chacon is another FIFA referee who has not refereed a single minute since the end of 2016. While he was doing weight work at the gym, one of them fell on his right foot, fracturing it, reason why Dr. Rafael Ortega operated it in Guadalajara, so he is already running, but he is not yet fit to do the fitness test. 

Source: Marca

PSG sent five-page complaint to UEFA about referee Aytekin

Paris Saint-Germain sent a detailed five-page letter of complaint to UEFA about the performance of referee Deniz Aytekin during last week’s extraordinary Champions League match against Barcelona. It includes a dossier of errors made by the match official. The French club have employed experts, including former international referees, to analyse the match in which Barcelona overturned a 4-0 deficit from the first leg to win 6-1 and progress into the last eight. There were a series of controversial incidents during the game with Aytekin (photo) awarding Barcelona two penalty kicks and coming under extreme pressure from the Spanish side’s players.
PSG have included eight incidents in their report which they have submitted to European football’s governing body, demanding that such mistakes are not repeated. Aytekin awarded Barcelona two penalties during the Nou Camp encounter, and PSG are unhappy with the way he handled pressure from the Catalan side’s players when making key decisions during the match. They have also raised decisions that went in Barcelona’s favour that were deemed questionable, with video evidence and photographs included to back-up their arguments. One such incident was the decision to book the Barcelona striker, Luis Suarez, for diving, only to award him a penalty after appearing to go down to the ground just as easily in the 90th minute. Another case surrounds the failure to award PSG a penalty kick when Javier Mascherano appeared to foul Angel Di Maria in the area, with the Barcelona defender admitting afterwards that he believed it was a penalty. “It is clear that I did foul Di Maria but I think that is not the reason why we eliminated PSG,” Mascherano said after the match. PSG have also raised separate incidents that include the awarding of the first penalty to Barcelona, an apparent stamp by Neymar on PSG defender Marquinhos, a handball by Barca defender Gerard Pique and also a shirt pull from the Spain international that was not picked up by any of the match officials. But despite the dossier being sent to UEFA, PSG are not demanding a replay - an online petition, with no link to the club, has topped 200,000 calling for the game to be played again - or any sanctions against Aytekin. However, PSG have told UEFA that they do not feel they received enough “respect” from the referee while at the same time obviously accepting that their team played poorly to suffer such an amazing reversal.

Source: The Telegraph

UEFA Europa League – Round of 16 (Second Leg)

16 March 2017

Beşiktaş – Olympiacos
Referee: Michael Oliver (ENG, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Stephen Child (ENG)
Assistant Referee 2: Stuart Burt (ENG)
Additional AR 1: Craig Pawson (ENG)
Additional AR 2: Jonathan Moss (ENG)
Fourth Official: Ian Hussin (ENG)
Referee Observer: Laurent Duhamel (FRA)

FC Krasnodar – Celta Vigo
Referee: Ruddy Buquet (FRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Cyril Gringore (FRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Frédéric Cano (FRA)
Additional AR 1: Nicolas Rainville (FRA)
Additional AR 2: Jérôme Miguelgorry (FRA)
Fourth Official: Nicolas Danos (FRA)
Referee Observer: Zbigniew Przesmycki (POL)

KRC Genk – KAA Gent
Referee: Alberto Undiano Mallenco (ESP)
Assistant Referee 1: Raúl Cabañero Martínez (ESP)
Assistant Referee 2: Diego Barbero Sevilla (ESP)
Additional AR 1: Carlos Clos Gómez (ESP)
Additional AR 2: José Sánchez Martínez (ESP)
Fourth Official: Roberto Alonso Fernández (ESP)
Referee Observer: Alan Snoddy (NIR)

Borussia Mönchengladbach – Schalke
Referee: Mark Clattenburg (ENG)
Assistant Referee 1: Jake Collin (ENG)
Assistant Referee 2: Simon Bennett (ENG)
Additional AR 1: Anthony Taylor (ENG)
Additional AR 2: Andre Marriner (ENG)
Fourth Official: Harry Lennard (ENG)
Referee Observer: Manuel Díaz Vega (ESP)

Anderlecht – Apoel
Referee: Aleksei Kulbakov (BLR)
Assistant Referee 1: Dzimitry Zhuk (BLR)
Assistant Referee 2: Aleh Maslianka (BLR)
Additional AR 1: Dzianis Shcharbakou (BLR)
Additional AR 2: Viktar Shymusik (BLR)
Fourth Official: Yury Khomchanka (BLR)
Referee Observer: Alan Freeland (SCO)

Ajax – FC København
Referee: Ivan Kružliak (SVK)
Assistant Referee 1: Martin Balko (SVK)
Assistant Referee 2: Tomaš Somoláni (SVK)
Additional AR 1: Peter Kralović (SVK)
Additional AR 2: Filip Glova (SVK)
Fourth Official: Branislav Hancko (SVK)
Referee Observer: William Young (SCO)

AS Roma – Olympique Lyonnais
Referee: Viktor Kassai (HUN)
Assistant Referee 1: György Ring (HUN)
Assistant Referee 2: Vencel Tóth (HUN)
Additional AR 1: Tamás Bognar (HUN)
Additional AR 2: Ádam Farkas (HUN)
Fourth Official: Peter Berettyán (HUN)
Referee Observer: Oğuz Sarvan (TUR)

Manchester United – FC Rostov
Referee: Gediminas Mažeika (LTU)
Assistant Referee 1: Vyautas Šimkus (LTU)
Assistant Referee 2: Vytenis Kazlauskas (LTU)
Additional AR 1: Donatas Rumšas (LTU)
Additional AR 2: Robertas Valikonis (LTU)
Fourth Official: Dovydas Sužiedėlis (LTU)
Referee Observer: Konrad Plautz (AUT)

CONCACAF Champions League – Semi-finals (First Leg)

14 March 2017
Tigres UANL – Vancouver Whitecaps
Referee: Oscar Moncada (HON, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Melvyn Cruz (HON)
Assistant Referee 2: Jesus Tabora (HON)
Fourth Official: Raul Castro (HON)

15 March 2017
FC Dallas – CF Pachuca
Referee: John Pitti (PAN)
Assistant Referee 1: Gabriel Victoria (PAN)
Assistant Referee 2: Christian Ramirez (HON)
Fourth Official: Melvin Matamoros (HON)

Copa Libertadores – Group Stage (Matchday 2)

14 March 2017
Melgar – Emelec
Referee: Sandro Ricci (BRA, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Emerson De Carvalho (BRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Marcelo Van Gasse (BRA)
Fourth Official: Rodolpho Toski (BRA)
Referee Assessor: Jorge Jaimes (PER)

Botafogo – Estudiantes
Referee: Jonathan Fuentes (URU)
Assistant Referee 1: Nicolas Taran (URU)
Assistant Referee 2: Richard Trinidad (URU)
Fourth Official: Christian Ferreyra (URU)
Referee Assessor: Enrique Osses (CHI)

Barcelona – Atletico National
Referee: Julio Bascunan (CHI)
Assistant Referee 1: Carlos Astroza (CHI)
Assistant Referee 2: Christian Schiemann (CHI)
Fourth Official: Carlos Ulloa (CHI)
Referee Assessor: Cesar Escano (PER)

15 March 2017
Nacional – Zulia
Referee: Wilson Lamouroux (COL)
Assistant Referee 1: Wilmar Navarro (COL)
Assistant Referee 2: Dionisio Ruiz (COL)
Fourth Official: Juan Ponton (COL)
Referee Assessor: Juan Cardellino (URU)

San Lorenzo – Paranaense
Referee: Roddy Zambrano (ECU)
Assistant Referee 1: Christian Lescano (ECU)
Assistant Referee 2: Ricardo Baren (ECU)
Fourth Official: Juan Albarracin (ECU)
Referee Assessor: Roberto Silvera (URU)

Medellin – River Plate
Referee: Wilton Sampaio (BRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Alessandro Rocha (BRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Bruno Boschilia (BRA)
Fourth Official: Luiz Oliveira (BRA)
Referee Assessor: Oscar Ruiz (COL)

Universidad Catolica – Flamengo
Referee: Diego Haro (PER)
Assistant Referee 1: Coty Carrera (PER)
Assistant Referee 2: Jorge Yupanqui (PER)
Fourth Official: Joel Alarcon (PER)
Referee Assessor: Jorge Larrionda (URU)

Palmeiras – Wilstermann
Referee: Eduardo Gamboa (CHI)
Assistant Referee 1: Claudio Rios (CHI)
Assistant Referee 2: Edson Cisternas (CHI)
Fourth Official: Patricio Polic (CHI)
Referee Assessor: Nilson Moncao (BRA)

16 March 2017
Chapecoense – Lanus
Referee: Enrique Caceres (PAR)
Assistant Referee 1: Eduardo Cardozo (PAR)
Assistant Referee 2: Juan Zorrilla (PAR)
Fourth Official: Jose Mendez (PAR)
Referee Assessor: Carlos Herrera (ECU)

Penarol – Tucuman
Referee: Wilmar Roldan (COL)
Assistant Referee 1: Alexander Guzman (COL)
Assistant Referee 2: Cristian De la Cruz (COL)
Fourth Official: Andres Rojas (COL)
Referee Assessor: Roberto Perassi (BRA)

Santa Fe – Sporting Cristal
Referee: Carlos Orbe (ECU)
Assistant Referee 1: Byron Romero (ECU)
Assistant Referee 2: Flavio Nall (ECU)
Fourth Official: Vinicio Espinel (ECU)
Referee Assessor: Claudio Puga (CHI)

Santos – The Strongest
Referee: Nestor Pitana (ARG)
Assistant Referee 1: Hernan Maidana (ARG)
Assistant Referee 2: Juan Belatti (ARG)
Fourth Official: German Delfino (ARG)
Referee Assessor: Ednilson Corona (BRA)

Mexican FIFA referee Guerrero investigated for suspected cheating

One of the top Mexican referees, Fernando Guerrero, is under suspension during an internal investigation of the Referees Committee. Referee Guerrero (photo), dubbed “the Singer", is suspected of cheating on a medical test, according to national media.
According to reports, Liga MX suspects that the referee altered the results of his anthropometric tests, which are responsible for measuring body mass. Héctor González Iñárritu, the head of the Referees Committee, would have taken the decision to temporarily suspend Guerrero, while conducting the investigation. It is said that the referee would have sent a colleague to do the anthropometric test in his place. Fernando Guerrero Ramirez has not been assigned any matches since matchday 5, when he refereed the Necaxa – Monterrey duel, in which he congratulated the goalkeeper of the Rays, Marcelo Barovero, for the saves he made in that match.

Source: Superlider

UEFA Champions League – Round of 16 (Second Leg, II)

14 March 2017
Juventus – FC Porto
Referee: Ovidiu Hațegan (ROU, photo)
Assistant Referee: Octavian Şovre (ROU)
Assistant Referee: Sebastian Gheorghe (ROU)
Additional AR 1: Radu Petrescu (ROU)
Additional AR 2: Sebastian Colţescu (ROU)
Fourth Official: Radu Ghinguleac (ROU)
Referee Observer: Manuel Mejuto González ESP)

Leicester City – Sevilla FC
Referee: Daniele Orsato (ITA)
Assistant Referee: Riccardo Di Fiore (ITA)
Assistant Referee: Lorenzo Manganelli (ITA)
Additional AR 1: Luca Banti (ITA)
Additional AR 2: Antonio Damato (ITA)
Fourth Official: Alessandro Giallatini (ITA)
Referee Observer: Kyros Vassaras (GRE)

15 March 2017
AS Monaco – Manchester City
Referee: Gianluca Rocchi (ITA)
Assistant Referee: Mauro Tonolini (ITA)
Assistant Referee: Filippo Meli (ITA)
Additional AR 1: Davide Massa (ITA)
Additional AR 2: Daniele Doveri (ITA)
Fourth Official: Elenito Di Liberatore (ITA)
Referee Observer: Bo Karlsson (SWE)

Atletico Madrid – Bayer Leverkusen
Referee: Sergei Karasev (RUS)
Assistant Referee: Anton Averianov (RUS)
Assistant Referee: Tikhon Kalugin (RUS)
Additional AR 1: Sergei Lapochkin (RUS)
Additional AR 2: Sergei Ivanov (RUS)
Fourth Official: Igor Demeshko (RUS)
Referee Observer: Christos Skapoullis (CYP)

Referee strike halts Mexican league

Mexican referees went on strike Friday in protest at light punishment for players who attack match officials, forcing the weekend league programme to be abandoned. The programme “has been suspended because designated referees refused to officiate”, said a statement from the Mexican Football Federation. Referees say that under federation rules, players who attack referees must be suspended from the game for one year. But the federation announced Friday that two players had been handed lighter bans. Toluca’s Argentinian Enrique Triverio, who elbowed a referee during his team’s defeat by Morelia during the Mexican Cup was banned for eight games. Paraguayan Pablo Aguilar, who plays for the club América and head-butted the referee in the Wednesday match against Tijuana, was suspended for 10 games. When the sanctions were announced, strike action was launched immediately by match officials preparing to officiate at Friday’s league match between Veracruz and Puebla, the first league match of the weekend.
The primary complaint from the referees appears to be Liga MX's perceived inaction following a turbulent midweek of cup games. First, there was Toluca's match against Morelia, in which Miguel Flores sent three players off, including Enrique Triverio for pushing him in the chest. After the game, which Morelia won on penalties, Mexico and Toluca goalkeeper Alfredo Talavera - who also saw red - slammed the officiating. "The refereeing is going from bad to worse. That man is crazy", the usually measured Talavera said of Flores. Just a couple of hours later in Club Tijuana's fiercely fought Copa MX round-of-16 win against Club America, there were more ugly scenes involving the officials. Las Aguilas defender Pablo Aguilar was livid on the final whistle and charged up to referee Fernando Hernandez, pushing his head toward him and making contact. In the tunnel, America sporting director Ricardo Pelaez had some stern words for Hernandez, but the America chief flatly denied reports he had threatened the ref and even said he would resign if someone could provide evidence to the contrary. The referees' association, however, sent out a statement of solidarity with Flores and Hernandez on Thursday and then backed it up early Friday suggesting they wanted an "exemplary sanction" for the incidents, which they would argue put their referees' safety at risk.
In what appeared to be a direct response and last-gasp attempt to calm the issue and get play going this weekend, Liga MX and the FMF called a news conference a couple of hours ahead of the time when the Veracruz and Puebla match was due to kick off on Friday. All of a sudden, it appeared the "exemplary" sanctions had arrived. Triverio received an eight-match ban and Aguilar was slapped with 10 matches, while Pelaez has to pay a fine of just north of US $7,500. They were significant rulings and may not have been so severe but for the prevalent atmosphere at the moment in Liga MX. "If each side puts up a trench, nothing gets built", FMF president Decio de Maria said in an attempt to reach out to the referees' association. Yet it wasn't enough for the defiant referees, who announced the strike shortly after. The move has been polemic, drawing praise from many quarters for its unity in standing up to Mexico's soccer authorities. "United for the common good" is the association's slogan and only a few weeks ago it was demanding higher pay for the officials. The strike is a powerful message that extends way beyond Liga MX's officiating. In a league in which freedom of contract doesn't fully exist, players are sometimes traded without their consent and institutions have bought their way back after being relegated, the referees' strike is a reminder of the influence a unified, independent and organized body can have. The strike comes at a time when Atlas captain and Mexico legend Rafa Marquez is laying the groundwork for an independent players' union to help end the issues outlined above, as well as others. If the referees can come together, imagine the threat Marquez's union could pose to Mexican soccer's status quo? The strike is also a hammer-blow to the league's image at a time when president Enrique Bonilla has stated the idea is to internationalize Liga MX outside Latin America and talks continue about a MLS/Liga MX cup competition later this year. Mexican football isn't new to scandals and the sooner a solution is found the better - although, with the referees clearly in no mood to buckle lightly, that may be easier said than done.

Source: ESPN

UEFA Europa League – Round of 16 (First Leg)

9 March 2017

FC Rostov – Manchester United
Referee: Felix Zwayer (GER, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Thorsten Schiffner (GER)
Assistant Referee 2: Marco Achmüller (GER)
Additional AR 1: Marco Fritz (GER)
Additional AR 2: Patrick Ittrich (GER)
Fourth Official: Jan Seidel (GER)
Referee Observer: Karen Nalbandyan (ARM)

FC København – Ajax
Referee: Artur Soares Dias (POR)
Assistant Referee 1: Paulo Santos (POR)
Assistant Referee 2: Rui Tavares (POR)
Additional AR 1: Tiago Martins (POR)
Additional AR 2: João Pinheiro (POR)
Fourth Official: Bruno Rodrigues (POR)
Referee Observer: Herbert Fandel (GER)

Apoel – Anderlecht
Referee: Manuel De Sousa (POR)
Assistant Referee 1: Alvaro Mesquita (POR)
Assistant Referee 2: Ricardo Santos (POR)
Additional AR 1: Fábio Veríssimo (POR)
Additional AR 2: Carlos Xistra (POR)
Fourth Official: Nuno Pereira (POR)
Referee Observer: Kaj Natri (FIN)

Celta Vigo – FC Krasnodar
Referee: Craig Thomson (SCO)
Assistant Referee 1: David McGeachie (SCO)
Assistant Referee 2: Alan Mulvanny (SCO)
Additional AR 1: Andrew Dallas (SCO)
Additional AR 2: Kevin Clancy (SCO)
Fourth Official: Graeme Stewart (SCO)
Referee Observer: Rune Pedersen (NOR)

Schalke – Borussia Mönchengladbach
Referee: Björn Kuipers (NED)
Assistant Referee 1: Sander van Roekel (NED)
Assistant Referee 2: Erwin Zeinstra (NED)
Additional AR 1: Serdar Gözübüyük (NED)
Additional AR 2: Pol van Boekel (NED)
Fourth Official: Charles Schaap (NED)
Referee Observer: Guy Goethals (BEL)

Olympiacos – Beşiktaş
Referee: Danny Makkelie (NED)
Assistant Referee 1: Mario Diks (NED)
Assistant Referee 2: Hessel Steegstra (NED)
Additional AR 1: Kevin Blom (NED)
Additional AR 2: Jochem Kamphuis (NED)
Fourth Official: Jan de Vries (NED)
Referee Observer: Francesco Bianchi (SUI)

Olympique Lyonnais – AS Roma
Referee: Anthony Taylor (ENG)
Assistant Referee 1: Simon Bennett (ENG)
Assistant Referee 2: Jake Collin (ENG)
Additional AR 1: Andre Marriner (ENG)
Additional AR 2: Jonathan Moss (ENG)
Fourth Official: Adam Nunn (ENG)
Referee Observer: Jaap Uilenberg (NED)

KAA Gent – KRC Genk
Referee: Paolo Tagliavento (ITA)
Assistant Referee 1: Alessandro Costanzo (ITA)
Assistant Referee 2: Matteo Passeri (ITA)
Additional AR 1: Paolo Valeri (ITA)
Additional AR 2: Antonio Damato (ITA)
Fourth Official: Riccardo Di Fiore (ITA)
Referee Observer: Neale Barry (ENG)

AFC: Landmark Additional Assistant Referees course

Asian refereeing passed another milestone today at the opening of the Asian Football Confederation’s (AFC) first-ever Additional Assistant Referees (AAR) course in Doha, Qatar. The AAR system, which aims to strengthen the support for referees and enhance the decision-making process, particularly in the penalty and goal-line area, will be piloted in the knockout stages of the AFC’s flagship club competitions this year. Asia’s top 42 officials have gathered for the five-day course to fully immerse themselves in the implementation of the new AAR system, which is now part of the Laws of the Game.
The landmark course, which will see participants glean insights from FIFA Head of Refereeing Department Massimo Busacca, is also the first time that the concepts and protocols of the new Video Assistant Referee (VAR) system, as well as the roles and responsibilities of referee coaches, have been put together in a single programme in Asia. “Today’s course has been organised to prepare our referees for the next era of world refereeing – an era where Asia’s best continue to appear on the world’s biggest stages”, said Hany Taleb Ballan, Deputy Chairman of the AFC Referees Committee at the opening of the course in Doha, Qatar. “Under the banner of One Asia, One Goal, the AFC has set out its Vision and Mission to be the world’s leading Confederation and this new initiative underlines our aspirations. Our referees have a key role to play in realising our future ambitions for Asian football and we will continue to invest in their development to ensure that they have the tools, education and resources to meet the demands of modern refereeing.” The use of additional assistant referees (AAR) was approved by the AFC Referees Committee in Goa, India, in September last year. In the coming days, officials will undergo theoretical sessions as well as a series of practical on-the-field simulations to familiarise themselves with the new application and how best to benefit from the AAR and VAR systems. The course will end on Saturday with an emphasis on Referee Coaching. As part of efforts to enhance the mentorship of younger referees, Hany Taleb Ballan also announced that the AFC will introduce coaching sessions in the final stages of the age-group competitions to help guide as well as elevate the capabilities of Asia’s most promising referees.

Source: AFC

Clattenburg could still referee at the FIFA World Cup 2018

Mark Clattenburg will take charge of the Crown Prince Cup final in Saudi Arabia on Friday, ruling him out of the weekend's FA Cup quarter-finals.
Sportsmail can reveal that the 41-year-old will referee for the first time in the Middle East when Al-Nassr face Al-Ittihad at the 70,000-capacity King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh. Clattenburg is working his three-month notice period with the Premier League before taking up a new £500,000-per-year role as head of referees in Saudi Arabia. And we also understand that the County Durham-born official could yet referee at next summer's World Cup. It was assumed that Clattenburg - who took charge of the Euro 2016 final - had passed up his chance of being involved in Russia after deciding to quit the Premier League last month having become disillusioned with the politics of the Professional Game Match Officials Limited. But we can reveal that refereeing chiefs - including FIFA/UEFA boss Pierluigi Collina - are exploring ways of getting the man voted the world's No. 1 whistler to the finals. As part of his new role, Clattenburg will set-up an exchange arrangement which will see referees from Europe's top leagues head to Saudi Arabia on one-off weekends - and in return he could be presiding over matches on the continent next season, opening the door for his involvement at the World Cup as a UEFA representative. He will not, however, take the place of Saudi's nominated referee, Fahad Al Mirdasi. Clattenburg - who turned down a £1m-per-year offer from China - will referee around 20 matches per season in Saudi Arabia, but it is thought he will also look to bring about several innovative changes in a bid to improve refereeing standards.

Source: Daily Mail

UEFA Champions League – Round of 16 (Second Leg, I)

7 March 2017
SSC Napoli – Real Madrid
Referee: Çüneyt Çakir (TUR)
Assistant Referee: Bahattin Duran (TUR)
Assistant Referee: Tarik Ongun (TUR)
Additional AR 1: Hüseyin Göçek (TUR)
Additional AR 2: Barış Şimşek (TUR)
Fourth Official: Mustafa Eyisoy (TUR)
Referee Observer: Alexandru Deaconu (ROU)

Arsenal – Bayern München
Referee: Anastasios Sidiropoulos (GRE)
Assistant Referee: Damianos Efthymiadis (GRE)
Assistant Referee: Polychronis Kostaras (GRE)
Additional AR 1: Charalambos Kalogeropoulos (GRE)
Additional AR 2: Alexandros Aretopoulos (GRE)
Fourth Official: Lazaros Dimitriadis (GRE)
Referee Observer: Patrick Kelly (IRL)

8 March 2017
FC Barcelona – Paris SG
Referee: Deniz Aytekin (GER)
Assistant Referee: Guido Kleve (GER)
Assistant Referee: Markus Häcker (GER)
Additional AR 1: Daniel Siebert (GER)
Additional AR 2: Benjamin Brand (GER)
Fourth Official: Mike Pickel (GER)
Referee Observer: László Vagner (HUN)

Borussia Dortmund – SL Benfica
Referee: Martin Atkinson (ENG)
Assistant Referee: Stephen Child (ENG)
Assistant Referee: Stuart Burt (ENG)
Additional AR 1: Michael Oliver (ENG)
Additional AR 2: Kevin Friend (ENG)
Fourth Official: Constantine Hatzidakis (ENG)
Referee Observer: Georgios Bikas (GRE)

CONCACAF U-20 Championship Final 2017: Bejarano (CRC)

5 March 2017

USA – Honduras
Referee: Henry Bejarano (CRC, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Hermenerito Leal (GUA)
Assistant Referee 2: Leonardo Sanchez (CUB)
Fourth Official: Kevin Morrisson (JAM)

Reserve AR: Joseph Bertrand (TRI)

Focus on fairness at 131st IFAB AGM

The 131st Annual General Meeting of The IFAB took place today at Wembley Stadium in London, and saw a new strategy approved, which will see the Laws of the Game used to increase fairness and develop the game.
The IFAB, which consists of the football associations of England (the FA), Scotland (SFA), Wales (FAW) and Northern Ireland (IFA), as well as FIFA (who represent the 207 remaining national associations) decided upon a close focus on the behaviour of players on the pitch. In particular, this could see the responsibilities of captains enhanced in order to improve on-field behaviour and create better communication between players and referees. Methods to tackle time wasting were also discussed, in response to continuing fan concern around this particular issue. The members strongly supported this initiative as the next step in delivering “what football wants” following the extensive revision of the Laws of the Game. Other major areas which The IFAB will focus on include handball and a potentially fairer system for kicks from the penalty mark.
Central to the IFAB strategy is also a robust evaluation process for potential future Law changes and initiatives. As part of the ‘what football wants’ approach, the AGM extended the “Modifications” section of the Laws allowing national football associations more freedom to modify the organisational Laws for the lower levels of football e.g. number of substitutions and duration of play, to help them develop their domestic football by encouraging more people to take part. National football associations will decide at which levels the modifications are applied in their domestic football. This does not include competitions involving the first team of clubs in the top division or senior ‘A’ international teams. Additionally, as part of “Modifications”, the proposals to allow temporary dismissals (sin bins) for yellow card offences were approved for youth, grassroots and disability football, as it is the case for return substitutions. The AGM also approved the use of electronic communication systems in the technical area for player welfare and safety, acknowledging the importance of technology in assessing potential injuries with the help of medical data and video material.
On the topic of video assistant referees (VARs), the AGM was updated on the first phase of experiments, including reports from the workshops and more than 20 test matches organised to test the VAR protocol which was approved one year ago. The members also received detailed information on the key learning areas which will be incorporated into the ‘live’ experiments starting in almost 20 competitions from around the world in 2017.
The ‘success’ of the change from a red to yellow card for a penalty awarded for the denial of a goal-scoring opportunity if there was an attempt to play the ball, led the members to extend the principle by removing a yellow card for a penalty kick awarded for a ‘stopping a promising attack’ if the offence was an attempt to play the ball.
The AGM also approved the development of the first minimum safety standard for electronic performance and tracking systems (EPTS) which will regulate the safety of devices worn by players on the field of play.
The modifications to the Laws of the Game made at this AGM will come into effect on 1 June 2017, except for competitions which have started before that date.
The 132nd Annual General Meeting will be hosted by FIFA in February or March 2018

Source: IFAB

UEFA Women’s Euro 2017

Netherlands, 16 July - 6 August 2017

Referees
1. Jana Adamkova (CZE, 1978, photo)
2. Stephanie Frappart (FRA, 1983)
3. Riem Hussein (GER, 1980)
4. Bibiana Steinhaus (GER, 1979)
5. Katalin Kulcsar (HUN, 1984)
6. Carina Vitulano (ITA, 1975)
7. Monika Mularczyk (POL, 1980)
8. Teodora Albon (ROU, 1977)
9. Anastasia Pustovoitova (RUS, 1981)
10. Esther Staubli (SUI, 1979)
11. Pernilla Larsson (SWE, 1976)
12. Kateryna Monzul (UKR, 1981)

Assistant Referees
1. Sanja Rodak Karsic (CRO, 1983)
2. Angela Kyriakou (CYP, 1977)
3. Lucie Ratajova (CZE, 1979)
4. Sian Massey (ENG, 1985)
5. Rocio Puente Pino (ESP, 1983)
6. Manuela Nicolosi (FRA, 1980)
7. Christina Biehl (GER, 1986)
8. Katrin Rafalski (GER, 1982)
9. Chrysoula Kourompylia (GRE, 1977)
10. Judith Kulcsar (HUN, 1980)
11. Michelle O’Neill (IRL, 1978)
12. Lucia Abruzzese (ITA, 1976)
13. Biljana Atanasovski (MKD, 1985)
14. Nicolet Bakker (NED, 1984)
15. Anna Dabrowska (POL, 1984)
16. Petruta Iugulescu (ROU, 1979)
17. Mihaela Tepusa (ROU, 1983)
18. Ekaterina Kurochkina (RUS, 1986)
19. Belinda Brem (SUI, 1987)
20. Maria Sukenikova (SVK, 1975)
21. Annica Johansson (SWE, 1986)
22. Julia Magnusson (SWE, 1985)
23. Oleksandra Ardasheva (UKR, 1987)
24. Maryna Striletska (UKR, 1983)

Fourth Officials
1. Lina Lehtovaara (FIN, 1981)
2. Lorraine Clark (SCO, 1985)

Reserve Referee
1. Sandra Braz (POR, 1978)

Reserve Assistant Referees
1. Ella De Vries (BEL, 1977)
2. Svetlana Bilic (SRB, 1981)

All match officials are expected to be in peak physical condition and able to pass the full FIFA fitness test during a preparatory workshop on 15-17 May 2017 in the Netherlands. The referees, assistant referees and fourth officials who successfully complete the fitness test and the workshop will then be required to return to the Netherlands on 12 July 2017 for the final tournament. The named reserves will attend the workshop only, but should remain on standby for the final tournament in case they are required to replace another match official. (Source: ISRS)

Copa Libertadores – Group Stage (Matchday 1)

7 March 2017
Deportes Iquique – Guaraní
Referee: Raul Orosco (BOL, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Juan Cardoso (BOL)
Assistant Referee 2: Edward Saavedra (BOL)
Fourth Official: Victor Hurtado (BOL)
Referee Assessor: Rodolfo Otero (ARG)

Jorge Wilstermann – Peñarol
Referee: Victor Carrillo (PER)
Assistant Referee 1: Jonny Bossio (PER)
Assistant Referee 2: Raul Lopez Cruz (PER)
Fourth Official: Miguel Santivañez (PER)
Referee Assessor: Claudio Puga (CHI)

Atlético Paranaense – Universidad Católica

Referee: Ulises Mereles (PAR)
Assistant Referee 1: Rodney Aquino (PAR)
Assistant Referee 2: Dario Gaona (PAR)
Fourth Official: Arnaldo Samaniego (PAR)
Referee Assessor: Roberto Perassi (BRA)

Zulia – Chapecoense

Referee: Omar Ponce (ECU)
Assistant Referee 1: Luis Vera (ECU)
Assistant Referee 2: Juan Macias (ECU)
Fourth Official: Guillermo Guerrero (ECU)
Referee Assessor: Adrian Gomez (VEN)

8 March 2017
Sport Boys – Libertad
Referee: Roddy Zambrano (ECU)
Assistant Referee 1: Byron Romero (ECU)
Assistant Referee 2: Christian Lescano (ECU)
Fourth Official: Luis Quiroz (ECU)
Referee Assessor: Alicio Pena (BRA)

Godoy Cruz – Atlético Mineiro

Referee: Wilson Lamouroux (COL)
Assistant Referee 1: Eduardo Diaz (COL)
Assistant Referee 2: Alexander León (COL)
Fourth Official: Juan Ponton (COL)
Referee Assessor: Joel Ruiz (PAR)

Flamengo – San Lorenzo
Referee: Andrés Cunha (URU)
Assistant Referee 1: Mauricio Espinosa (URU)
Assistant Referee 2: Miguel Nievas (URU)
Fourth Official: Jonathan Fuentes (URU)
Referee Assessor: Francisco Mondria (CHI)

Atlético Tucumán – Palmeiras
Referee: Mario Diaz De Vivar (PAR)
Assistant Referee 1: Eduardo Cardozo (PAR)
Assistant Referee 2: Milciades Saldivar (PAR)
Fourth Official: Eber Aquino (PAR)
Referee Assessor: Ricardo Casas (ARG)

9 March 2017
Zamora – Gremio
Referee: Dario Herrera (ARG)
Assistant Referee 1: Hernan Maidana (ARG)
Assistant Referee 2: Cristian Navarro (ARG)
Fourth Official: Fernando Espinoza (ARG)
Referee Assessor: Sandro Vera (ECU)

Lanús – Nacional
Referee: Roberto Tobar (CHI)
Assistant Referee 1: Raul Orellana (CHI)
Assistant Referee 2: Jose Retamal (CHI)
Fourth Official: Jorge Osorio (CHI)
Referee Assessor: Victor Rivera (PER)

The Strongest – Independiente Santa Fe
Referee: Patricio Loustau (ARG)
Assistant Referee 1: Ezequiel Brailovsky (ARG)
Assistant Referee 2: Ivan Nunez (ARG)
Fourth Official: Silvio Trucco (ARG)
Referee Assessor: Martin Vazquez (URU)

Sporting Cristal – Santos
Referee: José Argote (VEN)
Assistant Referee 1: Carlos Lopez (VEN)
Assistant Referee 2: Luis Murillo (VEN)
Fourth Official: Marlon Escalante (VEN)
Referee Assessor: Jose Buitrago (COL)

UEFA Youth League – Quarter-finals

7-8 March 2017 

CSKA Moskva – SL Benfica
Referee: Aliyar Aghayev (AZE, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Rza Mammadov (AZE)
Assistant Referee 2: Akif Amirali (AZE)
Fourth Official: Alexandra Ponomareva (RUS)
Referee Observer: Iouri Baskakov (RUS)

FC Salzburg – Atletico Madrid
Referee: Bastian Dankert (GER)
Assistant Referee 1: Rene Rohde (GER)
Assistant Referee 2: Christian Bandurski (GER)
Fourth Official: Sebastian Gishamer (AUT)
Referee Observer: Robert Sedlacek (AUT)

FC Barcelona – FC Porto
Referee: Bart Vertenten (BEL)
Assistant Referee 1: Yves De Neve (BEL)
Assistant Referee 2: Rien Vanyzere (BEL)
Fourth Official: David Medie Jimenez (ESP)
Referee Observer: Bernardino Gonzalez Vazquez (ESP)

Real Madrid – Ajax Amsterdam
Referee: Marco Guida (ITA)
Assistant Referee 1: Fabiano Preti (ITA)
Assistant Referee 2: Rodolfo Di Vuolo (ITA)
Fourth Official: Valentín Pizarro Gomez (ESP)
Referee Observer: Manuel Lopez Fernandez (ESP)

Algarve Cup 2017

Portugal, 1-8 March 2017

AFC
Referee: Casey Reibelt (AUS, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Allyson Flynn (AUS)
Assistant Referee 2: Renae Coghill (AUS)

Referee: Yoshimi Yamashita (JPN)
Assistant Referee 1: Makoto Bozono (JPN)
Assistant Referee 2: Malko Hagio (JPN)

CAF
Referee: Salima Mukasanga (RWA)
Assistant Referee 1: Mary Njoroge (KEN)
Assistant Referee 2: Bernadettar Kwimbira (MWI)

Referee: Fatou Thioune (SEN)
Assistant Referee 1: Fanta Kone (MLI)
Assistant Referee 2: Queency Victoire (MRI)

Referee: Jonesia Kabakama (TAN)

CONCACAF
Referee: Marianela Araya (CRC)
Assistant Referee 1: Kimberly Moreira (CRC)
Assistant Referee 2: Yudillia Briones (MEX)

Referee: Ekaterina Koroleva (USA)
Assistant Referee 1: Felisha Mariscal (USA)
Assistant Referee 2: Kathryn Nesbitt (USA)

CONMEBOL
Referee: Edina Alves (BRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Tatiane Sacilotti (BRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Leslie Vasquez (CHI)

Referee: Laura Fortunato (ARG)
Assistant Referee 1: Daiana Milone (ARG)
Assistant Referee 2: Mary Blanco (COL)

OFC
Assistant Referee 1: Sarah Jones (NZL)
Assistant Referee 2: Maria Tamalelagi (SAM)

UEFA
Referee: Sandra Braz (POR)
Assistant Referee 1: Rocio Puente (ESP)
Assistant Referee 2: Kylie McMullan (SCO)

Referee: Riem Hussein (GER)
Assistant Referee 1: Christina Biehl (GER)
Assistant Referee 2: Lisa Rashid (ENG)

Referee: Anastasia Pustovoitova (RUS)
Assistant Referee 1: Ekaterina Kurochkina (RUS)
Assistant Referee 2: Ekaterina Marinova (BUL)