Referees Moccia and Nicastro invited to UEFA Super Cup

UEFA has invited Italian female referees Annalisa Moccia and Giulia Nicastro to the Super Cup on 14 August 2019 in Istanbul (Turkey). The AIA President, Marcello Nicchi, is praising the initiative and sensibility shown by UEFA through Aleksander Čeferin, Giorgio Marchetti and Roberto Rosetti. (Source: AIA)

Sergio Vessicchio’s comments on CanaleCinqueTv came before kick-off at the match between Agropoli and Sant’Agnello in the fifth tier of the Italian league as the assistant referee Annalisa Moccia was inspecting one of the nets. “It is disgusting to see a woman as a match official in a league where clubs spend hundreds of thousands of euros,” he said. “It is a joke for the federation to do such a thing, it’s disgraceful on a football field.” Vessicchio reiterated his criticism in a tweet after the match. “I personally think that women refereeing in football is wrong for many reasons, so I confirm my thoughts,” he said. However, he later apologised. “I was wrong, I did something stupid,” he said in an interview with CRC radio. “I expressed myself badly... the broadcast was live and I could not take back what I said.” He said his criticism was aimed at the federation and the system. “I immediately noticed that I had said nonsense and will pay the consequences.” There was no immediate comment from the broadcaster CanaleCinqueTv. Agropoli, who won 2-0, issued a “message of solidarity” for Moccia. “The club firmly believes in the value of women, including those present in the world of football, be they assistant referees, coaches and players,” said its president Domenico Cerruti on the club website. The incident happened on the same weekend that Juventus Women played at the club’s Allianz Arena for the first time in front of a 39,000 crowd, by far the biggest attendance for a women’s match in Italy. (Source: The Independent)

A 14-year-old player has allegedly exposed himself to a female referee in a story that’s angered the football world. Giulia Nicastro, 22, was officiating a youth match in Mestre, Italy when the shocking incident allegedly occurred. According to Sport Mediaset, the player lowered his shorts and taunted the referee with sexist abuse after disagreeing with a decision. She then proceeded to show him a red card, which sparked more vile abuse from the side’s fans. Reports suggest around 20 spectators hurled shocking abuse at the official, but they refused requests to leave the area. The club later apologised. "We have already apologised to the organising company,” the Treporti coach said. "The same will be done to the referee we are trying to contact." Nicastro, who is the girlfriend of Napoli star Stefano Moreo, is said to be very shaken by the horrible incident. The story has made international headlines, with widespread condemnation aimed at the player. (Source: Yahoo)

UEFA Europa League – Second Qualifying Round (Second Leg)

30 July – 1 August 2019

FK Sūduva – SP Tre Penne
Referee: Artyom Kuchin (KAZ, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Yevgeniy Belskiy (KAZ)
Assistant Referee 2: Sergey Vasyutin (KAZ)
Fourth Official: Saken Bayymbet (KAZ)
Referee Observer: Kostadin Gerginov (BUL)

Lincoln Red Imps – Ararat Armenia
Referee: Alexandre Boucaut (BEL)
Assistant Referee 1: Laurent Conotte (BEL)
Assistant Referee 2: Pieter Becquet (BEL)
Fourth Official: Kevin Van Damme (BEL)
Referee Observer: David Malcolm (NIR)

F91 Dudelange – FK Škendija
Referee: Iwan Griffith (WAL)
Assistant Referee 1: Daniel Beckett (WAL)
Assistant Referee 2: Lewiss Edwards (WAL)
Fourth Official: Robert Jenkins (WAL)
Referee Observer: Goran Mihaljević (MNE)

KF Feronikeli – Slovan Bratislava
Referee: Yigal Frid (ISR)
Assistant Referee 1: Matityahu Yakobov (ISR)
Assistant Referee 2: Omer Barbiro (ISR)
Fourth Official: Nael Odeh (ISR)
Referee Observer: Stéphane Lannoy (FRA)

Čukarički – Molde
Referee: Mykola Balakin (UKR)
Assistant Referee 1: Oleksandr Korniyko (UKR)
Assistant Referee 2: Semen Shlonchak (UKR)
Fourth Official: Vitaliy Romanov (UKR)
Referee Observer: David Fernández Borbalán (ESP)

Ordabasy Shymkent – Mladá Boleslav
Referee: Mads-Kristoffer Kristoffersen (DEN)
Assistant Referee 1: Lars Hummelgaard (DEN)
Assistant Referee 2: Dennis Wollenberg (DEN)
Fourth Official: Sandi Putros (DEN)
Referee Observer: João Ferreira (POR)

FC Astana – Santa Coloma
Referee: Giorgi Kruashvili (GEO)
Assistant Referee 1: Levan Varamishvili (GEO)
Assistant Referee 2: Giorgi Elikashvili (GEO)
Fourth Official: Aleko Aptsiauri (GEO)
Referee Observer: Shmuel Shteif (ISR)

Kayrat Almaty – Hapoel Beer Sheva
Referee: Ola Hobber Nilsen (NOR)
Assistant Referee 1: Tom Grønevik (NOR)
Assistant Referee 2: Geir Isaksen (NOR)
Fourth Official: Kai Erik Steen (NOR)
Referee Observer: Michal Beneš (CZE)

FC Viitorul – KAA Gent
Referee: José Munuera Montero (ESP)
Assistant Referee 1: Íñigo Prieto López (ESP)
Assistant Referee 2: Alfonso Baena Espejo (ESP)
Fourth Official: Mario Melero López (ESP)
Referee Observer: Vladimir Antonov (MDA)

KuPS Kuopio – Legia Warszawa
Referee: Lawrence Visser (BEL)
Assistant Referee 1: Thibaud Nijssen (BEL)
Assistant Referee 2: Jo De Weirdt (BEL)
Fourth Official: Bram Van Driessche (BEL)
Referee Observer: Dejan Filipović (SRB)

Zorya Luhansk – Budućnost Podgorica
Referee: Neil Doyle (IRL)
Assistant Referee 1: Darren Carey (IRL)
Assistant Referee 2: Darragh Keegan (IRL)
Fourth Official: John McLoughlin (IRL)
Referee Observer: Pjetur Sigurdsson (ISL)

Universitatea Craiova – Budapest Honvéd
Referee: Arnold Hunter (NIR)
Assistant Referee 1: Gareth Eakin (NIR)
Assistant Referee 2: Georgios Argyropoulos (NIR)
Fourth Official: James Robinson (NIR)
Referee Observer: Domagoj Vučkov (CRO)

Levski Sofia – AEK Larnaca
Referee: Glenn Nyberg (SWE)
Assistant Referee 1: Mahbod Beigi (SWE)
Assistant Referee 2: Andreas Söderkvist (SWE)
Fourth Official: Adam Ladebäck (SWE)
Referee Observer: Rusmir Mrković (BIH)

Debreceni VSC – Torino FC
Referee: Fran Jović (CRO)
Assistant Referee 1: Ivica Modrić (CRO)
Assistant Referee 2: Hrvoje Radić (CRO)
Fourth Official: Ivan Vučković (CRO)
Referee Observer: Gerard Perry (IRL)

BK Häcken – AZ Alkmaar
Referee: Frank Schneider (FRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Mehdi Rahmouni (FRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Djemel Zitouni (FRA)
Fourth Official: Éric Wattellier (FRA)
Referee Observer: Boško Jovanetić (SRB)

Riga FC – Piast Gliwice
Referee: Eitan Shmuelevitz (ISR)
Assistant Referee 1: Nati Dotan (ISR)
Assistant Referee 2: Eliyahu Casapu (ISR)
Fourth Official: Eli Hacmon (ISR)
Referee Observer: Christer Fällström (SWE)

FK Liepāja – IFK Norrköping
Referee: Marius Avram (ROU)
Assistant Referee 1: Valentin Avram (ROU)
Assistant Referee 2: Cristian Orbuleț (ROU)
Fourth Official: Horațiu Feșnic (ROU)
Referee Observer: Are Habicht (EST)

Neftçi PFK – Arsenal Tula
Referee: Alan Sant (MLT)
Assistant Referee 1: Edward Spiteri (MLT)
Assistant Referee 2: Roberto Vella (MLT)
Fourth Official: Malcolm Spiteri (MLT)
Referee Observer: Mika Peltola (FIN)

Atrómitos FC – Dunajská Streda
Referee: Mohammed Al-Hakim (SWE)
Assistant Referee 1: Mehmet Culum (SWE)
Assistant Referee 2: Fredrik Klyver (SWE)
Fourth Official: Victor Wolf (SWE)
Referee Observer: Robert Sedlacek (AUT)

HŠK Zrinjski – FC Utrecht
Referee: Antti Munukka (FIN)
Assistant Referee 1: Jukka Honkanen (FIN)
Assistant Referee 2: Turkka Valjakka (FIN)
Fourth Official: Jari Järvinen (FIN)
Referee Observer: Alieh Čykun (BLR)

FK Jablonec – FC Pyunik
Referee: Sergey Lapochkin (RUS)
Assistant Referee 1: Anton Averyanov (RUS)
Assistant Referee 2: Aleksandr Kudryavtsev (RUS)
Fourth Official: Yevgeniy Turbin (RUS)
Referee Observer: Edgar Steinborn (GER)

FC Vaduz – MOL Fehérvár
Referee: Manfredas Lukjančukas (LTU)
Assistant Referee 1: Aleksandr Radiuš (LTU)
Assistant Referee 2: Vladimir Gerasimov (LTU)
Fourth Official: Jurij Paškovskij (LTU)
Referee Observer: Jari Maisonlahti (FIN)

Dinamo Tbilisi – Qabala İK
Referee: Petri Viljanen (FIN)
Assistant Referee 1: Riku Vihreävuori (FIN)
Assistant Referee 2: Mika Lamppu (FIN)
Fourth Official: Dennis Antamo (FIN)
Referee Observer: Jens Larsen (DEN)

Malmö FF – NK Domžale
Referee: Amaury Delerue (FRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Bertrand Jouannaud (FRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Philippe Jeanne (FRA)
Fourth Official: Olivier Thual (FRA)
Referee Observer: Sokol Jareci (ALB)

KÍ Klaksvík – FC Luzern
Referee: Martin Strömbergsson (SWE)
Assistant Referee 1: Mikael Hallin (SWE)
Assistant Referee 2: Peter Allheim (SWE)
Fourth Official: Patrik Eriksson (SWE)
Referee Observer: Attila Ábrahám (HUN)

Maccabi Haifa – RC Strasbourg
Referee: Maurizio Mariani (ITA)
Assistant Referee 1: Fabiano Preti (ITA)
Assistant Referee 2: Mauro Vivenzi (ITA)
Fourth Official: Federico La Penna (ITA)
Referee Observer: William Young (SCO)

Apóllon Limassol – Shamrock Rovers
Referee: Michael Tykgaard (DEN)
Assistant Referee 1: Daniel Nørgaard (DEN)
Assistant Referee 2: Ole Kronlykke (DEN)
Fourth Official: Benjamin Willaume-Jantzen (DEN)
Referee Observer: Igor Pristovnik (CRO)

AEL Limassol – Áris Thessaloniki
Referee: Manuel Sousa (POR)
Assistant Referee 1: Álvaro Mesquita (POR)
Assistant Referee 2: Nuno Manso (POR)
Fourth Official: Cláudio Pereira (POR)
Referee Observer: Zoran Petrović (SRB)

Sheriff Tiraspol – FK Partizani
Referee: Igor Pajač (CRO)
Assistant Referee 1: Bojan Zobenica (CRO)
Assistant Referee 2: Vedran Djurak (CRO)
Fourth Official: Dario Bel (CRO)
Referee Observer: Alfredo Trentalange (ITA)

Brøndby IF – Lechia Gdańsk
Referee: Miroslav Zelinka (CZE)
Assistant Referee 1: Jan Paták (CZE)
Assistant Referee 2: Petr Caletka (CZE)
Fourth Official: Emanuel Marek (CZE)
Referee Observer: John Ferry (NIR)

Progrès Niederkorn – Rangers FC
Referee: Ivaylo Stoyanov (BUL)
Assistant Referee 1: Ivo Kolev (BUL)
Assistant Referee 2: Georgi Doynov (BUL)
Fourth Official: Stanislav Todorov (BUL)
Referee Observer: Geórgios Bíkas (GRE)

PFC Ludogorets – Valur
Referee: Pavel Orel (CZE)
Assistant Referee 1: Petr Blažej (CZE)
Assistant Referee 2: Jiří Kříž (CZE)
Fourth Official: Ondřej Berka (CZE)
Referee Observer: Aleksei Spirin (RUS)

Esbjerg FB – Šachcior Salihorsk
Referee: Duje Strukan (CRO)
Assistant Referee 1: Goran Perica (CRO)
Assistant Referee 2: Mario Pepur (CRO)
Fourth Official: Marin Vidulin (CRO)
Referee Observer: Ichko Lozev (BUL)

Olimpija Ljubljana – Evkur Yeni Malatyaspor
Referee: Filip Glova (SVK)
Assistant Referee 1: František Ferenc (SVK)
Assistant Referee 2: Peter Kováč (SVK)
Fourth Official: Peter Ziemba (SVK)
Referee Observer: Marco Borg (MLT)

Gżira United – FK Ventspils
Referee: Thorvaldur Árnason (ISL)
Assistant Referee 1: Jóhann Gudmundsson (ISL)
Assistant Referee 2: Birkir Sigurdarson (ISL)
Fourth Official: Ívar Kristjánsson (ISL)
Referee Observer: Chrístos Nikolaidis (CYP)

Sturm Graz – FK Haugesund
Referee: Juri Frischer (EST)
Assistant Referee 1: Veiko Mõtsnik (EST)
Assistant Referee 2: Jaan Roos (EST)
Fourth Official: Joonas Jaanovits (EST)
Referee Observer: Ján Fašung (SVK)

Eintracht Frankfurt – Flora Tallinn
Referee: Jørgen Daugbjerg(DEN)
Assistant Referee 1: Heine Sørensen (DEN)
Assistant Referee 2: Niels Høg (DEN)
Fourth Official: Jens Maae (DEN)
Referee Observer: Oğuz Sarvan (TUR)

FCSB – Alashkert
Referee: Peter Královič (SVK)
Assistant Referee 1: Ján Pozor (SVK)
Assistant Referee 2: Erik Weiss (SVK)
Fourth Official: Pavel Ochotnický (SVK)
Referee Observer: Raymond Ellingham (WAL)

Aberdeen FC – Chikhura Sachkhere
Referee: Rade Obrenovič (SVN)
Assistant Referee 1: Grega Kordež (SVN)
Assistant Referee 2: Tomislav Pospeh (SVN)
Fourth Official: Asmir Sagrkovič (SVN)
Referee Observer: Michalis Koukoulákis (GRE)

NK Osijek – CSKA Sofia
Referee: Robert Schörgenhofer (AUT)
Assistant Referee 1: Markus Gutschi (AUT)
Assistant Referee 2: Anel Beganovic (AUT)
Fourth Official: Felix Ouschan (AUT)
Referee Observer: Yuri Baskakov (RUS)

Spartak Trnava – Lokomotiv Plovdiv
Referee: Erik Lambrechts (BEL)
Assistant Referee 1: Karel De Rocker (BEL)
Assistant Referee 2: Mathias Hillaert (BEL)
Fourth Official: Wesley Alen (BEL)
Referee Observer: Kenneth Clark (SCO)

Linfield FC – HB Tórshavn
Referee: Halil Umut Meler (TUR)
Assistant Referee 1: İbrahim Uyarcan (TUR)
Assistant Referee 2: Cevdet Kömürcüoğlu (TUR)
Fourth Official: Bahattin Şimşek (TUR)
Referee Observer: Juan Fernández Marín (ESP)

Crusaders FC – Wolverhampton Wanderers
Referee: Nejc Kajtazovič (SVN)
Assistant Referee 1: Aleksandar Kasapovič (SVN)
Assistant Referee 2: David Gabrovec (SVN)
Fourth Official: Dejan Balažič (SVN)
Referee Observer: Luis Medina Cantalejo (ESP)

Vitória SC – Jeunesse Esch
Referee: Vitali Meshkov (RUS)
Assistant Referee 1: Igor Demeshko (RUS)
Assistant Referee 2: Nikolai Bogach (RUS)
Fourth Official: Aleksei Sukhoy (RUS)
Referee Observer: Andreas Schluchter (SUI)

FK Partizan – Connah's Quay Nomads
Referee: Luís Godinho (POR)
Assistant Referee 1: Rui Teixeira (POR)
Assistant Referee 2: Pedro Mota (POR)
Fourth Official: Hélder Malheiro (POR)
Referee Observer: Markus Strömbergsson (SWE)

Stjarnan – Espanyol
Referee: Dumitru Muntean (MDA)
Assistant Referee 1: Vladislav Lifciu (MDA)
Assistant Referee 2: Vadim Vicol (MDA)
Fourth Official: Veaceslav Banari (MDA)
Referee Observer: Milan Karadžić (SRB)

UEFA Champions League – Second Qualifying Round (Second Leg)

30-31 July 2019

Maccabi Tel Aviv – CFR Cluj
Referee: Marco Fritz (GER, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Christian Gittelmann (GER)
Assistant Referee 2: Dominik Schaal (GER)
Fourth Official: Sven Jablonski (GER)
Referee Observer: Miroslav Liba (CZE)

Nõmme Kalju – Celtic FC
Referee: Benoît Millot (FRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Cyril Mugnier (FRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Stephan Luzi (FRA)
Fourth Official: Willy Delajod (FRA)
Referee Observer: Levan Paniashvili (GEO)

Apoel – Sutjeska
Referee: Roi Reinshreiber (ISR)
Assistant Referee 1: David Biton (ISR)
Assistant Referee 2: Idan Berenshtein (ISR)
Fourth Official: Daniel Natan (ISR)
Referee Observer: Uno Tutk (EST)

Valletta FC – Ferencvárosi TC
Referee: Jonathan Lardot (BEL)
Assistant Referee 1: Florian Lemaire (BEL)
Assistant Referee 2: Romain Devillers (BEL)
Fourth Official: Jasper Vergoote (BEL)
Referee Observer: Paulius Malžinskas (LTU)

GNK Dinamo – FC Saburtalo
Referee: Daniele Doveri (ITA)
Assistant Referee 1: Matteo Passeri (ITA)
Assistant Referee 2: Luca Mondin (ITA)
Fourth Official: Gianpaolo Calvarese (ITA)
Referee Observer: Haim Jakov (ISR)

FC Basel – PSV Eindhoven
Referee: Fábio Veríssimo (POR)
Assistant Referee 1: Nuno Pereira (POR)
Assistant Referee 2: Pedro Martins (POR)
Fourth Official: António Nobre (POR)
Referee Observer: Eugen Strigel (GER)

Olympiakós FC – Viktoria Plzeň
Referee: Juan Martínez Munuera (ESP)
Assistant Referee 1: Diego Barbero Sevilla (ESP)
Assistant Referee 2: César Noval Font (ESP)
Fourth Official: José Sánchez Martínez (ESP)
Referee Observer: Fritz Stuchlik (AUT)

HJK Helsinki – Crvena Zvezda
Referee: Alain Bieri (SUI)
Assistant Referee 1: Alain Heiniger (SUI)
Assistant Referee 2: Efe Kurnazca (SUI)
Fourth Official: Urs Schnyder (SUI)
Referee Observer: Thomas Einwaller (AUT)

Rosenborg BK – Bate Barysaŭ
Referee: Marco Di Bello (ITA)
Assistant Referee 1: Alessandro Costanzo (ITA)
Assistant Referee 2: Sergio Ranghetti (ITA)
Fourth Official: Rosario Abisso (ITA)
Referee Observer: Michális Argyroú (CYP)

Qarabağ – Dundalk
Referee: Svein Oddvar Moen (NOR)
Assistant Referee 1: Magnus Lundberg (NOR)
Assistant Referee 2: Isaak Bashevkin (NOR)
Fourth Official: Sigurd Kringstad (NOR)
Referee Observer: Sabri Çelik (TUR)

AIK – Maribor
Referee: Adrien Jaccottet (SUI)
Assistant Referee 1: Vital Jobin (SUI)
Assistant Referee 2: Matthias Sbrissa (SUI)
Fourth Official: Alessandro Dudic (SUI)
Referee Observer: Lucílio Batista (POR)

FC København – The New Saints FC
Referee: Karim Abed (FRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Cyril Gringore (FRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Mikaël Berchebru (FRA)
Fourth Official: Florent Batta (FRA)
Referee Observer: Robert Małek (POL)

CONMEBOL Copa Libertadores – Round of 16 (Second Leg)

30 July - 1 August 2019

Cruzeiro – River Plate
Referee: Roberto Tobar (CHI, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Claudio Rios (CHI)
Assistant Referee 2: Alejandro Molina (CHI)
Fourth Official: Gustavo Tejera (URU)
VAR: Nicolas Gallo (COL)
AVAR 1: Carlos Orbe (ECU)
AVAR 2: John Leon (COL)
VAR Observer: Ana Perez (PER)
Referee Assessor: Juan Cardellino (URU)

Olimpia – LDU Quito
Referee: Diego Haro (PER)
Assistant Referee 1: Victor Raez (PER)
Assistant Referee 2: Michael Orue (PER)
Fourth Official: Joel Alarcon (PER)
VAR: Alexis Herrera (VEN)
AVAR 1: Juan Soto (VEN)
AVAR 2: Wilmar Navarro (COL)
VAR Observer: Patricio Polic (CHI)
Referee Assessor: Miguel Buitrago (VEN)

Palmeiras – Godoy Cruz
Referee: Esteban Ostojich (URU)
Assistant Referee 1: Richard Trinidad (URU)
Assistant Referee 2: Gabriel Popovits (URU)
Fourth Official: Christian Ferreyra (URU)
VAR: Gery Vargas (BOL)
AVAR 1: Eduardo Gamboa (CHI)
AVAR 2: Nicolas Taran (URU)
VAR Observer: Dario Ubriaco (URU)
Referee Assessor: Cesar Escano (PER)

Internacional – Nacional
Referee: Fernando Rapallini (ARG)
Assistant Referee 1: Juan Belatti (ARG)
Assistant Referee 2: Maximiliano del Yesso (ARG)
Fourth Official: Dario Herrera (ARG)
VAR: German Delfino (ARG)
AVAR 1: Arnaldo Samaniego (PAR)
AVAR 2: Diego Bonfa (ARG)
VAR Observer: Angel Sanchez (ARG)
Referee Assessor: Freddy Arellanos (PER)

Cerro Porteño – San Lorenzo
Referee: Wilmar Roldan (COL)
Assistant Referee 1: Alexander Guzman (COL)
Assistant Referee 2: Dionisio Ruiz (COL)
Fourth Official: Luis Quiroz (ECU)
VAR: Jesus Valenzuela (VEN)
AVAR 1: Guillermo Guerrero (ECU)
AVAR 2: Christian Lescano (ECU)
VAR Observer: Claudio Puga (CHI)
Referee Assessor: Jose Buitrago (COL)

Boca Juniors – Athletico Paranaense
Referee: Julio Bascuñan (CHI)
Assistant Referee 1: Christian Schiemann (CHI)
Assistant Referee 2: Claudio Urrutia (CHI)
Fourth Official: Carlos Herrera (COL)
VAR: Andres Cunha (URU)
AVAR 1: Cristian Garay (CHI)
AVAR 2: Jose Retamal (CHI)
VAR Observer: Mauricio Espinosa (URU)
Referee Assessor: Carlos Pastorino (URU)

Flamengo – Emelec
Referee: Nestor Pitana (ARG)
Assistant Referee 1: Hernan Maidana (ARG)
Assistant Referee 2: Julio Fernandez (ARG)
Fourth Official: Silvio Trucco (ARG)
VAR: Mauro Vigliano (ARG)
AVAR 1: Ivo Mendez (BOL)
AVAR 2: Ezequiel Brailovsky (ARG)
VAR Observer: Ricardo Casas (ARG)
Referee Assessor: Imer Machado (COL)

Libertad – Gremio
Referee: Victor Carrillo (PER)
Assistant Referee 1: Jonny Bossio (PER)
Assistant Referee 2: Jesus Sanchez (PER)
Fourth Official: Marlon Escalante (VEN)
VAR: Daniel Fedorczuk (URU)
AVAR 1: Jose Argote (VEN)
AVAR 2: Jorge Urrego (VEN)
VAR Observer: Martin Vazquez (URU)
Referee Assessor: Roberto Silvera (URU)

CONMEBOL Copa Sudamericana – Round of 16 (Second Leg, II)

30 July - 1 August 2019

Fluminense – Penarol
Referee: Patricio Loustau (ARG, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Gabriel Chade (ARG)
Assistant Referee 2: Pablo Gonzalez (ARG)
Fourth Official: Raul Orosco (BOL)
VAR: Facundo Tello (ARG)
AVAR 1: Mario Diaz de Vivar (PAR)
AVAR 2: Roberto Cañete (PAR)
VAR Observer: Enrique Caceres (PAR)
Referee Assessor: Jose Carpio (ECU)

Sporting Cristal – Zulia
Referee: Anderson Daronco (BRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Danilo Manis (BRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Guilherme Camilo (BRA)
Fourth Official: Wagner Magalhaes (BRA)
VAR: Raphael Claus (BRA)
AVAR 1: Luiz Oliveira (BRA)
AVAR 2: Rodrigo Correa (BRA)
VAR Observer: Ubaldo Aquino (PAR)
Referee Assessor: Juan Corozo (ECU)

Atletico Mineiro – Botafogo
Referee: Wilton Sampaio (BRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Marcelo Van Gasse (BRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Bruno Pires (BRA)
Fourth Official: Dewson Freitas (BRA)
VAR: Leodan Gonzalez (URU)
AVAR 1: Rodolpho Toski (BRA)
AVAR 2: Bruno Boschilia (BRA)
VAR Observer: Nilson Moncao (BRA)
Referee Assessor: Sergio Cristiano (BRA)

Universidad Católica – Independiente
Referee: Piero Maza (CHI)
Assistant Referee 1: Raul Orellana (CHI)
Assistant Referee 2: Edson Cisternas (CHI)
Fourth Official: Andres Matonte (URU)
VAR: Braulio Machado (BRA)
AVAR 1: Wagner Reway (BRA)
AVAR 2: Kleber Gil (BRA)
VAR Observer: Ednilson Corona (BRA)
Referee Assessor: Wilson Lamouroux (COL)

Montevideo Wanderers – Corinthians
Referee: Eber Aquino (PAR)
Assistant Referee 1: Eduardo Cardozo (PAR)
Assistant Referee 2: Dario Gaona (PAR)
Fourth Official: Franklin Congo (ECU)
VAR: Andres Rojas (COL)
AVAR 1: Angel Arteaga (VEN)
AVAR 2: Byron Romero (ECU)
VAR Observer: Francisco Mondria (CHI)
Referee Assessor: Manuel Bernal (PAR)

UEFA Women’s U-19 Euro Final 2019: Projkovska (MKD)

A little bit of history will be made in the UEFA European Women's Under-19 Championship final in Paisley, Scotland on Sunday, regardless of the result between France and Germany. Ivana Projkovska has been selected as referee – and will be the first official from North Macedonia to take charge of any UEFA championship final since independence from the former Yugoslavia. Her only compatriot to achieve anything similar was Stohan Ilejevski who, representing Yugoslavia, refereed the 1985 men’s U16 Euro final in Budapest. "It means a lot," Projkovska told UEFA.com. "We are a very small country, it means a lot even for Macedonian people and for women's football, I hope I will be an example for women to start working and never to quit – they can achieve the highest level." Being picked to referee a final is always a major honour. "This is an amazing thing," Projkovska said. "We work a lot during the year, so this is like the cherry on the cake." This will not be the first final in which she has been involved, having been fourth official at the 2015 Women’s U17 decider. Projkovska was similarly deployed in the Women’s U19 final a year later, when a freak thunderstorm not long before half-time meant that the interval in Senec between France and Spain ended up being extended until the suddenly waterlogged pitch was made playable. “It was a crazy, crazy match," Projkovska recalls. "It started raining, and there had to be a two-hour break at half-time. We were waiting in the dressing room, we didn't know if the final would continue or not. But it was nice to be there, even as a fourth official. The pride is the same for the whole refereeing team." Projkovska will be assisted by Estonia's Karolin Kaivoia and Romania's Alexandra Petrea, with Zuzana Valentová of Slovakia acting as fourth official. The international combination of referees at this tournament is an unusual challenge. Projkovska said: "It's not so easy, as you don’t know their habits or how they are working, but as we are here a long time, we can work together and learn how to be the best." Like several top female officials, Projkovska is a former international as a player, which she believes is a big help as a referee: "I was a player, in the national team, and after that, the FA asked me to choose if I wanted to continue as a player or be a referee, and I chose refereeing. [It helps in] reading the game, even if it was a long time ago! You know how players react, their tactics, how they move, how they make contact – it’s much easier, in my point of view, if you were involved on the pitch rather than never playing." After she blows the final whistle on Sunday, Projkovska hopes that her assignment will prove to be a catalyst for further proud footballing moments for North Macedonia: "This will be a good beginning for Macedonian women’s football – I hope they will see my example, and what is possible." (Source: UEFA)

28 July 2019

France – Germany

Referee: Ivana Projkovska (MKD)

Assistant Referee 1: Karolin Kaivoja (EST)

Assistant Referee 2: Alexandra Petrea (ROU)

Fourth Official: Zuzana Valentova (SVK)

Referee Observer: Dagmar Damkova (CZE)

UEFA U-19 Euro Final 2019: Peljto (BIH)

For Irfan Peljto, his first reaction was shock and then a strong sense of pride on discovering he had been selected to referee Saturday's Under-19 Euro final between Portugal and Spain. "I was stunned," the Bosnian match official says. "It didn't sink in for a few seconds, but when my colleagues started clapping and I saw my name on the screen, it was fantastic. A referee from Bosnia and Herzegovina has never had this opportunity, so it's historic for my country and for my football federation. We're a football nation and for everyone from a small country when you do it for your country, it is huge." It is an honour and challenge that the Sarajevo-based lawyer is delighted to take on, having already refereed the Czech Republic v France and Spain v Italy group fixtures. He will do so with the same assistant referees as in those games – Romania's Valentin Avram and Slovenia's Grega Kordež – as well as fourth official Filip Glova from Slovakia. "They are very professional. They listen to what the referee wants from them. I believe in them 100%." But will there be any nerves given the size of the occasion? "I always feel a little pressure, but a positive pressure," continues Peljto, an international referee since 2015. "We have a very important job to do on the pitch and a lot of people are expecting us to do our job perfectly, so in every game there are some positive nerves, but immediately when we blow the whistle it disappears." During his time in Armenia, the 35-year-old has also blown out the candles on his birthday cake – a reminder of his wife and son at home, and the family life that helped form him as a referee. After all, his father Mesud is a former FIFA assistant referee. "I was born like a referee because my father was a referee," he smiles, and that background meant he knew all about the role's ups and downs before starting on his own path. It was at the age of 18 that he turned to refereeing, having stopping playing football after realizing he would not reach a professional level as a player. "My father never forced me to be a referee, but one day I went home and I was putting on weight as I wasn't doing any exercise and I said to him, 'Can I be a referee?' And he said, 'Are you sure?' I said, 'Yes, 100%.' "He said, 'Take your running shoes and come with me,' and he drove me to a running track and told me to run seven laps in 12 minutes. He said, 'If you can do that, I can help. I can give you tips and support but I can't run for you.' I passed the test and started with refereeing. Throughout my whole career, he's been the toughest observer because he always finds something to improve on, but overall he is very happy!" And increasingly so, given his son's progress. In April, Peljto refereed the UEFA Youth League semi-final between Hoffenheim and Porto in Nyon. Last October, he had his first taste of a UEFA Europa League group stage fixture when refereeing Salzburg v Rosenberg in Austria. "It was fantastic – a big stadium with a lot of people. It was a new experience and I'll never forget it." Now for another here in Yerevan on Saturday. (Source: UEFA)

27 July 2019

Portugal – Spain

Referee: Irfan Peljto (BIH)

Assistant Referee 1: Valentin Avram (ROU)

Assistant Referee 2: Grega Kordež (SVN)

Fourth Official: Filip Glova (SVK)

Referee Observer: Karen Nalbandyan (ARM)

Referee Foxcroft invented Fox 40 because the pea got stuck in his whistle

The game of basketball was invented by a man who grew up in Canada on a farm outside Almonte, Ontario. It sits just under 400 kilometres from Scotiabank Arena, home to the Toronto Raptors, a team who won the NBA title this year. And the whistle that stops play in every game was created by a man from a place even closer to home for Canada’s only NBA team.

When basketball referees want to stop play, they blow the Fox 40. It’s a whistle that was invented by Ron Foxcroft, a referee himself who came up with the idea after the gold medal basketball game at the 1976 Olympics in Montreal. U.S. player Adrian Dantley took an elbow to the nose, Foxcroft told Charles Adler Tonight on Friday. “I was standing in the trail position with my whistle, with a little pea in it, and it got stuck,” Foxcroft recounted. He would later work a game in Brazil, where a pea once again became stuck. “I decided that I wanted to invent a pea-less whistle,” Foxcroft said. He told Adler that he hired an engineer, a scientist, someone with a Ph.D. in sound and a music teacher - and that he had two prototypes ready to go, two and a half years later. The Fox 40 whistle, with three chambers and no pea, was used for the first time at the Pan Am Games in Indianapolis in 1987. Three years later, it had become the whistle used by sports organizations such as the National Basketball Association (NBA), the National Football League (NFL) and the Canadian Football League (CFL), said Fox 40’s website.

In NBA, the Fox 40 whistle has a special connection to the arena clock, Foxcroft said. The clock in every arena has a computer, and every referee carries a little black box with a black belt and a wire that reaches to within 12 inches of the whistle. This is what’s called the Precision Time System, and “when they blow that whistle, it shuts the arena clock off at the speed of light,” Foxcroft said. The Fox 40 whistle is produced in Mississauga and packaged in Foxcroft’s hometown of Hamilton - a game and its whistle born from Ontarians. While Foxcroft is happy to see the Raptors capturing the imagination of sports fans across Canada, he’s careful not to cheer for a team openly. “I’m cheering for the referees,” he told Adler.

Source: Global News

FIFA referee demoted to Ligue 2

The French Referees Committee has decided to relegate Nicolas Rainville in Ligue 2. An incomprehensible decision since it is an international referee who has been particularly successful these past two seasons.

The Referees Committee, which met in June to decide on assignments in the national divisions, made the iniquitous choice to demote Nicolas Rainville in Ligue 2. The referee from Nîmes has never been in line with the methods of his hierarchy and will pay a high price. They pointed out his frequent injuries, while Nicolas Rainville, who was perfectly suited to officiate, was not appointed in Ligue 1 between 12 January and 31 March 2019 and only have refereed 13 games in Ligue 1 this season. International referee since 2013, Nicolas Rainville has not always been the best, as in the match between Lens and PSG, in October 2014, at the Stade de France, when he sent off three players including two from Lens. A performance that made a lot of talks and that probably brought a big blow on his career. But to sum up his career only on this match would be reductive. How can the CFA relegate one of the most successful video assistant referees of the French championship and also at the international level since Nicolas Rainville had been the main video assistant referee of Clément Turpin on the Champions League quarter-final between Juventus and Ajax Amsterdam. Rainville will automatically lose his international badge that he can still wear in Ligue 2 until 31 December 2019. Probably, a very unique case.

Source: Arbitrage57

UEFA U-19 Euro 2019 – Semi-finals

24 July 2019

Portugal – Ireland
Referee: Kristo Tohver (EST, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Stephane De Almeida (SUI)
Assistant Referee 2: Grega Kordež (SVN)
Fourth Official: Zaven Hovhannisyan (ARM)
Referee Observer: Karen Nalbandyan (ARM)

France – Spain
Referee: Sergei Ivanov (RUS)
Assistant Referee 1: Valentin Avram (ROU)
Assistant Referee 2: Dawid Golis (POL)
Fourth Official: Filip Glova (SVK)
Referee Observer: Jaap Uilenberg (NED)

Game of cards and tattoos for referee Clattenburg

In 2016, Mark Clattenburg achieved the unknown for a referee – and he will never forget that illustrious year. Actually, he looks back on being the man in the middle for the Euro and Champions League finals – as well as the FA Cup final – with such fondness that he bears tattoos of both of the competition logos as a constant reminder. The 44-year-old, who refereed in the Premier League for 13 years before spells in Saudi Arabia, and now China, also has the Olympic rings inked on his skin after officiating the 2012 men's final in London. Clattenburg has earned a fair amount of criticism – something, as a referee, he is very much used to – for having those tattoos. But he has no regrets at all, and explained: "Many people have tattoos of their girlfriends names, don't they? It's things I'm proud of. I came from a council background, not a difficult life, but I wanted to work hard. What I want to do with my body is up to me, and I wanted to celebrate what I've achieved. Refereeing the Champions League final, a Euro final and an FA Cup final in the same season is unknown. When I started refereeing, there were 33,000 of us in England, so to be chosen for the Champions League and Euro finals is so huge. It's a memory. You can easily forget the past, but when you do look, you think, I've achieved something in life. It's something to be proud of."

Clattenburg, from Consett, County Durham, refereeing the Euro final between Portugal and France, which the former won 1-0 after extra-time, came as a result of England being humiliated by Iceland. Had the Three Lions not suffered perhaps their most embarrassing victory ever and made it to the showpiece clash, Clattenburg would not have been on the Stade de France turf. "I was lucky as when England didn't do well in tournaments, that meant the referees – me and also Howard Webb with the World Cup final in 2010 – went further," he said. "We were one of the big nations in footballing terms, so us referees always got kept on if England got knocked out. I needed the luck with the Euros because if England or Wales get to the final, I don't do it. You've got to have a bit of luck, so if England dominate the World Cups and Euros, and say Man City dominate the Champions League, that'll stop referees from here being involved. But we have some quality, capable referees here in England." And which English referee could follow in his and Webb's footsteps? "Michael Oliver, once he gets some more experience," said Clattenburg. "The referees who have all done the top finals tend to be in their late 30s, you need that experience. There's a lot of young referees at the moment and over the next 10 years, they'll gain so much experience, how to deal with situations and different cultures. Once they get that experience, I'm sure they'll reach the very top." Clattenburg, with his spiky black hair, was one of the most recognizable referees in the Premier League until he left in 2017. That was to become head of refereeing in Saudi Arabia, replacing Webb of all people. He spent two years there, and is now refereeing in the Chinese Super League. But will he make a Premier League return? Probably not. "I left the Premier League a couple of years ago and I've never looked back. I've been so busy," said Clattenburg. "I went out to Saudi Arabia and did two years, which ended in February. That was always my plan, to do two years. In Saudi, I ended up in a management role which, really, was a conflict of interest. Now, I want to enjoy my refereeing, doing what I love and sacrificed a lot of things for. I think my Premier League days are finished. It was an exciting 13 years, but I'm enjoying going around the world and seeing different parts of the world. In a lot of countries now, they're looking for foreign referees as there's a shortage of top quality referees now, even in England. We've got an Australian coming over here, Jarred Gillett, so countries are more open to referees coming in."

The highs of Clattenburg's career are the aforementioned finals, as well as the 2012 League Cup final and the 2014 UEFA Super Cup. But, naturally, there have been lows too. An error which has followed Clattenburg for years is one where, in 2005, Manchester United keeper Roy Carroll fumbled an ambitious attempt from Tottenham's Pedro Mendes well over the line at Old Trafford, before desperately clearing the ball away. Much to Carroll's relief, and to Spur's anguish, the goal was not given by Clattenburg and his assistants. And it is a clanger fans across the country still remember to this day. "It is highs and lows. As a referee, there's always highs and lows," said Clattenburg. "When it becomes your profession, it's different. It takes a lot of dedication – fitness levels, preparation. Thirteen years is a long time to try to be at the top, and the problem with refereeing is if you make one mistake, you're the villain of the piece. You'll always upset one team or the other, and you're never going to be 100 per cent accurate – even with the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) technology." And what does Clattenburg make of VAR, which has massively divided opinion among fans over the past few years but is being implemented in the Premier League next season? "Well, I refereed with it in Saudi Arabia, I brought it into Saudi Arabia," he said. "There was less criticism. You're not going to keep everybody happy, but there's more fairness because there's not going to be a simulation that wins a penalty. The criticism is that it takes too long, but like any new technology, it's going to take a little bit of time. With refereeing, when you're using a matter of fact, it's easy. For example, with offside, although there is criticism with that as the benefit of the doubt has gone now. If you're using technology, you've got use it for the smallest of margins. Therefore, people don't want it in. But if it stops scandalous decisions, that's what you want. An example I was involved in was my first game at Old Trafford where Mendes shot from the halfway line and the ball went in, but Carroll clawed it back out and the goal wasn't given. That was a scandal as it cost Tottenham two points, getting one instead of three. That could have had massive consequences, and these are the types of decisions which should be eradicated by the technology. It's not going to be please everybody, but that's life and why we love football." With the issues which have surrounded VAR, some have suggested referees doing post-match interviews – like managers and players – to explain their decisions. Clattenburg is not a fan of the idea, and thinks it will not be necessary if football looks at what has been done in cricket and rugby. "With video technology, I don't think it should happen," he said. "I'd like referees to explain their decisions there and then. Sometimes it can take a few minutes for a bit of dialogue – nobody knows what's going on. That's the frustration but if it was a bit like cricket, the referees could explain themselves to the crowd. I'm all for trying to explain decisions, it makes your life easier." It is fair to say Clattenburg has done a lot in the game, and is still going strong, so what would his advice be to those looking to carve out a living as a referee? "Referees will probably think they're better than they are," he added. "When you're a young referee, you think you've made it. But you're only as good as your last game. I used to think I was going to be the best, but it'll hit you the following week and you'll have a bad game. You've always got to learn from your mistakes, work hard. If you work hard, you'll always achieve your goal. I probably overachieved. I worked hard and got the rewards." Clattenburg was speaking at the 5's Pavilion and Sports Ground in Hednesford as part of his work as a Leisure Leagues ambassador.

Source: Shropshirestar

UEFA Europa League – Second Qualifying Round (First Leg)

23-25 July 2019

Ararat Armenia – Lincoln Red Imps
Referee: Trustin Farrugia Cann (MLT, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Alan Camilleri (MLT)
Assistant Referee 2: Duncan Sultana (MLT)
Fourth Official: Etienne Mangion (MLT)
Referee Observer: Karel Vidlák (CZE)

HB Tórshavn – Linfield FC
Referee: Ádám Farkas (HUN)
Assistant Referee 1: Balázs Szert (HUN)
Assistant Referee 2: Péter Kóbor (HUN)
Fourth Official: Csaba Pintér (HUN)
Referee Observer: Elmir Pilav (BIH)

FK Škendija – F91 Dudelange
Referee: Tore Hansen (NOR)
Assistant Referee 1: Kim Haglund (NOR)
Assistant Referee 2: Magnus Lundberg (NOR)
Fourth Official: Tom Harald Hagen (NOR)
Referee Observer: Marián Ružbarský (SVK)

Santa Coloma – FC Astana
Referee: Robert Hennessy (IRL)
Assistant Referee 1: Dermot Broughton (IRL)
Assistant Referee 2: Allen Lynch (IRL)
Fourth Official: Robert Rogers (IRL)
Referee Observer: Mark Whitby (WAL)

SP Tre Penne – FK Sūduva
Referee: Krzysztof Jakubik (POL)
Assistant Referee 1: Arkadiusz Wójcik (POL)
Assistant Referee 2: Tomasz Niemirowski (POL)
Fourth Official: Piotr Lasyk (POL)
Referee Observer: Francesco Bianchi (SUI)

Slovan Bratislava – KF Feronikeli
Referee: Ioánnis Papadópoulos (GRE)
Assistant Referee 1: Chrysoúla Kourompýlia (GRE)
Assistant Referee 2: Trýfon Petrópoulos (GRE)
Fourth Official: Athanásios Tzílos (GRE)
Referee Observer: Rune Pedersen (NOR)

FC Pyunik – FK Jablonec
Referee: Fedayi San (SUI)
Assistant Referee 1: Sladan Josipovic (SUI)
Assistant Referee 2: Jonas Erni (SUI)
Fourth Official: Lukas Fähndrich (SUI)
Referee Observer: Kóstas Kapitanís (CYP)

FK Ventspils – Gżira United
Referee: Dimitar Mečkarovski (MKD)
Assistant Referee 1: Dejan Nedelkoski (MKD)
Assistant Referee 2: Goce Petreski (MKD)
Fourth Official: Konstantin Vlaho (MKD)
Referee Observer: Edward Foley (IRL)

Qabala İK – Dinamo Tbilisi
Referee: Nicolas Walsh (SCO)
Assistant Referee 1: Alan Mulvanny (SCO)
Assistant Referee 2: Jordan Stokoe (SCO)
Fourth Official: Gavin Duncan (SCO)
Referee Observer: Guy Goethals (BEL)

AEK Larnaca – Levski Sofia
Referee: Tiago Martins (POR)
Assistant Referee 1: Luis Campos (POR)
Assistant Referee 2: Pedro Mota (POR)
Fourth Official: André Narciso (POR)
Referee Observer: Helmut Fleischer (GER)

FK Partizani – Sheriff Tiraspol
Referee: Kirill Levnikov (RUS)
Assistant Referee 1: Valeri Danchenko (RUS)
Assistant Referee 2: Andrei Vereteshkin (RUS)
Fourth Official: Vasili Kazartsev (RUS)
Referee Observer: Erol Ersoy (TUR)

FC Utrecht – HŠK Zrinjski
Referee: Aleksei Eskov (RUS)
Assistant Referee 1: Dmitri Mosyakin (RUS)
Assistant Referee 2: Andrei Bolotenkov (RUS)
Fourth Official: Mikhail Vilkov (RUS)
Referee Observer: Andrejs Sipailo (LVA)

Chikhura Sachkhere – Aberdeen FC
Referee: Horațiu Feșnic (ROU)
Assistant Referee 1: Alexandru Cerei (ROU)
Assistant Referee 2: Marius Nicoară (ROU)
Fourth Official: Andrei Chivulete (ROU)
Referee Observer: Matteo Trefoloni (ITA)

Budapest Honvéd – Universitatea Craiova
Referee: Kevin Clancy (SCO)
Assistant Referee 1: Graeme Stewart (SCO)
Assistant Referee 2: Sean Carr (SCO)
Fourth Official: Euan Anderson (SCO)
Referee Observer: Jon Skjervold (NOR)

Arsenal Tula – Neftçi PFK
Referee: Enea Jorgji (ALB)
Assistant Referee 1: Ridiger Çokaj (ALB)
Assistant Referee 2: Ilir Tartaraj (ALB)
Fourth Official: Klajdi Kola (ALB)
Referee Observer: Pavel Saliy (KAZ)

FK Haugesund – Sturm Graz
Referee: Donatas Rumšas (LTU)
Assistant Referee 1: Dovydas Sužiedėlis (LTU)
Assistant Referee 2: Gevork Arakelian (LTU)
Fourth Official: Donatas Šimėnas (LTU)
Referee Observer: Vítor Melo Pereira (POR)

Lechia Gdańsk – Brøndby IF
Referee: John Beaton (SCO)
Assistant Referee 1: David Roome (SCO)
Assistant Referee 2: David Doig (SCO)
Fourth Official: David Munro (SCO)
Referee Observer: Martin Ingvarsson (SWE)

Evkur Yeni Malatyaspor – Olimpija Ljubljana
Referee: João Pinheiro (POR)
Assistant Referee 1: Paulo Soares (POR)
Assistant Referee 2: Bruno Rodrigues (POR)
Fourth Official: Vítor Ferreira (POR)
Referee Observer: Michel Piraux (BEL)

Flora Tallinn – Eintracht Frankfurt
Referee: Ali Palabiyik (TUR)
Assistant Referee 1: Mustafa Eyisoy (TUR)
Assistant Referee 2: Mehmet Satman (TUR)
Fourth Official: Yaşar Uğurlu (TUR)
Referee Observer: Martin Hansson (SWE)

Molde – Čukarički
Referee: Donald Robertson (SCO)
Assistant Referee 1: Daniel McFarlane (SCO)
Assistant Referee 2: Calum Spence (SCO)
Fourth Official: Gregory Aitken (SCO)
Referee Observer: Vadims Direktorenko (LVA)

Mladá Boleslav – Ordabasy Shymkent
Referee: Siarhiej Cynkievič (BLR)
Assistant Referee 1: Vitaĺ Maliucin (BLR)
Assistant Referee 2: Jaŭhien Ramanaŭ (BLR)
Fourth Official: Viktar Šymusik (BLR)
Referee Observer: Kevin Azzopardi (MLT)

Alashkert – FCSB
Referee: Robert Harvey (IRL)
Assistant Referee 1: Wayne McDonnell (IRL)
Assistant Referee 2: Mark Gavin (IRL)
Fourth Official: Bernard Connolly (IRL)
Referee Observer: Lassin Isaksen (FRO)

Šachcior Salihorsk – Esbjerg FB
Referee: Mete Kalkavan (TUR)
Assistant Referee 1: Esat Sancaktar (TUR)
Assistant Referee 2: Kerem Ersoy (TUR)
Fourth Official: Arda Kardeşler (TUR)
Referee Observer: Vlado Svilokos (CRO)

Hapoel Beer Sheva – Kayrat Almaty
Referee: Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea (ESP)
Assistant Referee 1: Roberto Díaz Pérez (ESP)
Assistant Referee 2: Jon Núñez Fernández (ESP)
Fourth Official: Adrián Cordero Vega (ESP)
Referee Observer: Draženko Kovačić (CRO)

CSKA Sofia – NK Osijek
Referee: Paolo Valeri (ITA)
Assistant Referee 1: Stefano Alassio (ITA)
Assistant Referee 2: Stefano Del Giovane (ITA)
Fourth Official: Fabrizio Pasqua (ITA)
Referee Observer: Jan Carlsen (DEN)

Lokomotiv Plovdiv – Spartak Trnava
Referee: Timótheos Christofí (CYP)
Assistant Referee 1: Pávlos Georgíou (CYP)
Assistant Referee 2: Mários Kalogírou (CYP)
Fourth Official: Geórgios Nikoláou (CYP)
Referee Observer: Asim Xudiyev (AZE)

Connah's Quay Nomads – FK Partizan
Referee: Michal Očenáš (SVK)
Assistant Referee 1: Miroslav Benko (SVK)
Assistant Referee 2: Tomáš Vorel (SVK)
Fourth Official: Boris Marhefka (SVK)
Referee Observer: Neale Barry (ENG)

IFK Norrköping – FK Liepaja
Referee: Hüseyin Göçek (TUR)
Assistant Referee 1: Kemal Yılmaz (TUR)
Assistant Referee 2: Erdem Bayık (TUR)
Fourth Official: Abdulkadir Bitigen (TUR)
Referee Observer: Thóroddur Hjaltalín (ISL)

MOL Fehérvár – FC Vaduz
Referee: Kai Erik Steen (NOR)
Assistant Referee 1: Jan Erik Engan (NOR)
Assistant Referee 2: Anders Olav Dale (NOR)
Fourth Official: Kristoffer Hagenes (NOR)
Referee Observer: Nikolai Ivanov (RUS)

Jeunesse Esch – Vitória SC
Referee: Bojan Pandzic (SWE)
Assistant Referee 1: Joakim Nilsson (SWE)
Assistant Referee 2: Daniel Gustavsson (SWE)
Fourth Official: Kaspar Sjöberg (SWE)
Referee Observer: Orhan Erdemir (TUR)

Piast Gliwice – Riga FC
Referee: Manuel Schüttengruber (AUT)
Assistant Referee 1: Roland Brandner (AUT)
Assistant Referee 2: Robert Steinacher (AUT)
Fourth Official: Dieter Muckenhammer (AUT)
Referee Observer: Albano Janku (ALB)

FC Luzern – KÍ Klaksvík
Referee: Halis Özkahya (TUR)
Assistant Referee 1: Ceyhun Sesigüzel (TUR)
Assistant Referee 2: Hakan Yemişken (TUR)
Fourth Official: Halil Umut Meler (TUR)
Referee Observer: Kjell Alseth (NOR)

Dunajská Streda – Atrómitos FC
Referee: Bastian Dankert (GER)
Assistant Referee 1: Markus Häcker (GER)
Assistant Referee 2: Jan Seidel (GER)
Fourth Official: Robert Hartmann (GER)
Referee Observer: Petteri Kari (FIN)

KAA Gent – FC Viitorul
Referee: Aleksandar Stavrev (MKD)
Assistant Referee 1: Marjan Kirovski (MKD)
Assistant Referee 2: Dejan Kostadinov (MKD)
Fourth Official: Dejan Jakimovski (MKD)
Referee Observer: Vladimír Medved (SVK)

AZ Alkmaar – BK Häcken
Referee: Serhiy Boyko (UKR)
Assistant Referee 1: Volodymyr Volodin (UKR)
Assistant Referee 2: Oleksandr Voytyuk (UKR)
Fourth Official: Yaroslav Kozyk (UKR)
Referee Observer: Miroslav Tulinger (CZE)

Aris Thessaloniki – AEL Limassol
Referee: Stuart Attwell (ENG)
Assistant Referee 1: Harry Lennard (ENG)
Assistant Referee 2: Daniel Robathan (ENG)
Fourth Official: Andrew Madley (ENG)
Referee Observer: Nikolai Levnikov (RUS)

NK Domžale – Malmö FF
Referee: Michael Fabbri (ITA)
Assistant Referee 1: Giorgio Peretti (ITA)
Assistant Referee 2: Filippo Valeriani (ITA)
Fourth Official: Daniele Chiffi (ITA)
Referee Observer: Stávros Tritsónis (GRE)

Budućnost Podgorica – Zorya Luhansk
Referee: Massimiliano Irrati (ITA)
Assistant Referee 1: Lorenzo Manganelli (ITA)
Assistant Referee 2: Giacomo Paganessi (ITA)
Fourth Official: Gianluca Manganiello (ITA)
Referee Observer: Adrian Azzopardi (MLT)

Rangers FC – Progrès Niederkorn
Referee: Espen Eskås (NOR)
Assistant Referee 1: Øystein Ytterland (NOR)
Assistant Referee 2: Morten Jensen (NOR)
Fourth Official: Rohit Saggi (NOR)
Referee Observer: Darko Čeferin (SVN)

RC Strasbourg – Maccabi Haifa
Referee: Kevin Blom (NED)
Assistant Referee 1: Davie Goossens (NED)
Assistant Referee 2: Rens Bluemink (NED)
Fourth Official: Siemen Mulder (NED)
Referee Observer: Miroslav Vitković (CRO)

Wolverhampton Wanderers – Crusaders FC
Referee: Kristoffer Karlsson (SWE)
Assistant Referee 1: Stefan Hallberg (SWE)
Assistant Referee 2: Andreas Söderkvist (SWE)
Fourth Official: Andreas Ekberg (SWE)
Referee Observer: Lutz Fröhlich (GER)

RCD Espanyol – Stjarnan
Referee: Alain Durieux (LUX)
Assistant Referee 1: Daniel Da Costa (LUX)
Assistant Referee 2: Gilles Becker (LUX)
Fourth Official: Laurent Kopriwa (LUX)
Referee Observer: Cyril Zimmermann (SUI)

Legia Warszawa – KuPS Kuopio
Referee: Ivan Bebek (CRO)
Assistant Referee 1: Goran Pataki (CRO)
Assistant Referee 2: Bojan Zobenica (CRO)
Fourth Official: Mario Zebec (CRO)
Referee Observer: Michael Ross (NIR)

Torino FC – Debreceni VSC
Referee: Jens Maae (DEN)
Assistant Referee 1: Jesper Dahl (DEN)
Assistant Referee 2: Victor Skytte (DEN)
Fourth Official: Morten Krogh (DEN)
Referee Observer: Brian Lawlor (WAL)

Shamrock Rovers – Apóllon Limassol
Referee: Stephan Klossner (SUI)
Assistant Referee 1: Remy Zgraggen (SUI)
Assistant Referee 2: Efe Kurnazca (SUI)
Fourth Official: Alessandro Dudic (SUI)
Referee Observer: Gylfi Orrason (ISL)

Valur – Ludogorets
Referee: Geórgios Komínis (GRE)
Assistant Referee 1: Chrístos Akrívos (GRE)
Assistant Referee 2: Andréas Meidanás (GRE)
Fourth Official: Aristotélis Diamandópoulos (GRE)
Referee Observer: Bernardino González Vázquez (ESP)

UEFA Champions League – Second Qualifying Round (First Leg)

23-24 July 2019

Viktoria Plzeň – Olympiakós FC
Referee: Marco Guida (ITA, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Ciro Carbone (ITA)
Assistant Referee 2: Daniele Bindoni (ITA)
Fourth Official: Fabio Maresca (ITA)
Referee Observer: Murat Ilgaz (TUR)

FC Saburtalo – GNK Dinamo
Referee: Petr Ardeleanu (CZE)
Assistant Referee 1: Ivo Nádvorník (CZE)
Assistant Referee 2: Jakub Hrabovský (CZE)
Fourth Official: Karel Hrubeš (CZE)
Referee Observer: Sándor Piller (HUN)

The New Saints – FC København
Referee: Alexander Harkam (AUT)
Assistant Referee 1: Andreas Witschnigg (AUT)
Assistant Referee 2: Andreas Staudinger (AUT)
Fourth Official: Christian Ciochirca (AUT)
Referee Observer: Leslie Irvine (NIR)

PSV Eindhoven – FC Basel
Referee: Andris Treimanis (LVA)
Assistant Referee 1: Haralds Gudermanis (LVA)
Assistant Referee 2: Aleksejs Spasjonņikovs (LVA)
Fourth Official: Aleksandrs Golubevs (LVA)
Referee Observer: Frank De Bleeckere (BEL)

FK Sutjeska – Apoel FC
Referee: István Vad (HUN)
Assistant Referee 1: István Albert (HUN)
Assistant Referee 2: Péter Berettyán (HUN)
Fourth Official: Balázs Berke (HUN)
Referee Observer: Sergey Zuyev (RUS)

Bate Barysaŭ – Rosenborg BK
Referee: Sandro Schärer (SUI)
Assistant Referee 1: Bekim Zogaj (SUI)
Assistant Referee 2: Devis Dettamanti (SUI)
Fourth Official: Lionel Tschudi (SUI)
Referee Observer: Jan Wegereef (NED)

CFR Cluj – Maccabi Tel Aviv
Referee: José Sánchez Martínez (ESP)
Assistant Referee 1: Raúl Cabañero Martínez (ESP)
Assistant Referee 2: José Gallego García (ESP)
Fourth Official: Santiago Jaime Latre (ESP)
Referee Observer: Markus Nobs (SUI)

Ferencvárosi TC – Valletta FC
Referee: Radu Petrescu (ROU)
Assistant Referee 1: Radu Ghinguleac (ROU)
Assistant Referee 2: Vladimir Urzică (ROU)
Fourth Official: Marcel Bîrsan (ROU)
Referee Observer: Jørn West Larsen (DEN)

NK Maribor – AIK Stockholm
Referee: Sascha Stegemann (GER)
Assistant Referee 1: Marco Achmüller (GER)
Assistant Referee 2: Thorben Siewer (GER)
Fourth Official: Harm Osmers (GER)
Referee Observer: Manuel López Fernández (ESP)

Dundalk FC – Qarabağ FK
Referee: Bartosz Frankowski (POL)
Assistant Referee 1: Marcin Boniek (POL)
Assistant Referee 2: Jakub Winkler (POL)
Fourth Official: Daniel Stefański (POL)
Referee Observer: Peter Fröjdfeldt (SWE)

Celtic FC – Nõmme Kalju
Referee: Jakob Kehlet (DEN)
Assistant Referee 1: Lars Hummelgaard (DEN)
Assistant Referee 2: Heine Sørensen (DEN)
Fourth Official: Michael Tykgaard (DEN)
Referee Observer: Bo Karlsson (SWE)

Crvena Zvezda – HJK Helsinki
Referee: Pawel Gil (POL)
Assistant Referee 1: Konrad Sapela (POL)
Assistant Referee 2: Marcin Borkowski (POL)
Fourth Official: Tomasz Kwiatkowski (POL)
Referee Observer: Rien Koopman (NED)

CONMEBOL Copa Libertadores –Round of 16 (First Leg)

23-25 July 2019

River Plate – Cruzeiro
Referee: Julio Bascuñan (CHI, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Christian Schiemann (CHI)
Assistant Referee 2: Claudio Urrutia (CHI)
Fourth Official: Felipe Gonzalez (CHI)
VAR: Piero Maza (CHI)
AVAR 1: Eduardo Gamboa (CHI)
AVAR 2: Jose Retamal (CHI)
VAR Observer: Dario Ubriaco (URU)
Referee Assessor: Ubaldo Aquino (PAR)

LDU Quito – Olimpia
Referee: Patricio Loustau (ARG)
Assistant Referee 1: Ezequiel Brailovsky (ARG)
Assistant Referee 2: Cristian Navarro (ARG)
Fourth Official: Dario Herrera (ARG)
VAR: Andres Cunha (URU)
AVAR 1: Wagner Reway (BRA)
AVAR 2: Richard Trinidad (URU)
VAR Observer: Oscar Ruiz (COL)
Referee Assessor: Jorge Jaimes (PER)

Godoy Cruz – Palmeiras
Referee: Wilmar Roldan (COL)
Assistant Referee 1: Alexander Guzman (COL)
Assistant Referee 2: Dionisio Ruiz (COL)
Fourth Official: Carlos Herrera (COL)
VAR: Victor Carrillo (PER)
AVAR 1: Michael Espinoza (PER)
AVAR 2: Jonny Bossio (PER)
VAR Observer: Claudio Puga (CHI)
Referee Assessor: Juan Cardellino (URU)

Nacional – Internacional
Referee: Nestor Pitana (ARG)
Assistant Referee 1: Gabriel Chade (ARG)
Assistant Referee 2: Julio Fernandez (ARG)
Fourth Official: Orlando Bracamonte (VEN)
VAR: Gery Vargas (BOL)
AVAR 1: Angel Arteaga (VEN)
AVAR 2: Hernan Maidana (ARG)
VAR Observer: Patricio Polic (CHI)
Referee Assessor: Manuel Bernal (PAR)

San Lorenzo – Cerro Porteno
Referee: Roberto Tobar (CHI)
Assistant Referee 1: Claudio Rios (CHI)
Assistant Referee 2: Alejandro Molina (CHI)
Fourth Official: Gustavo Tejera (URU)
VAR: Nicolas Gallo (COL)
AVAR 1: Carlos Orbe (ECU)
AVAR 2: Wilmar Navarro (COL)
VAR Observer: Mauricio Espinosa (URU)
Referee Assessor: Carlos Pastorino (URU)

Athletico Paranaense – Boca Juniors
Referee: Daniel Fedorczuk (URU)
Assistant Referee 1: Nicolas Taran (URU)
Assistant Referee 2: Miguel Nievas (URU)
Fourth Official: Christian Ferreyra (URU)
VAR: Andres Rojas (COL)
AVAR 1: Cristian Garay (CHI)
AVAR 2: John Leon (COL)
VAR Observer: Ana Perez (PER)
Referee Assessor: Freddy Arellanos (PER)

Emelec – Flamengo
Referee: Fernando Rapallini (ARG)
Assistant Referee 1: Diego Bonfa (ARG)
Assistant Referee 2: Maximiliano Del Yesso (ARG)
Fourth Official: Gustavo Murillo (COL)
VAR: Leodan Gonzalez (URU)
AVAR 1: Ivo Mendez (BOL)
AVAR 2: Juan Belatti (ARG)
VAR Observer: Jorge Osorio (CHI)
Referee Assessor: Jose Buitrago (COL)

Gremio – Libertad
Referee: Esteban Ostojich (URU)
Assistant Referee 1: Gabriel Popovits (URU)
Assistant Referee 2: Martin Soppi (URU)
Fourth Official: Andres Matonte (URU)
VAR: Diego Haro (PER)
AVAR 1: Guillermo Guerrero (ECU)
AVAR 2: Victor Raez (PER)
VAR Observer: Jorge Larrionda (URU)
Referee Assessor: Juan Lugones (BOL)

CONMEBOL Copa Sudamericana – Round of 16 (First Leg, II)

23-25 July 2019

Penarol – Fluminense
Referee: Arnaldo Samaniego (PAR, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Eduardo Cardozo (PAR)
Assistant Referee 2: Dario Gaona (PAR)
Fourth Official: Juan Benitez (PAR)
VAR: German Delfino (ARG)
AVAR 1: Juan Soto (VEN)
AVAR 2: Christian Lescano (ECU)
VAR Observer: Francisco Mondria (CHI)
Referee Assessor: Angel Sanchez (ARG)

Zulia – Sporting Cristal
Referee: Eber Aquino (PAR)
Assistant Referee 1: Roberto Cañete (PAR)
Assistant Referee 2: Juan Zorrilla (PAR)
Fourth Official: Derlis Lopez (PAR)
VAR: Wilton Sampaio (BRA)
AVAR 1: Wagner Magalhaes (BRA)
AVAR 2: Emerson Carvalho (BRA)
VAR Observer: Ana Oliveira (BRA)
Referee Assessor: Miguel Buitrago (VEN)

Botafogo – Atletico Mineiro
Referee: Raphael Claus (BRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Alessandro Rocha (BRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Fabricio Vilarinho (BRA)
Fourth Official: Franklin Congo (ECU)
VAR: Anderson Daronco (BRA)
AVAR 1: Luiz Oliveira (BRA)
AVAR 2: Danilo Manis (BRA)
VAR Observer: Ednilson Corona (BRA)
Referee Assessor: Nilson Moncao (BRA)

Independiente – Universidad Catolica
Referee: Jesus Valenzuela (VEN)
Assistant Referee 1: Luis Murillo (VEN)
Assistant Referee 2: Tulio Moreno (VEN)
Fourth Official: Joel Alarcon (PER)
VAR: Alexis Herrera (VEN)
AVAR 1: Braulio Machado (BRA)
AVAR 2: Jorge Urrego (VEN)
VAR Observer: Roberto Perassi (BRA)
Referee Assessor: Roberto Silvera (URU)

Corinthians – Montevideo Wanderers
Referee: Jose Argote (VEN)
Assistant Referee 1: Carlos Lopez (VEN)
Assistant Referee 2: Lubin Torrealba (VEN)
Fourth Official: Marlon Escalante (VEN)
VAR: Facundo Tello (ARG)
AVAR 1: Mario Diaz de Vivar (PAR)
AVAR 2: Jose Antelo (BOL)
VAR Observer: Henry Gambetta (PER)
Referee Assessor: Ricardo Casas (ARG)

CAF: A history of referee changes

The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has partially explained why it made a sudden change to the referee appointed to the Africa Cup of Nations final. 

The organisation had announced, through its social media platforms, that South African referee Victor Gomes was to take charge of the final between Algeria’s Les Verts (The Greens) and Senegal’s Lions of Teranga. But CAF appeared to make a sudden volte-face and appointed Cameroonian Alioum Alioum. When CAF President Ahmad was asked, at Thursday’s press conference, why a sudden change was made to the referee for the final, the Malagasy did not give an understandable answer. However, Souleyman Waberi, chairman of CAF’s Referees’ Commission, told Insideworldfootball that Gomes was never appointed in the first place and that the announcement on CAF’s social media handles was never authorised by them. “The Referees Commission did not make any appointment of the referee for the final until after the 3rd place match, between Nigeria and Tunisia. I was very shocked, like anyone else, to see the announcement of Victor Gomes on CAF’s social media handles,” Waberi said. “The moment I saw it, I went to see Anthony Baffoe (CAF’s Deputy General Secretary – Football and Development) and asked him who gave the communications department the right to make such an announcement? He was also surprised about it. We then had to order that those announcements be taken off all CAF social media,” he continued. This type of mistake should never happen. But the announcement of Gomes never came from the Referees Commission. We must improve our communication as an organisation. What happened is not acceptable and people have the right to criticise us for this.” When InsideWorldFootball asked CAF’s Communications Department who ordered the publication of the Gomes appointment, two officials made it clear that their department had nothing to do with the error. “The social media platforms of CAF are not under the authority of the communications department. They are managed by our marketing department,” both people said. Abdel Bah, CAF’s head of marketing, told InsideWorldFootball that a third party organisation, responsible for CAF’s digital communication, during the ongoing Africa Cup of Nations, are responsible for the mistake. “We are using an external company for our social media offerings during this tournament. Unfortunately, those responsible got news, from outside CAF, that Victor Gomes was the referee. They thought that the information officially came from CAF, which they failed to crosscheck. As soon as the Referees’ Commission heard about this, they informed us that the information was not correct and it was taken down,” Bah said.

This is not the first time that there has been controversy over the appointment of referees at the ongoing Cup of Nations. CAF is yet to explain how Gehad Grisha, the Egyptian referee, was included on the Cup of Nations rota, even though he was serving a six-month suspension for “poor performance”, according to the body. Grisha was in charge of proceedings for the 3rd place match between Nigeria’s Super Eagles and Tunisia’s Carthage Eagles, which Nigeria won 1-0. He was originally suspended by CAF after his handling of the first leg of the controversial Champions League final between Morocco’s Wydad Athletic Club (WAC) and Esperance of Tunisia. The Egyptian referee denied, correctly – after a VAR review of both incidents – a penalty and goal to WAC in the course of the Casablanca match. Grisha’s suspension caused a lot of controversy within the African football community, as it was generally judged to be an unfair suspension. But the method of reversal of Grisha’s suspension, not the reversal in itself, is as controversial as the unfair sanctions that were imposed on the Egyptian. CAF, right up to the end of the Africa Cup of Nations tournament, has not issued a statement about why the suspension of Grisha was revoked. It was the Egyptian Football Association (EFA) that strangely announced the revocation, which, in the ordinary course of events, is a serious violation of protocol, as they are a member association of CAF that should wait for CAF’s clear pronouncements on such matters. Officials of CAF, approached by Insideworldfootball, for an explanation of the situation, declined to comment.

A sudden change of referee also took place in this year’s Champions League game between DR Congo club TP Mazembe and Esperance, when Ethiopian referee Bamlak Tessema was suddenly substituted and replaced by Zambian referee Janny Sikazwe, without any explanation. Souleyman Waberi of Djibouti is the chairman of CAF’s Referees Commission, while Eddy Maillet, Seychelles, is in charge of the day-to-day management of referees within the organisation.

Source: InsideWorldFootball

UEFA U-19 Euro 2019 – Group Stage (Matches 9-12)

20 July 2019
Spain – Italy
Referee: Irfan Peljto (BIH, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Valentin Avram (ROU)
Assistant Referee 2: Grega Kordež (SVN)
Fourth Official: Kristo Tohver (EST)
Referee Observer: Stefan Messner (AUT)

Portugal – Armenia
Referee: Nikola Dabanović (MNE)
Assistant Referee 1: Stephane De Almeida (SUI)
Assistant Referee 2: Dawid Golis (POL)
Fourth Official: Sergei Ivanov (RUS)
Referee Observer: Emil Božinovski (MKD)

21 July 2019
Ireland – Czech Republic
Referee: Anastasios Papapetrou (GRE)
Assistant Referee 1: Aleksandr Radiuš (LTU)
Assistant Referee 2: Sagy Metzamber (ISR)
Fourth Official: Zaven Hovhannisyan (ARM)
Referee Observer: Karen Nalbandyan (ARM)

France – Norway
Referee: Filip Glova (SVK)
Assistant Referee 1: Theodoros Georgiou (HUN)
Assistant Referee 2: Luke Portelli (MLT)
Fourth Official: Suren Baliyan (ARM)
Referee Observer: Jaap Uilenberg (NED)

CAF Africa Cup of Nations Final 2019: Alioum (CMR)

19 July 2019

Senegal –Algeria
Referee: Alioum Alioum (CMR, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Evarist Menkouande (CMR)
Assistant Referee 2: Elvis Noupue (CMR)
Fourth Official: Eric Otogo-Castane (GAB)
Reserve AR: Waleed Ahmed (SDN)
VAR: Benoit Millot (FRA)
AVAR 1: Bakary Gassama (GAM)
AVAR 2: Zakhele Siwela (RSA)
Referee Assessor: Pierre Mounguengui (GAB)

UEFA U-19 Euro 2019 – Group Stage (Matches 5-8)

17 July 2018
Portugal – Spain
Referee: Anastasios Papapetrou (GRE, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Grega Kordež (SVN)
Assistant Referee 2: Dawid Golis (POL)
Fourth Official: Nikola Dabanović (MNE)
Referee Observer: Stefan Messner (AUT)

Armenia – Italy
Referee: Filip Glova (SVK)
Assistant Referee 1: Valentin Avram (ROU)
Assistant Referee 2: Stephane De Almeida (SUI)
Fourth Official: Irfan Peljto (BIH)
Referee Observer: Emil Božinovski (MKD)

18 July 2019
Czech Republic – Norway
Referee: Sergei Ivanov (RUS)
Assistant Referee 1: Aleksandr Radiuš (LTU)
Assistant Referee 2: Sagy Metzamber (ISR)
Fourth Official: Zaven Hovhannisyan (ARM)
Referee Observer: Karen Nalbandyan (ARM)

Ireland – France
Referee: Kristo Tohver (EST)
Assistant Referee 1: Luke Portelli (MLT)
Assistant Referee 2: Theodoros Georgiou (HUN)
Fourth Official: Suren Baliyan (ARM)
Referee Observer: Jaap Uilenberg (NED)

CAF Africa Cup of Nations 2019 – Match for Third Place

17 July 2019

Tunisia – Nigeria
Referee: Gehad Grisha (EGY, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Mahmoud Ahmed (EGY)
Assistant Referee 2: Issa Yaya (CHA)
Fourth Official: Joshua Bondo (BOT)
Reserve AR: Lionel Andrianantenaina (MAD)
VAR: Pol van Boekel (NED)
AVAR 1: Janny Sikazwe (ZAM)
AVAR 2: El Hadji Samba (SEN)

UEFA Europa League – First Qualifying Round (Second Leg)

16-18 July 2019

Chikhura Sachkhere – CS Fola Esch
Referee: Dragan Petrović (BIH, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Sreten Udovičić (BIH)
Assistant Referee 2: Damir Lazić (BIH)
Fourth Official: Zoran Grbić (BIH)
Referee Observer: Mark Whitby (WAL)

FC Banants – FK Čukarički
Referee: Ioánnis Papadópoulos (GRE)
Assistant Referee 1: Chrysoúla Kourompýlia (GRE)
Assistant Referee 2: Ilías Alexéas (GRE)
Fourth Official: Vasílios Fotiás (GRE)
Referee Observer: Matteo Trefoloni (ITA)

KÍ Klaksvík – FK Riteriai
Referee: Yaroslav Kozyk (UKR)
Assistant Referee 1: Valentin Kutsev (UKR)
Assistant Referee 2: Volodymir Vysotskyy (UKR)
Fourth Official: Anatoli Abdula (UKR)
Referee Observer: Jan Wegereef (NED)

OFK Titograd – CSKA Sofia
Referee: Vasílis Dimitríou (CYP)
Assistant Referee 1: Ioánnis Lazárou (CYP)
Assistant Referee 2: Stélios Nikíta (CYP)
Fourth Official: Ioánnis Anastasíou (CYP)
Referee Observer: Karel Bohuněk (CZE)

Makedonija Skopje – Alashkert FC
Referee: Christophe Pires (LUX)
Assistant Referee 1: Daniel Da Costa (LUX)
Assistant Referee 2: David Santos (LUX)
Fourth Official: Jérémy Muller (LUX)
Referee Observer: Niklas Lídarenda (FRO)

Kayrat Almaty – Široki Brijeg
Referee: Denys Shurman (UKR)
Assistant Referee 1: Oleksandr Zhukov (UKR)
Assistant Referee 2: Viktor Matyash (UKR)
Fourth Official: Oleksandr Derdo (UKR)
Referee Observer: Andreas Schluchter (SUI)

KF Teuta – FK Ventspils
Referee: Erez Papir (ISR)
Assistant Referee 1: Matityahu Yakobov (ISR)
Assistant Referee 2: Valentyn Kuzhevski (ISR)
Fourth Official: Liran Liany (ISR)
Referee Observer: Michal Beneš (CZE)

Inter Turku – Brøndby IF
Referee: Keith Kennedy (NIR)
Assistant Referee 1: Stephen Donaldson (NIR)
Assistant Referee 2: Georgios Argyropoulos (NIR)
Fourth Official: Evan Boyce (NIR)
Referee Observer: Ferenc Székely (HUN)

Rīgas Futbola Skola – Olimpija Ljubljana
Referee: Peter Kjaersgaard (DEN)
Assistant Referee 1: Christian Brixen (DEN)
Assistant Referee 2: Victor Skytte (DEN)
Fourth Official: Jens Maae (DEN)
Referee Observer: Robert Małek (POL)

Levadia Tallinn – Stjarnan
Referee: Besfort Kasumi (KVX)
Assistant Referee 1: Edmond Zeqiri (KVX)
Assistant Referee 2: Fatmir Sekiraqa (KVX)
Fourth Official: Mervan Bejtullahu (KVX)
Referee Observer: Igor Șațchii (MDA)

RoPS Rovaniemi – Aberdeen FC
Referee: Ümit Öztürk (TUR)
Assistant Referee 1: İbrahim Uyarcan (TUR)
Assistant Referee 2: Osman Bilir (TUR)
Fourth Official: Koray Gençerler (TUR)
Referee Observer: Miroslav Liba (CZE)

Universitatea Craiova – Sebail PFK
Referee: Helgi Jónasson (ISL)
Assistant Referee 1: Jóhann Gudmundsson (ISL)
Assistant Referee 2: Bryngeir Valdimarsson (ISL)
Fourth Official: Ívar Kristjánsson (ISL)
Referee Observer: Murat Ilgaz (TUR)

Levski Sofia – MFK Ružomberok
Referee: Veaceslav Banari (MDA)
Assistant Referee 1: Victor Mardari (MDA)
Assistant Referee 2: Dumitru Ciobanu (MDA)
Fourth Official: Ghenadie Sidenco (MDA)
Referee Observer: Alon Yefet (ISR)

Dynama Minsk – FK Liepaja
Referee: Nicolas Walsh (SCO)
Assistant Referee 1: Alan Mulvanny (SCO)
Assistant Referee 2: Calum Spence (SCO)
Fourth Official: Gavin Duncan (SCO)
Referee Observer: Boško Jovanetić (SRB)

FC Vaduz – Breidablik
Referee: Genc Nuza (KVX)
Assistant Referee 1: Fatlum Berisha (KVX)
Assistant Referee 2: Bujar Selimaj (KVX)
Fourth Official: Dardan Çaka (KVX)
Referee Observer: Gevorg Hovhannisyan (ARM)

Torpedo Kutaisi – Ordabasy Shymkent
Referee: Aristotélis Diamantópoulos (GRE)
Assistant Referee 1: Trýfon Petrópoulos (GRE)
Assistant Referee 2: Iordánis Aptósoglou (GRE)
Fourth Official: Geórgios Tzováras (GRE)
Referee Observer: Martin Ingvarsson (SWE)

Milsami Orhei – FCSB
Referee: Timótheos Christofí (CYP)
Assistant Referee 1: Pávlos Georgíou (CYP)
Assistant Referee 2: Mários Kalogírou (CYP)
Fourth Official: Kyriákos Christodoúlou (CYP)
Referee Observer: Igor Pristovnik (CRO)

HŠK Zrinjski – Akademija Pandev
Referee: Ondřej Pechanec (CZE)
Assistant Referee 1: Jiří Moláček (CZE)
Assistant Referee 2: Jakub Hrabovský (CZE)
Fourth Official: Ondřej Berka (CZE)
Referee Observer: Oğuz Sarvan (TUR)

Neftçi PF – Speranța Nisporeni
Referee: Julian Weinberger (AUT)
Assistant Referee 1: Maximilian Kolbitsch (AUT)
Assistant Referee 2: Michael Nemetz (AUT)
Fourth Official: Andreas Heiss (AUT)
Referee Observer: Albano Janku (ALB)

Žalgiris Vilnius – Budapest Honvéd
Referee: Rohit Saggi (NOR)
Assistant Referee 1: Morten Jensen (NOR)
Assistant Referee 2: Geir Isaksen (NOR)
Fourth Official: Kristoffer Hagenes (NOR)
Referee Observer: Milan Karadžić (SRB)

Cracovia Kraków – Dunajská Streda
Referee: Athanásios Tzílos (GRE)
Assistant Referee 1: Chasán Koúla (GRE)
Assistant Referee 2: Ráinhard Boúxbaoum (GRE)
Fourth Official: Ángelos Evangélou (GRE)
Referee Observer: Fritz Stuchlik (AUT)

Apóllon Limassol – Žalgiris Kaunas
Referee: Vladimir Moskalev (RUS)
Assistant Referee 1: Yegor Bolkhovitin (RUS)
Assistant Referee 2: Vladimir Minevich (RUS)
Fourth Official: Vasiliy Kazartsev (RUS)
Referee Observer: Stefano Podeschi (SMR)

FK Haugesund – Cliftonville FC
Referee: Mario Zebec (CRO)
Assistant Referee 1: Borut Križarić (CRO)
Assistant Referee 2: Jerko Crnčić (CRO)
Fourth Official: Ivan Bebek (CRO)
Referee Observer: Tomasz Mikulski (POL)

Petrocub Hîncești – AEK Larnaca
Referee: Novak Simović (SRB)
Assistant Referee 1: Bojan Banović (SRB)
Assistant Referee 2: Miloš Miškeljin (SRB)
Fourth Official: Momčilo Marković (SRB)
Referee Observer: Michel Piraux (BEL)

Progrès Niederkorn – Cork City FC
Referee: Matthew De Gabriele (MLT)
Assistant Referee 1: Jurgen Spiteri (MLT)
Assistant Referee 2: Mitchell Scerri (MLT)
Fourth Official: Emanuel Grech (MLT)
Referee Observer: Vencel Tóth (HUN)

UE Engordany – Dinamo Tbilisi
Referee: Balázs Berke (HUN)
Assistant Referee 1: Péter Kóbor (HUN)
Assistant Referee 2: Gergő Vígh-Tarsonyi (HUN)
Fourth Official: Csaba Pintér (HUN)
Referee Observer: Goran Mihaljević (MNE)

Hapoel Beer Sheva – KF Laçi
Referee: Tihomir Pejin (CRO)
Assistant Referee 1: Marjan Tomas (CRO)
Assistant Referee 2: Kruno Šarić (CRO)
Fourth Official: Dario Bel (CRO)
Referee Observer: Ladislav Gádoši (SVK)

Hajduk Split – Gżira United
Referee: Nikólas Neokléous (CYP)
Assistant Referee 1: Michális Sotiríou (CYP)
Assistant Referee 2: Mários Dimitriádis (CYP)
Fourth Official: Chrysovalándis Theoúli (CYP)
Referee Observer: Martin Hansson (SWE)

NŠ Mura – Maccabi Haifa
Referee: Tomasz Musial (POL)
Assistant Referee 1: Radoslaw Siejka (POL)
Assistant Referee 2: Jakub Ślusarski (POL)
Fourth Official: Tomasz Kwiatkowski (POL)
Referee Observer: Plarent Kotherja (ALB)

FK Kukësi – Debreceni VSC
Referee: Stanislav Todorov (BUL)
Assistant Referee 1: Georgi Doinov (BUL)
Assistant Referee 2: Aleksandar Atanasov (BUL)
Fourth Official: Dragomir Draganov (BUL)
Referee Observer: Konrad Plautz (AUT)

B36 Tórshavn – Crusaders FC
Referee: Milovan Milačić (MNE)
Assistant Referee 1: Milutin Djukić (MNE)
Assistant Referee 2: Vladan Todorović (MNE)
Fourth Official: Predrag Radovanović (MNE)
Referee Observer: Gylfi Orrason (ISL)

MOL Fehérvár – FK Zeta
Referee: Paul McLaughlin (IRL)
Assistant Referee 1: Robert Clarke (IRL)
Assistant Referee 2: Emmett Dynan (IRL)
Fourth Official: Graham Kelly (IRL)
Referee Observer: Sergei Zuev (RUS)

Hibernians FC – Šachcior Salihorsk
Referee: Furkat Atazhanov (KAZ)
Assistant Referee 1: Yevgeniy Belskiy (KAZ)
Assistant Referee 2: Denis Labashov (KAZ)
Fourth Official: Zhandos Abzhan (KAZ)
Referee Observer: Robert Sedlacek (AUT)

IFK Norrköping – Saint Patrick's FC
Referee: Dejan Jakimovski (MKD)
Assistant Referee 1: Nikola Karakolev (MKD)
Assistant Referee 2: Kuštrim Lika (MKD)
Fourth Official: Nikola Kostenčev (MKD)
Referee Observer: Asim Xudiyev (AZE)

FC Viciebsk – KuPS Kuopio
Referee: Hugo Miguel (POR)
Assistant Referee 1: António Godinho (POR)
Assistant Referee 2: Bruno Alves (POR)
Fourth Official: Hélder Azevedo (POR)
Referee Observer: Raymond Ellingham (WAL)

FK Škupi – FC Pyunik
Referee: Vitali Romanov (UKR)
Assistant Referee 1: Andriy Skrypka (UKR)
Assistant Referee 2: Ihor Alokhin (UKR)
Fourth Official: Viktor Kopiyevskyy (UKR)
Referee Observer: Dejan Filipović (SRB)

Ballymena United – Malmö FF
Referee: Kaarlo Hämäläinen (FIN)
Assistant Referee 1: Jan-Peter Aravirta (FIN)
Assistant Referee 2: Sami Nykänen (FIN)
Fourth Official: Mattias Gestranius (FIN)
Referee Observer: Uno Tutk (EST)

Kilmarnock FC – Connah's Quay Nomads
Referee: Ferenc Karakó (HUN)
Assistant Referee 1: István Albert (HUN)
Assistant Referee 2: Balázs Buzás (HUN)
Fourth Official: Sándor Andó-Szabó (HUN)
Referee Observer: Luis Medina Cantalejo (ESP)

Radnički Niš – Flora Tallinn
Referee: Zbyněk Proske (CZE)
Assistant Referee 1: Petr Caletka (CZE)
Assistant Referee 2: Radek Kotík (CZE)
Fourth Official: Karel Hrubeš (CZE)
Referee Observer: Pjetur Sigurdsson (ISL)

Rangers FC – St. Joseph's FC
Referee: Christopher Jäger (AUT)
Assistant Referee 1: Markus Gutschi (AUT)
Assistant Referee 2: Stefan Kühr (AUT)
Fourth Official: Stefan Ebner (AUT)
Referee Observer: Manuel López Fernández (ESP)

Spartak Trnava – Radnik Bijeljina
Referee: Rahim Hasanov (AZE)
Assistant Referee 1: Namiq Hüseynov (AZE)
Assistant Referee 2: Mübariz Haşımov (AZE)
Fourth Official: Elçin Masiyev (AZE)
Referee Observer: Paulius Malžinskas (LTU)

NK Domžale – Balzan FC
Referee: Marcel Bîrsan (ROU)
Assistant Referee 1: Radu Ghinguleac (ROU)
Assistant Referee 2: Cristian Orbuleț (ROU)
Fourth Official: Radu Petrescu (ROU)
Referee Observer: Michális Argyroú (CYP)

Budućnost Podgorica – Narva Trans
Referee: Stefan Apostolov (BUL)
Assistant Referee 1: Martin Venev (BUL)
Assistant Referee 2: Miroslav Maksimov (BUL)
Fourth Official: Ivailo Stoyanov (BUL)
Referee Observer: Alfredo Trentalange (ITA)

Shamrock Rovers – SK Brann
Referee: Kári Jóannesarson (FRO)
Assistant Referee 1: Andrew Christiansen (FRO)
Assistant Referee 2: Jan Hermansen (FRO)
Fourth Official: Alex Troleis (FRO)
Referee Observer: Ján Fašung (SVK)

Legia Warszawa – Europa FC
Referee: Robert Jenkins (WAL)
Assistant Referee 1: Lewiss Edwards (WAL)
Assistant Referee 2: Johnathon Bryant (WAL)
Fourth Official: David Morgan (WAL)
Referee Observer: Yuri Baskakov (RUS)

KR Reykjavík – Molde FK
Referee: Ian McNabb (NIR)
Assistant Referee 1: Stephen Bell (NIR)
Assistant Referee 2: David Anderson (NIR)
Fourth Official: Shane Andrews (NIR)
Referee Observer: Draženko Kovačić (CRO)