With the disappearance of Michel Kitabdjian at the age of 89, French football has lost one of the most illustrious referees in its history. Of all French referees, he had the greatest longevity at the international level. For 19 seasons, from 1961 to 1980, Michel Kitabdjian represented French refereeing at the international level and he was an appreciated and respected ambassador. His service record includes two matches at the football tournament of the 1968 Summer Olympics and the final of the European Champions Cup, on 28 May 1975, at the Parc des Princes, between Bayern Munich and Leeds United (2-0). In total, he refereed 233 international matches, including two European Cup semi-finals. Appointed federal referee in 1959, the Niçois also refereed the 1965 French Cup final between Sedan Torcy and Stade Rennais. In total, he refereed approximately 1,500 games and was ranked the best French referee from 1965 to 1976 by the Central Referees Commission, the ancestor of the Technical Refereeing Directorate and the Federal Referees Commission.
Once retired from the field, Michel Kitabdjian was very involved in the training of young referees in the Côte-d´Azur District (of which he was honorary president), but also at the federal level. “He was a member of the Central Youth Commission at the FFF, recalls Claude Colombo, a former international referee. At the level of the Mediterranean League, along with Gilles Veissière and Bruno Coué in particular, we know what we owe Michel. For years, training young referees has been his mission, his passion, his raison d'être. He had a very marked charisma, an extraordinary CV, but above all an exceptional humility. He was unanimous everywhere he went. He was concerned with giving back to football and refereeing what football and refereeing had brought him. It was his leitmotif. He will remain as an extraordinary example for all those who knew him”.
Source: FFF
