The Asian Football Confederation (AFC)’s commitment to ensure the Continent’s match officials continue to receive the highest standards of mentorship and guidance was further reinforced by the AFC Referees Committee at its sixth meeting held virtually. Chaired by His Excellency Du Zhaocai, the Committee approved several decisions aimed at elevating the current entry criteria and pathways for AFC Elite Referee Assessors and AFC Elite Referee Instructors, other than through the FIFA Futuro III courses.
Setting the context, the Committee noted the challenges in the existing selection process where AFC Elite Referee Assessors and AFC Elite Referee Instructors are selected through the FIFA Futuro III courses held in the respective regions, based on the evaluations and recommendations from the course instructors. However, due to the challenges brought about by the pandemic, the FIFA Futuro III courses have since transitioned online, with no recommendations presented to the AFC for the past two years. Therefore, as part of efforts to enhance the entry criteria, AFC Elite Referee Assessors and AFC Elite Referee Instructors must now have at least five years of experience in the AFC Elite Match Officials Panel instead of the existing two-year requirement. Additionally, AFC Elite Referee Assessors and AFC Elite Referee Instructors must also be below the age of 65 on 1st January in the year of nomination and must be proficient in both written and spoken English. As an additional requirement, AFC Elite Referee Instructors must also be active in a Member Association (MA) as a Referee Instructor. In the same spirit and to improve the pathway of AFC Elite Referee Assessors, the AFC will now consider retired AFC Elite Match Officials who have had the experience in the most-recent FIFA World Cup, following an evaluation to be completed by the Confederation. Similarly, for AFC Elite Referee Instructors, the AFC will now consider retired AFC Elite Match Officials, who have been actively involved as AFC Referee Coaches, following an evaluation conducted by the AFC.
Source: AFC