Spanish refereeing is in mourning after learning of the death of Victoriano Sanchez Arminio at the age of 80 due to lung cancer. The first reaction came from the current CTA president, Medina Cantalejo, in Carrusel Deportivo: "It is a tremendous shock for us, we did not expect it, he was very loved by everyone. He was a man with a lot of character and took care of us like a father, he was guiding us, he was scolding us, we lost a member of our refereeing world; I don't know what else can happen to us this year. He has helped us a lot to get to where we are; rest in peace, a hug, and a kiss to the whole family".
Sanchez Arminio made his debut in the First Division in the 1976/77 campaign in a Malaga-Salamanca match, played on 11 September 1976, which the Andalusian team won 1-0 with a goal from Nicolas Areaz. He refereed a total of 149 games in Primera Division until he had to retire due to age. International official since 1978, Sanchez Arminio was an assistant referee for Augusto Lamo Castillo at the World Cup in Spain '82, then he refereed at the Los Angeles Olympic Games ‘84, the 1985 Youth World Cup, and the 1986 World Cup in Mexico. He refereed three finals of Copa del Rey in 1982 (Real Madrid-Sporting 2-1), 1986 (Zaragoza-Barcelona 1-0) and 1989 (Real Madrid-Valladolid 1-0), and the second leg of the UEFA Cup final in 1989 between Stuttgart and Napoli.
It didn't take him long after retirement to join the Technical Committee of Referees, where, appointed by Angel Maria Villar, he would go on to preside in March 1993 by replacing Pedro Sanchez Sanz. He was in office until Luis Rubiales became president of the Royal Spanish Federation in May 2018 when he announced his removal and the appointment of Carlos Velasco Carballo from Madrid to preside over the CTA. The outbreak of the Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira case, which Sanchez Arminio had as vice-president, deeply affected him. His last public appearance took place on April 17, when he went before the judge of the National Court, Alejandro Abascal, together with Raul Masso, former general secretary of the CTA, and Angel Maria Villar, former president of the Spanish Royal Federation. Sanchez Arminio used his right not to testify before Judge Abascal, within the investigation for an alleged diversion of funds of 7.9 million euros for refereeing expenses. "He was the man who changed refereeing. When he had to say something to you, he would say it to your face. You could never fool him. It's a shame, because in the end, an entire referee family remains in doubt," explained an emotional Iturralde on Cadena Ser.
Source: Marca
