With the expansion of Asia’s most prestigious tournament from 16 to 24 teams, a record 60 match officials – comprising 30 referees and assistant referees each – have been appointed to the AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019, which is scheduled to kick-off in one month’s time on January 5, 2019. The largest-ever contingent, which will also be supported by four reserve officials, will see a diverse range of nationalities, with 19 Member Associations represented across the five AFC zones. The Continent’s best referees and assistant referees were selected based on their skill, technical knowledge, management competence and physical fitness. They will be expected to perform various roles including Additional Assistant Referees, Reserve Assistant Referees as well as Video Assistant Referees (VAR), which will come into force from the quarter-final stage. The appointments are a culmination of a robust and comprehensive preparation programme dating back to the conclusion of the AFC Asian Cup Australia 2015. Since then, ten seminars have been organised to ensure optimum consistency and uniformity and the highest level of refereeing standards. As the Continent shifts its attention to the UAE, a final preparatory course is scheduled to take place in Abu Dhabi five days prior to the competition, which has been designed specifically to focus on the seamless implementation of the VAR system. As part of the main cast, the AFC also appointed a guest trio from Concacaf, led by FIFA World Cup referee Cesar Ramos from Mexico, as part of the existing exchange programme between the two Confederations, with an Asian trio set to feature in the Concacaf's Gold Cup later this year. (Source: AFC)
1. Christopher Beath (AUS)
2. Peter Green (AUS)
3. Nawaf Shukralla (BHR)
4. Fu Ming (CHN)
5. Ma Ning (CHN)
6. Liu Kwok Man (HKG)
7. Alireza Faghani (IRN)
8. Ali Al-Qaysi (IRQ)
9. Mohanad Sarray (IRQ)
10. Adham Makhadmeh (JOR)
11. Ahmed Al-Ali (JOR)
12. Jumpei Iida (JPN)
13. Hiroyuki Kimura (JPN)
14. Ryuji Sato (JPN)
15. Kim Dong-Jin (KOR)
16. Ko Hyung-Jin (KOR)
17. Turki Al-Khudhayr (KSA)
18. Mohd Bin Yaacob (MAS)
19. Ahmed Al Kaf (OMA)
20. Abdulrahman Al-Jassim (QAT)
21. Khamis Al-Kuwari (QAT)
22. Khamis Al-Marri (QAT)
23. Muhammad Bin Jahari (SIN)
24. Hettikankanamge Perera (SRI)
25. Ali Al-Jneibi (UAE)
26. Mohammed Abdulla (UAE)
27. Ravshan Irmatov (UZB)
28. Valentin Kovalenko (UZB)
29. Ilgiz Tantashev (UZB)
30. Cesar Ramos (MEX)
Assistant Referees
1. Matthew Cream (AUS)
2. Anton Shchetinin (AUS)
3. Mohamed Salman (BHR)
4. Yaser Tulefat (BHR)
5. Cao Yi (CHN)
6. Huo Weiming (CHN)
7. Mohammadreza Mansouri (IRN)
8. Reza Sokhandan (IRN)
9. Ahmad Al-Roalle (JOR)
10. Mohammad Al-Kalaf (JOR)
11. Jun Mihara (JPN)
12. Hiroshi Yamauchi (JPN)
13. Sergei Grishchenko (KGZ)
14. Kim Young-Ha (KOR)
15. Yoon Kwang-Yeol (KOR)
16. Mohammed Al-Abakry (KSA)
17. Mohamad Bin Zainal (MAS)
18. Mohd Bin Muhamad (MAS)
19. Abu Al-Amri (OMA)
20. Ali Al-Ghaithi (OMA)
21. Saoud Al-Maqaleh (QAT)
22. Taleb Al-Marri (QAT)
23. Koh Min Kiat (SIN)
24. Palitha Hemathunga (SRI)
25. Hasan Al-Mahri (UAE)
26. Mohamed Al-Hammadi (UAE)
27. Abdukhamidullo Rasulov (UZB)
28. Jakhongir Saidov (UZB)
29. Miguel Hernandez (MEX)
30. Alberto Morin (MEX)
Support Referees
1. Hanna Hattab (SYR)
2. Gamini Robesh (SRI)
Support Assistant Referees
1. Ali Ubaydee (IRQ)
2. Palliya Namal (SRI)
