Veteran Ligue 1 referee Buquet demoted due to failed fitness test

Ruddy Buquet, who has officiated in Ligue 1 since 2008, will continue his career in Ligue 2, after following fitness tests at the start of the campaign.

Buquet has refereed 310 matches in Ligue 1 since 2008, however, at 47, he failed the fitness tests in the off-season, meaning that he has not refereed in France’s top-flight this season. Until last weekend, his last time refereeing came in the preliminary rounds of the UEFA Europa Conference League on 1st August. However, that will not be the end of Buquet’s career. Having failed the Ligue 1 fitness tests, he has since undergone the Ligue 2 fitness tests, which are less demanding. He has since passed those tests, which allow him to officiate in France’s second division. Buquet, who had previously officiated in 102 matches in the lower leagues in France since 2005, will take charge of SC Bastia v Rodez on Tuesday night as he makes his return.

Source: GFN France

FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup 2024 – Semi-finals

30 October 2024

USA – Korea DPR
Referee: Alina Pesu ROU (photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Daniela Constantinescu ROU
Assistant Referee 2: Anita Vad HUN
Fourth Official: Jelena Cvetković SRB
Reserve AR: Karolin Kaivoja EST

31 October 2024
Spain – England
Referee: Asaka Koizumi JPN
Assistant Referee 1: Amal Badhafari UAE
Assistant Referee 2: Riiohlang Dhar IND
Fourth Official: Frida Klarlund DEN
Reserve AR: Paulina Baranowska POL

AFC Referees Special Award 2023

The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) hosted the prestigious AFC Annual Awards 2023 in Seoul, recognizing outstanding achievements and contributions in Asian football. The awards honored players, coaches, and associations for their commitment to advancing football across the continent and promoting excellence both on and off the field. The AFC Referees Special Award celebrated the accomplishments of beach soccer referees Yuichi Hatano (Japan), Turki Al Salehi (Oman), and Ibrahim Al Raeesi (UAE), commending their exceptional dedication to the game.

Source: AFC

UEFA Women’s Euro 2025 – Qualifying Play-offs (Round 1, Second Leg)

29 October 2024

Czechia – Belarus
Referee: Iuliana Demetrescu ROU (photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Mihaela Țepușă ROU
Assistant Referee 2: Roxana Ivanov ROU
Fourth Official: Ana Terteleac ROU
VAR: Sebastian Colțescu ROU
AVAR: Cristina Trandafir ROU
Referee Observer: Esther Azzopardi MLT

Ukraine – Turkey
Referee: Catarina Campos POR
Assistant Referee 1: Andreia Sousa POR
Assistant Referee 2: Vanessa Gomes POR
Fourth Official: Sílvia Domingos POR
VAR: André Narciso POR
AVAR: Fábio Melo POR
Referee Observer: Dagmar Damková CZE

Finland – Montenegro
Referee: Eléni Antoníou GRE
Assistant Referee 1: Vasília Tsiklitári GRE
Assistant Referee 2: Georgía Komisopoúlou GRE
Fourth Official: Andromáchi Tsioflíki GRE
VAR: Ángelos Evangélou GRE
AVAR: Athanásios Tzílos GRE
Referee Observer: Petra Pavlíková SVK

Poland – Romania
Referee: Ivana Martinčić CRO
Assistant Referee 1: Maja Petravić CRO
Assistant Referee 2: Ivona Pejić CRO
Fourth Official: Sabina Bolić CRO
VAR: Fran Jović CRO
AVAR: Ivan Matić CRO
Referee Observer: Svetlana Patraș MDA

Austria – Slovenia
Referee: Lina Lehtovaara FIN
Assistant Referee 1: Heini Hyvönen FIN
Assistant Referee 2: Jenni Paavolainen FIN
Fourth Official: Minka Vekkeli FIN
VAR: Riem Hussein GER
AVAR: Sören Storks GER
Referee Observer: Wendy Toms ENG

Sweden – Luxembourg
Referee: Réka Molnár HUN
Assistant Referee 1: Judit Gavalla-Kulcsár HUN
Assistant Referee 2: Noémi Hegedűs-Baráth HUN
Fourth Official: Katalin Sipos HUN
VAR: Eszter Urbán HUN
AVAR: István Vad HUN
Referee Observer: Emilia Wnuk POL

Norway – Albania
Referee: Michalina Diakow POL
Assistant Referee 1: Aleksandra Mostowska POL
Assistant Referee 2: Anna Dabrowska POL
Fourth Official: Monika Mularczyk POL
VAR: Pawel Pskit POL
AVAR: Jana Adámková CZE
Referee Observer: Ivana Vlaić BIH

Serbia – Bosnia and Herzegovina
Referee: Marta Huerta de Aza ESP
Assistant Referee 1: Guadalupe Porras Ayuso ESP
Assistant Referee 2: Iragartze Fernández Esesúmaga ESP
Fourth Official: Zulema González González ESP
VAR: Guillermo Cuadra Fernández ESP
AVAR: Valentín Pizarro Gómez ESP
Referee Observer: Snježana Fočić CRO

Northern Ireland – Croatia
Referee: Tess Olofsson SWE
Assistant Referee 1: Almira Spahic SWE
Assistant Referee 2: Emelie Elfstrand SWE
Fourth Official: Lovisa Johansson SWE
VAR: Jakob Kehlet DEN
AVAR: Jens Maae DEN
Referee Observer: Miroslava Migalová SVK

Belgium – Greece
Referee: Volha Blockaja BLR
Assistant Referee 1: Aleksandra Kostić SRB
Assistant Referee 2: Ivana Jovanović SRB
Fourth Official: Jelena Medjedović SRB
VAR: Stéphanie Frappart FRA
AVAR: Jérémie Pignard FRA
Referee Observer: Bente Skogvang NOR

Wales – Slovakia
Referee: Ewa Augustyn POL
Assistant Referee 1: Julia Bukarowicz POL
Assistant Referee 2: Aleksandra Ulanowska POL
Fourth Official: Katarzyna Lisiecka-Sęk POL
VAR: Pawel Malec POL
AVAR: Wojciech Myć POL
Referee Observer: Anri Saarivainio-Hänninen FIN

Ireland – Georgia
Referee: Katalin Kulcsár HUN
Assistant Referee 1: Sanja Rodjak-Karšić CRO
Assistant Referee 2: Lucie Ratajová CZE
Fourth Official: Michaela Pachtová CZE
VAR: Tamás Bognár HUN
AVAR: Gergő Bogár HUN
Referee Observer: Gitte Holm DEN

Scotland – Hungary
Referee: Ivana Projkovska MKD
Assistant Referee 1: Vjolca Izeiri MKD
Assistant Referee 2: Staša Špur SVN
Fourth Official: Hristiyana Guteva BUL
VAR: Ivan Bebek CRO
AVAR: Katrin Rafalski GER
Referee Observer: Silvia Tea Spinelli ITA

Portugal – Azerbaijan
Referee: Shona Shukrula NED
Assistant Referee 1: Martina Boer NED
Assistant Referee 2: Ashley de Haan NED
Fourth Official: Julia van Es NED
VAR: Jochem Kamphuis NED
AVAR: Edwin van de Graaf NED
Referee Observer: Marta Frías Acedo ESP

World Cup referee Mukansanga retires at only 36 to become specialized VAR

Rwanda referee Salima Mukansanga has stepped down at the age of 36 after an impressive 12-year career. In an interview on 22 October 2024, she explained that the decision to retire was her own. She will, however, continue as Video Assistant Referee.

Mukansanga, an international football referee from Rwanda since 2012, originally began in basketball before transitioning to football, where she made her mark and made history. Salima has officiated at the Olympics, FIFA Women's World Cup, Africa Women Cup of Nations and CAF Women's Champions League. In 2022 she was one of three women referees selected to officiate at the FIFA World Cup to be hosted in Qatar, making her among the first women to officiate at the Men's World Cup and the first female African to officiate at the men's top football event on 22 November 2022. She was the fourth official when France, the defending champions, defeated Australia 4–1.

In 2022, Mukansanga also became the first woman to referee at the African Cup of Nations, leading out an all-woman officiating team of Fatiha Jermoumi (Morocco), Carine Atemzabong (Cameroon), and Bouchra Karboubi (Morocco) as VAR. She was recognized by BBC as one of the 100 most influential women in December 2022 and in 2023 FIFA appointed her to the officiating pool for the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.

Source: Spoorts

Polish referees banned from UEFA matches until June 2025

Two referees have been banned from officiating any UEFA matches until June 2025 after a bizarre incident on the morning of a Champions League qualifier between Rangers and Dynamo Kyiv. Bartosz Frankowski and Tomasz Musial were replaced as VARs before the third qualifying round match in Lublin, Poland on 6 August after reports of "improper behaviour". Polish media reports alleged the pair had been drinking and were stopped by police with another man in the early hours having moved a road sign, with Frankowski later confirming details of the incident in an interview. UEFA's control, ethics and disciplinary body said on Friday the Polish duo was banned for violating "basic rules of decent conduct" and for bringing the sport and UEFA into disrepute. A police spokesman said at the time that the men had been caught on CCTV cameras carrying the sign and were detained. Superintendent Kamil Golebiowski said, according to Polish news outlet TVP World, that the men were breathalysed and had alcohol in their systems and were later fined.

Frankowski and Musial released statements of apology, with both saying that they co-operated with the police without aggression while Musial described the incident as "irresponsible and unprofessional". Musial added: "I feel very sorry and - in purely human terms - stupid, because I know that my unfortunate behaviour will cast a shadow over many years of hard work. I am aware of the consequences that await me, but I hope that I will be able to rehabilitate myself and rebuild your trust." Frankowski said: "Throughout my 22 years of refereeing I have tried to discharge my duties professionally and avoid any blemishes on my image. I made a terrible mistake that I deeply regret. I will accept the consequences with humility, but at the same time I would like to hope that I will be able to rebuild your trust someday." Frankowski and Musial were intended to be the video assistant referee (VAR) and assistant VAR (AVAR) for the Champions League qualifier but were replaced by other officials from the Polish Football Association. The pair were also suspended by the Polish FA in August. The match was drawn 1-1. Rangers suffered a 2-0 defeat at home the following week that meant Dynamo won on aggregate.

Source: BBC

CONMEBOL Sudamericana 2024 – Semi-finals (Second Leg)

30 October 2024

Lanus – Cruzeiro
Referee: Juan Benítez PAR (photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Eduardo Cardozo PAR
Assistant Referee 2: Milciades Saldívar PAR
Fourth Official: Giancarlos Juliadoza PAR
VAR: Derlis Lopez PAR
AVAR 1: Carlos Benítez PAR
AVAR 2: Jose Cuevas PAR
Referee Assessor: Marcelo de Leon URU
VAR Supervisor: Julio Bascunan CHI

1 November 2024
Racing – Corinthians
Referee: Felipe Gonzalez CHI
Assistant Referee 1: Jose Retamal CHI
Assistant Referee 2: Juan Serrano CHI
Fourth Official: Manuel Vergara CHI
VAR: Rodrigo Carvajal CHI
AVAR 1: Benjamin Saravia CHI
AVAR 2: Alan Sandoval CHI
Referee Assessor: Abraham Gonzalez COL 

VAR Supervisor: Victor Carrillo PER

CONMEBOL Libertadores 2024 – Semi-finals (Second Leg)

29 October 2024

River Plate – Atletico Mineiro
Referee: Wilmar Roldan COL (photo)
Assistant Referee 1: John Leon COL
Assistant Referee 2: Richard Ortiz COL
Fourth Official: Carlos Betancur COL
VAR: Carlos Orbe ECU
AVAR 1: Bryan Loayza ECU
AVAR 2: Christian Lescano ECU
Referee Assessor: Cesar Escano PER
VAR Supervisor: Patricio Polic CHI

30 October 2024
Penarol – Botafogo
Referee: Piero Maza CHI
Assistant Referee 1: Claudio Urrutia CHI
Assistant Referee 2: Miguel Rocha CHI
Fourth Official: Fernando Vejar CHI
VAR: Jose Cabero CHI
AVAR 1: Francisco Gilabert CHI
AVAR 2: Alejandro Molina CHI
Referee Assessor: Hector Baldassi ARG
VAR Supervisor: Wilson Avila ECU

FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup 2024 – Quarter-finals

26 October 2024

Nigeria – USA
Referee: Asaka Koizumi JPN (photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Amal Badhafari UAE
Assistant Referee 2: Riiohlang Dhar IND
Fourth Official: Olatz Rivera Olmedo ESP
Reserve AR: Daniela Constantinescu ROU

Korea DPR – Poland
Referee: Abigail Byrne ENG
Assistant Referee 1: Ceri Williams WAL
Assistant Referee 2: Ainhoa Fernandez AND
Fourth Official: Vimarest Diaz DOM
Reserve AR: Anita Vad HUN

27 October 2024
Spain – Ecuador
Referee: Jelena Cvetković SRB
Assistant Referee 1: Karolin Kaivoja EST
Assistant Referee 2: Lena Hirtl AUT
Fourth Official: Shamirah Nabadda UGA
Reserve AR: Fanta Kone MLI

Japan – England
Referee: Carly Shaw-MacLaren CAN
Assistant Referee 1: Gabrielle Lemieux CAN
Assistant Referee 2: Katarzyna Wasiak USA
Fourth Official: Daiane Muniz BRA
Reserve AR: Fernanda Gomes BRA

UEFA Women’s Euro 2025 – Qualifying Play-offs (Round 1, First Leg)

25 October 2024

Montenegro – Finland
Referee: Riem Hussein GER (photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Sina Diekmann GER
Assistant Referee 2: Jasmin Matysiak GER
Fourth Official: Miriam Schwermer GER
VAR: Benjamin Brand GER
AVAR: Franziska Wildfeuer GER
Referee Observer: Marta Atzori ITA

Bosnia and Herzegovina – Serbia
Referee: Silvia Gasperotti ITA
Assistant Referee 1: Giulia Tempestilli ITA
Assistant Referee 2: Stefania Signorelli ITA
Fourth Official: Maria Marotta ITA
VAR: Michael Fabbri ITA
AVAR: Katalin Kulcsár HUN
Referee Observer: Teodora Albon ROU

Azerbaijan – Portugal
Referee: Fabienne Michel GER
Assistant Referee 1: Melissa Joos GER
Assistant Referee 2: Amina Gutschi AUT
Fourth Official: Karoline Wacker GER
VAR: Katrin Rafalski GER
AVAR: Johann Pfeifer GER
Referee Observer: Blaženka Logarušić CRO

Albania – Norway
Referee: Ana Terteleac ROU
Assistant Referee 1: Roxana Ivanov ROU
Assistant Referee 2: Alexandra Apostu ROU
Fourth Official: Iuliana Demetrescu ROU
VAR: Ovidiu Haţegan ROU
AVAR: Cristina Trandafir ROU
Referee Observer: Aušra Kance LTU

Turkey – Ukraine
Referee: Henrikke Nervik NOR
Assistant Referee 1: Monica Lokkeberg NOR
Assistant Referee 2: Line Nymoen NOR
Fourth Official: Sara Zangeneh NOR
VAR: Mohammad Aslam NOR
AVAR: Emilie Torkelsen NOR
Referee Observer: Regien Belksma-Koning NED

Slovakia – Wales
Referee: Stéphanie Frappart FRA
Assistant Referee 1: Camille Soriano FRA
Assistant Referee 2: Mélissa Rossignol FRA
Fourth Official: Maika Vanderstichel FRA
VAR: Bastien Dechepy FRA
AVAR: Élisa Daupeux FRA
Referee Observer: Dilan Gökçek Işcan TUR

Romania – Poland
Referee: Cheryl Foster WAL
Assistant Referee 1: Emily Carney ENG
Assistant Referee 2: Sophie Dennington ENG
Fourth Official: Kirsty Dowle ENG
VAR: Michael Salisbury ENG
AVAR: Sian Massey-Ellis ENG
Referee Observer: Claudine Brohet BEL

Greece – Belgium
Referee: Ainara Acevedo Dudley ESP
Assistant Referee 1: Rita Cabañero Mompó ESP
Assistant Referee 2: Matilde Esteves-García Biajakue ESP
Fourth Official: Eugenia Gil Soriano ESP
VAR: César Soto Grado ESP
AVAR: Guadalupe Porras Ayuso ESP
Referee Observer: Sandra Renon FRA

Georgia – Ireland
Referee: Emanuela Rusta ALB
Assistant Referee 1: Nargis Magau KAZ
Assistant Referee 2: Mirjeta Salla ALB
Fourth Official: Eglantina Pjetrushaj ALB
VAR: Kreshnik Barjamaj ALB
AVAR: Olsion Yzeiraj ALB
Referee Observer: Graziella Pirriatore ITA

Slovenia – Austria
Referee: Hristiyana Guteva BUL
Assistant Referee 1: Irina Pozdejeva LTU
Assistant Referee 2: Svitlana Hrushko UKR
Fourth Official: Kristina Georgieva BUL
VAR: Vasimir El-Hatib BUL
AVAR: Nikola Popov BUL
Referee Observer: Rhona Coombes IRL

Hungary – Scotland
Referee: Maria Ferrieri Caputi ITA
Assistant Referee 1: Francesca Di Monte ITA
Assistant Referee 2: Tiziana Trasciatti ITA
Fourth Official: Deborah Bianchi ITA
VAR: Daniele Doveri ITA
AVAR: Jana Adámková CZE
Referee Observer: Katarzyna Wierzbowska POL

Croatia – Northern Ireland
Referee: Sandra Bastos POR
Assistant Referee 1: Sandrine Santos POR
Assistant Referee 2: Cátia Tavares POR
Fourth Official: Teresa Oliveira POR
VAR: Catarina Campos POR
AVAR: Hugo Miguel POR
Referee Observer: Olga Tanschi MDA

Luxembourg – Sweden
Referee: Alexandra Collin FRA
Assistant Referee 1: Élodie Coppola FRA
Assistant Referee 2: Clothilde Brassart FRA
Fourth Official: Michaela Pachtová CZE
VAR: Romain Lissorgue FRA
AVAR: Victoria Beyer FRA
Referee Observer: Knarik Grigoryan ARM

Belarus – Czech Republic
Referee: Désirée Grundbacher SUI
Assistant Referee 1: Susann Küng SUI
Assistant Referee 2: Linda Schmid SUI
Fourth Official: Déborah Anex SUI
VAR: Lukas Fähndrich SUI
AVAR: Sven Wolfensberger SUI
Referee Observer: Pernilla Larsson SWE

Beyond the Field at Asian Cup 2023

The Asian Football Confederation (AFC), today, unveiled the first episode of ‘Beyond the Field’, a documentary series offering an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at the roles and responsibilities of match officials at the AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2023.

Spanning five episodes, each focusing on a distinct aspect of refereeing at the continental showpiece, the documentary takes passionate fans of Asian football on a journey that provides a window into the mental and physical demands faced by match officials as they uphold the highest standards of officiating at the grandest edition of Asia’s crown jewel. With the 2023 edition featuring the largest-ever cast of officials, the first episode, ‘The Journey Begins’, takes the audience through the extensive preparations of the 74 appointed referees, including their participation in key events like the AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2023 Referees Seminar and the AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2023 Preparatory Course, held in the lead-up to the competition. In the subsequent episodes, the documentary invites the audience to relive some of the biggest highlights from the 18th AFC Asian Cup™, such as the full debut of the Video Assistant Referee technology and the historic appointment of women officials at Asia’s premiere men’s national team competition. While the first four episodes chronicle the many milestones achieved by the Continent’s officials at the AFC Asian Cup, the final episode, ‘AFC Asian Cup and the Road to the FIFA World Cup 2026’, examines the road that lies ahead of the upcoming edition of the global showpiece. To watch the first episode of ‘Beyond the Field’, please click here.

Source: AFC

UEFA Europa Conference League 2024/25 – Group Stage (Matchday 2)

24 October 2024

Larne FC – Shamrock Rovers
Referee: Vassilis Fotias GRE (photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Andreas Meintanas GRE
Assistant Referee 2: Vasileios Nikolakakis GRE
Fourth Official: Alexandros Tsakalidis GRE
VAR: Athanasios Tzilos GRE
AVAR: Spyridon Zampalas GRE
Referee Observer: Robert Schörgenhofer AUT

Vikingur – Cercle Brugge
Referee: Vitalijs Spasjonnikovs LVA
Assistant Referee 1: Raimonds Tatriks LVA
Assistant Referee 2: Arturs Šakurovs LVA
Fourth Official: Kristaps Ratnieks LVA
VAR: Andris Treimanis LVA
AVAR: Andrejs Gluhovs LVA
Referee Observer: Edgar Steinborn GER

NK Celje – Istanbul Başakşehir
Referee: Oleksii Derevinskyi UKR
Assistant Referee 1: Viktor Matyash UKR
Assistant Referee 2: Viktor Nyzhnyk UKR
Fourth Official: Denys Shurman UKR
VAR: Mykola Balakin UKR
AVAR: Viktor Kopiievskyi UKR
Referee Observer: Pawel Gil POL

Jagiellonia Bialystok – Petrocub Hîncești
Referee: Daniyar Sakhi KAZ
Assistant Referee 1: Sergei Vassyutin KAZ
Assistant Referee 2: Samat Tergeussizov KAZ
Fourth Official: Bulat Sariyev KAZ
VAR: Tamás Bognár HUN
AVAR: István Vad HUN
Referee Observer: Ognjen Valjić BIH

Panathinaikos – Chelsea
Referee: Antonio Nobre POR
Assistant Referee 1: Pedro Ribeiro POR
Assistant Referee 2: Nelson Pereira POR
Fourth Official: Gustavo Correia POR
VAR: André Narciso POR
AVAR: Helder Malheiro POR
Referee Observer: László Vagner HUN

St. Gallen FC – ACF Fiorentina
Referee: Yigal Frid ISR
Assistant Referee 1: Matityahu Yakobov ISR
Assistant Referee 2: Rostislav Talis ISR
Fourth Official: Nael Odeh ISR
VAR: Ziv Adler ISR
AVAR: Eitan Shmuelevitz ISR
Referee Observer: Edward Foley IRL

Heart of Midlothian – Omonia 
Referee: Michal Očenáš SVK
Assistant Referee 1: Adam Jekkel SVK
Assistant Referee 2: Tobiáš Pacák SVK
Fourth Official: Bálint Kišš SVK
VAR: Martin Dohal SVK
AVAR: Erik Gemzicky SVK
Referee Observer: Gediminas Mažeika LTU

SK Rapid – FC Noah
Referee: Kristo Tohver EST
Assistant Referee 1: Silver Koiv EST
Assistant Referee 2: Jaan Roos EST
Fourth Official: Kevin Kaivoja EST
VAR: Marko Liiva EST
AVAR: Joonas Jaanovits EST
Referee Observer: René Temmink NED

Apoel – Borac Banja Luka
Referee: Robert Jones ENG
Assistant Referee 1: Lee Betts ENG
Assistant Referee 2: Neil Davies ENG
Fourth Official: Samuel Barrott ENG
VAR: Jarred Gillett ENG
AVAR: Darren England ENG
Referee Observer: Helmut Fleischer GER

Djurgardens IF – Vitória SC
Referee: Genc Nuza KOS
Assistant Referee 1: Edmond Zeqiri KOS
Assistant Referee 2: Granit Hyseni KOS
Fourth Official: Ilir Mehmeti KOS
VAR: Sascha Stegemann GER
AVAR: Dardan Çaka KOS
Referee Observer: Kjell Alseth NOR

KAA Gent – Molde FK
Referee: Goga Kikacheishvili GEO
Assistant Referee 1: David Akhvlediani GEO
Assistant Referee 2: Davit Gabisonia GEO
Fourth Official: Irakli Kvirikashvili GEO
VAR: Aleko Aptsiauri GEO
AVAR: Bakur Ninua GEO
Referee Observer: Fredy Fautrel FRA

Real Betis Balompié – FC Copenhagen
Referee: Willy Delajod FRA
Assistant Referee 1: Erwan Finjean FRA
Assistant Referee 2: Philippe Jeanne FRA
Fourth Official: Marc Bollengier FRA
VAR: Benoît Millot FRA
AVAR: Mathieu Vernice FRA
Referee Observer: Christos Nicolaides CYP

HJK Helsinki – Dynamo Minsk
Referee: Henrik Nalbandyan ARM
Assistant Referee 1: Atom Sevgulyan ARM
Assistant Referee 2: Khachatur Hovhannisyan ARM
Fourth Official: Yura Mahtesyan ARM
VAR: Zaven Hovhannisyan ARM
AVAR: Artem Gasparyan ARM
Referee Observer: Michalis Koukoulakis GRE

Olimpija Ljubljana – LASK Linz
Referee: Daniele Chiffi ITA
Assistant Referee 1: Giorgio Peretti ITA
Assistant Referee 2: Giovanni Baccini ITA
Fourth Official: Luca Zufferli ITA
VAR: Paolo Mazzoleni ITA
AVAR: Francesco Meraviglia ITA
Referee Observer: Nenad Djokić SRB

The New Saints – FK Astana
Referee: Juri Frischer EST
Assistant Referee 1: Veiko Motsnik EST
Assistant Referee 2: Sander Saga EST
Fourth Official: Kristo Külljastinen EST
VAR: Daniel Schlager GER
AVAR: Patrick Hanslbauer GER
Referee Observer: Luc Wouters BEL

Mladá Boleslav – FC Lugano
Referee: Chrysovalantis Theouli CYP
Assistant Referee 1: Marios Kalogirou CYP
Assistant Referee 2: Pavlos Georgiou CYP
Fourth Official: Menelaos Antoniou CYP
VAR: Dimitris Solomou CYP
AVAR: Rovertos Kosta CYP
Referee Observer: Kristinn Jakobsson ISL

TSC Bačka Topola – Legia Warszawa
Referee: Julian Weinberger AUT
Assistant Referee 1: Andreas Heidenreich AUT
Assistant Referee 2: Maximilian Kolbitsch AUT
Fourth Official: Alexander Harkam AUT
VAR: Christian Ciochirca AUT
AVAR: Walter Altmann AUT
Referee Observer: Augustus Constantin ROU

Pafos FC – FC Heidenheim
Referee: Jasper Vergoote BEL
Assistant Referee 1: Martijn Tiesters BEL
Assistant Referee 2: Michael Geerolf BEL
Fourth Official: Simon Bourdeaud'hui BEL
VAR: Jan Boterberg BEL
AVAR: Bert Put BEL
Referee Observer: Andrejs Sipailo LVA

UEFA Europa League 2024/2025 – Group Stage (Matchday 3)

23 October 2024

SC Braga – Bodo Glimt
Referee: Nenad Minaković SRB (photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Nikola Borović SRB
Assistant Referee 2: Boško Božović SRB
Fourth Official: Milan Mitić SRB
VAR: Momčilo Marković SRB
AVAR: Novak Simović SRB
Referee Observer: Tomasz Mikulski POL

Galatasaray – Elfsborg
Referee: Matej Jug SVN
Assistant Referee 1: Matej Žunič SVN
Assistant Referee 2: Manuel Vidali SVN
Fourth Official: Mihael Antič SVN
VAR: Alen Borošak SVN
AVAR: Asmir Sagrkovič SVN
Referee Observer: Ichko Lozev BUL

24 October 2024
AS Roma – Dynamo Kyiv
Referee: Serdar Gözübüyük NED
Assistant Referee 1: Erwin Zeinstra NED
Assistant Referee 2: Johan Balder NED
Fourth Official: Sander van der Eijk NED
VAR: Dennis Higler NED
AVAR: Erwin Blank NED
Referee Observer: Dejan Filipović SRB

Eintracht Frankfurt – FK RFS
Referee: Allard Lindhout NED
Assistant Referee 1: Joost van Zuilen NED
Assistant Referee 2: Rogier Honig NED
Fourth Official: Jannick van der Laan NED
VAR: Rob Dieperink NED
AVAR: Cătălin Popa ROU
Referee Observer: Emil Božinovski MKD

PAOK – Viktoria Plzen
Referee: Urs Schnyder SUI
Assistant Referee 1: Marco Zürcher SUI
Assistant Referee 2: Benjamin Zürcher SUI
Fourth Official: Anojen Kanagasingam SUI
VAR: Lionel Tschudi SUI
AVAR: Johannes von Mandach SUI
Referee Observer: Michael Riley ENG

Maccabi Tel Aviv – Real Sociedad
Referee: Rohit Saggi NOR
Assistant Referee 1: Morten Jensen NOR
Assistant Referee 2: Anders Dale NOR
Fourth Official: Sigurd Kringstad NOR
VAR: Tom Hagen NOR
AVAR: Kristoffer Hagenes NOR
Referee Observer: Stéphane Lannoy FRA

Ferencvarosi TC – OGC Nice
Referee: Anastasios Sidiropoulos GRE
Assistant Referee 1: Polychronis Kostaras GRE
Assistant Referee 2: Lazaros Dimitriadis GRE
Fourth Official: Ioannis Papadopoulos GRE
VAR: Angelos Evangelou GRE
AVAR: Stefanos Koymparakis GRE
Referee Observer: Karen Nalbandyan ARM

Qarabag FK – AFC Ajax
Referee: Nicholas Walsh SCO
Assistant Referee 1: Graeme Stewart SCO
Assistant Referee 2: Calum Spence SCO
Fourth Official: Christopher Graham SCO
VAR: Kevin Clancy SCO
AVAR: John Beaton SCO
Referee Observer: Murat Ilgaz TUR

FC Midtjylland – Union St. Gilloise
Referee: Sebastian Gishamer AUT
Assistant Referee 1: Roland Riedel AUT
Assistant Referee 2: Santino Schreiner AUT
Fourth Official: Jakob Semler AUT
VAR: Manuel Schuttengruber AUT
AVAR: Josef Spurny AUT
Referee Observer: Konstantínos Kapitanís CYP

FC Porto – TSG Hoffenheim
Referee: Damian Sylwestrzak POL
Assistant Referee 1: Pawel Sokolnicki POL
Assistant Referee 2: Adam Karasewicz POL
Fourth Official: Marcin Kochanek POL
VAR: Piotr Lasyk POL
AVAR: Tomasz Kwiatkowski POL
Referee Observer: Rune Pedersen NOR

Rangers – FCSB
Referee: Marco Di Bello ITA
Assistant Referee 1: Davide Imperiale ITA
Assistant Referee 2: Alessio Berti ITA
Fourth Official: Rosario Abisso ITA
VAR: Luca Piretto ITA
AVAR: Valerio Marini ITA
Referee Observer: Michal Beneš CZE

Tottenham Hotspur – AZ Alkmaar
Referee: Manfredas Lukjančukas LTU
Assistant Referee 1: Mangirdas Mirauskas LTU
Assistant Referee 2: Vytenis Kazlauskas LTU
Fourth Official: Mindaugas Jackus LTU
VAR: Sören Storks GER
AVAR: Fedayi San SUI
Referee Observer: Carlos Velasco Carballo ESP

Olympique Lyonnais – Besiktas
Referee: Harm Osmers GER
Assistant Referee 1: Dominik Schaal GER
Assistant Referee 2: Stefan Lupp GER
Fourth Official: Florian Exner GER
VAR: Christian Dingert GER
AVAR: Peter Bankes ENG
Referee Observer: Vlado Svilokos CRO

Fenerbahce – Manchester United
Referee: Clément Turpin FRA
Assistant Referee 1: Nicolas Danos FRA
Assistant Referee 2: Benjamin Pagès FRA
Fourth Official: Jérémy Stinat FRA
VAR: Jérôme Brisard FRA
AVAR: Jérémie Pignard FRA
Referee Observer: Andreas Schluchter SUI

Malmo FF – Olympiakos SFP
Referee: Simone Sozza ITA
Assistant Referee 1: Filippo Meli ITA
Assistant Referee 2: Stefano Alassio ITA
Fourth Official: Matteo Marcenaro ITA
VAR: Gianluca Aureliano ITA
AVAR: Marco Serra ITA
Referee Observer: Konrad Plautz AUT

Athletic Club – Slavia Praha
Referee: Morten Krogh DEN
Assistant Referee 1: Dennis Rasmussen DEN
Assistant Referee 2: Steffen Bramsen DEN
Fourth Official: Mads Kristoffersen DEN
VAR: Tiago Martins POR
AVAR: Aleandro Di Paolo ITA
Referee Observer: Kyros Vassáras GRE

RSC Anderlecht – PFK Ludogorets
Referee: Filip Glova SVK
Assistant Referee 1: Daniel Polacek SVK
Assistant Referee 2: Peter Bednar SVK
Fourth Official: Lukáš Dzivjak SVK
VAR: Jochem Kamphuis NED
AVAR: Edwin van de Graaf NED
Referee Observer: Alexandru Deaconu ROU

Twente – Lazio 

Referee: Nikola Dabanović MNE
Assistant Referee 1: Vladan Todorović MNE
Assistant Referee 2: Srdjan Jovanović MNE
Fourth Official: Miloš Milanović SRB
VAR: David Coote ENG
AVAR: Stuart Attwell ENG
Referee Observer: Stefano Podeschi SMR

FIFA Intercontinental Cup – Match 2 (African-Asian-Pacific Cup)

29 October 2024

Al Ahly – Al Ain
Referee: Halil Meler TUR (photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Ibrahim Uyarcan TUR
Assistant Referee 2: Murat Curbay TUR
Fourth Official: Zorbay Kucuk TUR
VAR: Marco Di Bello ITA
AVAR: Aleandro Di Paolo ITA

What's wrong with Kajtazović?

For many years, Nejc Kajtazović was considered one of the best Slovenian referees. He was also VAR in the UEFA Champions League final between Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund, which was refereed by Slavko Vinčić. However, although he is at the top of Slovenian referees, scandals are quite glued to him. Years ago, for example, following some controversial decisions, he was called a great fan of Olimpija, which he denied in an interview with Ekipa eight years ago, but the Maribor accusations were even greater when his brother was hired to coach the youth team of Olimpija. However, Kajtazović is also considered a fan of Olimpija because of some controversial penalty kicks he awarded in their favour. Let's remember the match with Radomlje in the 11th round of season 2021/22, when Mustafa Nukić suddenly fell to the ground, although the slow motion revealed that the Ljubljana player was essentially stepping on the defender. Or due to errors against Maribor, such as when, as a VAR referee, did not report to Martin Matoša that Daniel Offenbacher should be sent off in the match between Maribor and Domžale. "In this case, we have to keep in mind that it was in the 50th second of the game, the referee may have been a little unprepared, but you always have to go to the game with the thought of expect the unexpected. The foul of the Domžale player does not seem as bad as in the video, so I can understand why the referee missed it. But I don’t understand why the VAR didn’t intervene? I believe that in this case, he should have given the referee the opportunity to look again and decide for himself. If the VAR considers this to be a more severe foul, he should show the referee the footage and not give him any hints. The referee is the one who decides. For me, it's a red card, even if it happened in the first minute. We are talking about safety; we need to protect the players. There is no such thing here", said former top referee Damir Skomina in the show Pod Čekazazović.

Last October, Nejc Kajtazović got into a real scandal when he worked as a physical education teacher at the elementary school of Jakob Aljaž in Kranj, where he was fired because he claimed false travel expenses and thus cheated on his employer. At the same time, Kajtazović also took on the ugly reputation of the referee 'for special assignments' in friendly matches who are not very "visible" and can be bet on. The accusations were made, for example, by the players of Koper, who competed in Kranj with Dinamo and who were extremely dissatisfied with the Kajtazović's refereeing. "This referee is betting!" was ragged at that time by the players of Koper, when Kajazović first awarded a penalty kick in favour of Dinamo for a foul that occurred probably outside the penalty area, and then, after Josip Mišić missed it, he decided to repeat the penalty kick, although there was no logical reason for this.

In recent days, Kajtazović has made a new absurd mistake when the youth team of Slovenia and Austria competed in a friendly match in Kranj. To make it even more strange, he hurt the Slovenian team! In the 36th minute, he an extremely controversial – not to use a heavier expression – penalty kick to the Austrians. An Austrian player shot strong and high, but the ball hit the crossbar and bounced about half a meter back into the field. In short, it wasn't even close to the goal line, let alone over it. To the surprise of all players, Kajtazović awarded a goal for Austria and the Austrians took a 2-0 lead with a phantom goal. During the same match, Kajtazović also awarded very controversial – not to use another term again – penalty kick to Slovenia, which was scored by Luka Topalović and set the result Slovenia – Austria 1-2. This summer, Kajtazović also refereed a friendly match between Istria and Göztepe, which also had a lot of controversy. He awarded three penalty kicks, each of them more ridiculous than the other. Even then, there were comments about the referee betting on the game.

You can see all the controversial situations in these videos:

Slovenia U19 – Austria U-19 (min. 45:20 penalty kick and non-existent goal of Austrians, min. 55:33 penalty kick for Slovenia)

Koper – Dinamo (min. 1:55 penalty kick and the retake comedy)

Istria – Göztepe (min. 1:50 first penalty kick, min. 2:47 second penalty kick, min. 3:35 third penalty kick)

Olimpija – Radomlje (min. 0:52 penalty kick for Olimpia)

Source: Ekipa

UEFA Champions League 2024/2025 – Group Stage (Matchday 3)

22 October 2024

Real Madrid – Borussia Dortmund
Referee: István Kovács ROU (photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Mihai Marica ROU
Assistant Referee 2: George Neacsu ROU
Fourth Official: Marcel Birsan ROU
VAR: Pol van Boekel NED
AVAR: Erwin Blank NED
Referee Observer: João Ferreira POR

AC Milan – Club Brugge

Referee: Felix Zwayer GER

Assistant Referee 1: Robert Kempter GER

Assistant Referee 2: Christian Dietz GER

Fourth Official: Florian Badstübner GER

VAR: Christian Dingert GER

AVAR: Sören Storks GER

Referee Observer: Terje Hauge NOR

AS Monaco – Crvena Zvezda
Referee: Tobias Stieler GER
Assistant Referee 1: Christian Gittelmann GER
Assistant Referee 2: Mark Borsch GER
Fourth Official: Matthias Jöllenbeck GER
VAR: Benjamin Brand GER
AVAR: Johann Pfeifer GER
Referee Observer: Lucilio Batista POR

Paris St. Germain – PSV Eindhoven
Referee: Glenn Nyberg SWE
Assistant Referee 1: Mahbod Beigi SWE
Assistant Referee 2: Andreas Söderkvist SWE
Fourth Official: Kristoffer Karlsson SWE
VAR: Stuart Attwell ENG
AVAR: David Coote ENG
Referee Observer: Lutz-Michael Fröhlich GER

Juventus FC – VfB Stuttgart
Referee: Espen Eskas NOR
Assistant Referee 1: Jan Engan NOR
Assistant Referee 2: Isaak Bashevkin NOR
Fourth Official: Kristoffer Hagenes NOR
VAR: Dennis Higler NED
AVAR: Rob Dieperink NED
Referee Observer: Howard Webb ENG

Arsenal FC – Shakhtar Donetsk
Referee: Benoît Bastien FRA
Assistant Referee 1: Hicham Zakrani FRA
Assistant Referee 2: Aurélien Berthomieu FRA
Fourth Official: Thomas Leonard FRA
VAR: Benoît Millot FRA
AVAR: Willy Delajod FRA
Referee Observer: Thomas Einwaller AUT

Aston Villa – Bologna FC
Referee: João Pinheiro POR
Assistant Referee 1: Bruno Jesus POR
Assistant Referee 2: Luciano Maia POR
Fourth Official: João Gonçalves POR
VAR: Tiago Martins POR
AVAR: Fedayi San SUI
Referee Observer: Stefan Messner AUT

Girona FC – Slovan Bratislava
Referee: Horațiu Feșnic ROU
Assistant Referee 1: Valentin Avram ROU
Assistant Referee 2: Alexandru Cerei ROU
Fourth Official: Szabolcs Kovacs ROU
VAR: Cătălin Popa ROU
AVAR: Tomasz Kwiatkowski POL
Referee Observer: Björn Kuipers NED

Sturm Graz – Sporting CP
Referee: Giorgi Kruashvili GEO
Assistant Referee 1: Levan Varamishvili GEO
Assistant Referee 2: Zaza Pipia GEO
Fourth Official: Giorgi Avazashvili GEO
VAR: Aleandro Di Paolo ITA
AVAR: Luca Pairetto ITA
Referee Observer: Vladimir Šajn SVN

23 October 2024
Atalanta BC – Celtic FC
Referee: Irfan Peljto BIH
Assistant Referee 1: Senad Ibrišimbegović BIH
Assistant Referee 2: Davor Beljo BIH
Fourth Official: Antoni Bandić BIH
VAR: Sören Storks GER
AVAR: Christian Dingert GER
Referee Observer: Cüneyt Çakir TUR

Stade Brestois – Bayer Leverkusen
Referee: Ivan Kružliak SVK
Assistant Referee 1: Branislav Hancko SVK
Assistant Referee 2: Jan Pozor SVK
Fourth Official: Peter Kralović SVK
VAR: Clay Ruperti NED
AVAR: Jeroen Manschot NED
Referee Observer: Gianluca Rocchi ITA

Manchester City – Sparta Praha
Referee: Maurizio Mariani ITA
Assistant Referee 1: Daniele Bindoni ITA
Assistant Referee 2: Alberto Tegoni ITA
Fourth Official: Andrea Colombo ITA
VAR: Aleandro Di Paolo ITA
AVAR: Valerio Marini ITA
Referee Observer: Haim Jakov ISR

RB Leipzig – Liverpool FC
Referee: Sandro Schärer SUI
Assistant Referee 1: Stéphane De Almeida SUI
Assistant Referee 2: Jonas Erni SUI
Fourth Official: Lukas Fähndrich SUI
VAR: Fedayi San SUI
AVAR: Pol van Boekel NED
Referee Observer: Milorad Mažić SRB

FC Barcelona – Bayern Munchen
Referee: Slavko Vinčić SVN
Assistant Referee 1: Tomaž Klančnik SVN
Assistant Referee 2: Andraž Kovačič SVN
Fourth Official: Rade Obrenovič SVN
VAR: Tomasz Kwiatkowski POL
AVAR: Piotr Lasyk POL
Referee Observer: Neale Barry ENG

Atletico de Madrid – LOSC Lille
Referee: Marco Guida ITA
Assistant Referee 1: Ciro Carbone ITA
Assistant Referee 2: Alessandro Giallatini ITA
Fourth Official: Matteo Marchetti ITA
VAR: Luca Pairetto ITA
AVAR: Tiago Martins POR
Referee Observer: Stefan Johannesson SWE

 
Benfica – Feyenoord
Referee: Halil Meler TUR
Assistant Referee 1: Kerem Ersoy TUR
Assistant Referee 2: Ibrahim Uyarcan TUR
Fourth Official: Arda Kardeşler TUR
VAR: David Coote ENG
AVAR: Cătălin Popa ROU
Referee Observer: Frank De Bleeckere BEL

RB Salzburg – Dinamo Zagreb
Referee: Danny Makkelie NED
Assistant Referee 1: Hessel Steegstra NED
Assistant Referee 2: Jan de Vries NED
Fourth Official: Joey Kooij NED
VAR: Rob Dieperink NED
AVAR: Dennis Higler NED
Referee Observer: Marián Ružbarský SVK

BSC Young Boys – Inter Milano
Referee: Michael Oliver ENG
Assistant Referee 1: Stuart Burt ENG
Assistant Referee 2: James Mainwaring ENG
Fourth Official: Andrew Madley ENG
VAR: Stuart Attwell ENG
AVAR: Peter Bankes ENG
Referee Observer: Jon Skjervold NOR

FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup 2024 – Group Stage (Matches 17-24)

22 October 2024

USA – Korea
Referee: Alejandra Quisbert BOL (photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Gabriela Moreno PER
Assistant Referee 2: Vera Yupanqui PER
Fourth Official: Vimarest Diaz DOM
Reserve AR: Kindria Aguero CRC

Colombia – Spain
Referee: Carly Shaw-MacLaren CAN
Assistant Referee 1: Gabrielle Lemieux CAN
Assistant Referee 2: Paulina Baranowska POL
Fourth Official: Jelena Cvetković SRB
Reserve AR: Karolin Kaivoja EST

Nigeria – Dominican Republic
Referee: Daiane Muniz BRA
Assistant Referee 1: Maira Mastella BRA
Assistant Referee 2: Fernanda Gomes BRA
Fourth Official: Abigail Byrne ENG
Reserve AR: Ceri Williams WAL

Ecuador – New Zealand
Referee: Le Thi Ly VIE
Assistant Referee 1: Ha Thi Phuong VIE
Assistant Referee 2: Suwida Wongkraisorn THA
Fourth Official: Olatz Rivera Olmedo ESP
Reserve AR: Nancy Kasitu ZAM

23 October 2024
England – Korea DPR
Referee: Alina Peşu ROU
Assistant Referee 1: Daniela Constantinescu ROU
Assistant Referee 2: Anita Vad HUN
Fourth Official: Vimarest Diaz DOM
Reserve AR: Vera Yupanqui PER

Mexico – Kenya
Referee: Jelena Cvetković SRB
Assistant Referee 1: Karolin Kaivoja EST
Assistant Referee 2: Lena Hirtl AUT
Fourth Official: Daiane Muniz BRA
Reserve AR: Maira Mastella BRA

Zambia – Japan
Referee: Frida Klarlund DEN
Assistant Referee 1: Fie Bruun DEN
Assistant Referee 2: Ainhoa Fernandez AND
Fourth Official: Deily Gomez CRC
Reserve AR: Gabriela Jimenez CRC

Poland – Brazil
Referee: Ghada Mehat ALG
Assistant Referee 1: Soukaina Hamdi MAR
Assistant Referee 2: Yara Abdelfattah EGY
Fourth Official: Olatz Rivera Olmedo ESP
Reserve AR: Gabriela Moreno PER

CONMEBOL Sudamericana 2024 – Semi-finals (First Leg)

23 October 2024

Cruzeiro – Lanus
Referee: Andres Matonte URU (photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Martín Soppi URU
Assistant Referee 2: Carlos Barreiro URU
Fourth Official: Matías de Armas URU
VAR: Nicolas Gallo COL
AVAR 1: Heider Castro COL
AVAR 2: Richard Trinidad URU
Referee Assessor: Joel Ruiz PAR
VAR Supervisor: Claudio Rios CHI

24 October 2024
Corinthians – Racing
Referee: Gustavo Tejera URU
Assistant Referee 1: Nicolas Taran URU
Assistant Referee 2: Andres Nievas URU
Fourth Official: Jose Burgos URU
VAR: Andres Cunha URU
AVAR 1: Antonio García URU
AVAR 2: Agustín Berisso URU
Referee Assessor: Christian Schiemann CHI
VAR Supervisor: Carlos Pastorino URU

CONMEBOL Libertadores 2024 – Semi-finals (First Leg)

22 October 2024

Atletico Mineiro – River Plate
Referee: Jesus Valenzuela VEN (photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Jorge Urrego VEN
Assistant Referee 2: Tulio Moreno VEN
Fourth Official: Yorman Delgado VEN
VAR: Juan Lara CHI
AVAR 1: Miguel Araos CHI
AVAR 2: Edson Cisternas CHI
Referee Assessor: Roberto Silvera URU
VAR Supervisor: Luis Vera ECU

23 October 2024
Botafogo – Penarol
Referee: Andres Rojas COL
Assistant Referee 1: Alexander Guzman COL
Assistant Referee 2: Richard Ortiz COL
Fourth Official: Bismarks Santiago COL
VAR: Yadir Acuna COL
AVAR 1: John Perdomo COL
AVAR 2: John Leon COL
Referee Assessor: Hernan Maidana ARG 

VAR Supervisor: Wilson Lamouroux COL

FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup 2024 – Group Stage (Matches 13-16)

20 October 2024

Korea DPR – Kenya
Referee: Deily Gomez CRC (photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Gabriela Jimenez CRC
Assistant Referee 2: Kindria Aguero CRC
Fourth Official: Olatz Rivera Olmedo ESP
Reserve AR: Riiohlang Dhar IND

England – Mexico
Referee: Shamira Nabadda UGA
Assistant Referee 1: Fanta Kone MLI
Assistant Referee 2: Nancy Kasitu ZAM
Fourth Official: Asaka Koizumi JPN
Reserve AR: Amal Badhafari UAE

Zambia – Poland
Referee: Jelena Cvetković SRB
Assistant Referee 1: Karolin Kaivoja EST
Assistant Referee 2: Lena Hirtl AUT
Fourth Official: Ghada Mehat ALG
Reserve AR: Soukaina Hamdi MAR

Japan – Brazil
Referee: Abigail Byrne ENG

Assistant Referee 1: Ceri Williams WAL 

Assistant Referee 2: Ainhoa Fernandez AND

Fourth Official: Vimarest Diaz DOM
Reserve AR: Anita Vad HUN

UEFA Youth League 2024/2025 – Group Stage (Matchday 3)

22 October 2024

Arsenal FC – Shakhtar Donetsk
Referee: Alan Kijas AUT (photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Mohamed El Sadany AUT
Assistant Referee 2: Amar Rekik AUT
Fourth Official: James Durkin ENG
Referee Observer: Laurent Duhamel FRA

AS Monaco – Crvena Zvezda
Referee: Ion Orlic MDA
Assistant Referee 1: Alexandru Sajin MDA
Assistant Referee 2: Vadim Roșca MDA
Fourth Official: Mathieu Vernice FRA
Referee Observer: Alain Bieri SUI

AC Milan – Club Brugge
Referee: Joonas Jaanovits EST
Assistant Referee 1: Aron Härsing EST
Assistant Referee 2: Thor Vaas EST
Fourth Official: Kevin Bonacina ITA
Referee Observer: Alfredo Trentalange ITA

Aston Villa – Bologna FC
Referee: Kyriákos Athanasíou CYP
Assistant Referee 1: Pétros Pétrou CYP
Assistant Referee 2: Lámbros Lámbrou CYP
Fourth Official: Scott Tallis ENG
Referee Observer: Kevin Parry WAL

Paris St. Germain – PSV Eindhoven
Referee: Adam Ladebäck SWE
Assistant Referee 1: Niklas Nyberg SWE
Assistant Referee 2: Daniel Yng SWE
Fourth Official: Aurélien Petit FRA
Referee Observer: Lutz-Michael Fröhlich GER

Juventus FC – VfB Stuttgart
Referee: Amine Kourgheli BLR
Assistant Referee 1: Juryj Chomčanka BLR
Assistant Referee 2: Viktar Hiecikaŭ BLR
Fourth Official: Davide Ghersini ITA
Referee Observer: Howard Webb ENG

Real Madrid – Borussia Dortmund
Referee: Damian Kos POL
Assistant Referee 1: Bartosz Heinig POL
Assistant Referee 2: Marek Arys POL
Fourth Official: Fernando Bueno Prieto ESP
Referee Observer: Simon Evans WAL

Girona FC – Slovan Bratislava
Referee: Oliver Reitala FIN
Assistant Referee 1: Olli Jantunen FIN
Assistant Referee 2: Juhani Karstila FIN
Fourth Official: Pol Arenas Mora ESP
Referee Observer: Salustià Ciprés AND

Sturm Graz – Sporting SC
Referee: Lothar D’Hondt BEL
Assistant Referee 1: Romain Devillers BEL
Assistant Referee 2: Nico Claes BEL
Fourth Official: Isa Simsek AUT
Referee Observer: Igor Pristovnik CRO

23 October 2024
Stade Brestois – Bayer Leverkusen
Referee: Michele Beltrano SMR
Assistant Referee 1: Ernesto Cristiano SMR
Assistant Referee 2: Andrea Zaghini SMR
Fourth Official: Benjamin Lepaysant FRA
Referee Observer: Michael Johansen DEN

SL Benfica – Feyenoord Rotterdam
Referee: David Šmajc SVN
Assistant Referee 1: David Gabrovec SVN
Assistant Referee 2: Tomaž Černe SVN
Fourth Official: Flávio Lima POR
Referee Observer: Frank De Bleeckere BEL

Atalanta BC – Celtic FC
Referee: Miloš Bošković MNE
Assistant Referee 1: Nikola Radulović MNE
Assistant Referee 2: Marko Gojković MNE
Fourth Official: Giovanni Ayroldi ITA
Referee Observer: Peter Rasmussen DEN

BSC Young Boys – Inter Milano
Referee: Thomas Owen WAL
Assistant Referee 1: Ian Bird WAL
Assistant Referee 2: Connor Thomas WAL
Fourth Official: Hüseyin Sanli SUI
Referee Observer: Jon Skjervold NOR

FC Salzburg – GNK Dinamo
Referee: Mikkel Redder DEN
Assistant Referee 1: Jesper Dahl DEN
Assistant Referee 2: René Risum DEN
Fourth Official: Daniel Pfister AUT
Referee Observer: Robert Malek POL

Manchester City – Sparta Praha
Referee: Granit Maqedonci SWE
Assistant Referee 1: Mikael Hallin SWE
Assistant Referee 2: Andreas Svensson SWE
Fourth Official: Benjamin Speedie ENG
Referee Observer: Haim Jakov ISR

RB Leipzig – Liverpool FC
Referee: Kevin O’Sullivan IRL
Assistant Referee 1: Darragh Keegan IRL
Assistant Referee 2: Christopher Campbell IRL
Fourth Official: Richard Hempel GER
Referee Observer: Martin Atkinson ENG

FC Barcelona – Bayern Munchen
Referee: Mohammad Aslam NOR
Assistant Referee 1: Jorgen Valstadsve NOR
Assistant Referee 2: Alf Rossland NOR
Fourth Official: Pol Gòdia Solé ESP
Referee Observer: Sergejus Slyva LTU

Atletico de Madrid – LOSC Lille
Referee: James Robinson NIR
Assistant Referee 1: Andrew Nethery NIR
Assistant Referee 2: Adam Jeffrey NIR
Fourth Official: Luis Morona del Campo ESP
Referee Observer: Markus Strömbergsson SWE

UEFA Youth League 2024/2025 – Domestic Champions Path, Round 2 (First Leg)

22 October 2024

SC Braga – Rapid Wien
Referee: Martin Matoša SVN (photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Matic Mežnar SVN
Assistant Referee 2: Matej Vojska SVN
Fourth Official: Flávio Duarte POR
Referee Observer: Kostadin Gerginov BUL

KRC Genk – CSKA Sofia
Referee: Igor Stojčevski MKD
Assistant Referee 1: Kushtrim Lika MKD
Assistant Referee 2: Daniel Vasilevski MKD
Fourth Official: Arne De Beuckelaer BEL
Referee Observer: Christof Dierick BEL

23 October 2024
Legia Warszawa – Pafos FC
Referee: Dmytro Panchyshyn UKR
Assistant Referee 1: Oleksandr Korniyko UKR
Assistant Referee 2: Valentyn Kutsev UKR
Fourth Official: Piotr Urban POL
Referee Observer: Uno Tutk EST

BFC Daugavpils – Sassuolo Calcio
Referee: Jasmin Sabotic LUX
Assistant Referee 1: Rafael Morim LUX
Assistant Referee 2: Joaquim Gomes LUX
Fourth Official: Aleksandrs Anufrijevs LVA
Referee Observer: Vadims Direktorenko LVA

Dynamo Kyiv – NK Maribor
Referee: Peiman Simani FIN
Assistant Referee 1: Christian De Casseres FIN
Assistant Referee 2: Samu Koskinen FIN
Fourth Official: Jacek Malyszek POL
Referee Observer: Alan Sant MLT

Farul Constanta – IMT Novi Beograd
Referee: Ante Čulina CRO
Assistant Referee 1: Dario Kolarević CRO
Assistant Referee 2: Vinko Podrug CRO
Fourth Official: Claudiu Marcu ROU
Referee Observer: Nicolae Grigorescu ROU

Lokomotiva Zagreb – Dynamo Minsk
Referee: Ladislav Szikszay CZE
Assistant Referee 1: Jan Váňa CZE
Assistant Referee 2: Jiří Pečenka CZE
Fourth Official: Ante Čuljak CRO
Referee Observer: Draženko Kovačić CRO

Olympiakos SFP – Tallinna Kalev
Referee: Marc Nagtegaal NED
Assistant Referee 1: Rens Bluemink NED
Assistant Referee 2: Murat Kücükerbir NED
Fourth Official: Konstantínos Perrákis GRE
Referee Observer: Georgios Bikas GRE

Real Betis Balompie – Qairat FK
Referee: Pavle Ilić SRB
Assistant Referee 1: Marko Djuričić SRB
Assistant Referee 2: Uroš Radovanović SRB
Fourth Official: Francisco Expósito Jaramillo ESP
Referee Observer: Christopher Lautier MLT

IFK Goteborg – TSV Hoffenheim
Referee: Cláudio Pereira POR
Assistant Referee 1: Pedro Martins POR
Assistant Referee 2: Tiago Costa POR
Fourth Official: Fredrik Oppong SWE
Referee Observer: Martin Hansson SWE

KF Korriku – Dublin AFC
Referee: Stefan Ebner AUT
Assistant Referee 1: Mattias Hartl AUT
Assistant Referee 2: Manuel Undesser AUT
Fourth Official: Valon Bajgora KOS
Referee Observer: Albano Janku ALB

Zalgiris Vilnius – Manchester United
Referee: Jacob Karlsen DEN
Assistant Referee 1: Martin Markus DEN
Assistant Referee 2: Daniel Cortzen DEN
Fourth Official: Kestutis Bartuškevičius LTU
Referee Observer: Mika Peltola FIN

Trabzonspor – Buducnost Podgorica
Referee: Mihály Káprály HUN
Assistant Referee 1: Gergő Vígh-Tarsonyi HUN
Assistant Referee 2: Ákos Berényi HUN
Fourth Official: Yigit Yardim TUR
Referee Observer: Bariş Şimşek TUR

AS Trencin – Zbrojovka Brno
Referee: Zorbay Küçük TUR
Assistant Referee 1: Furkan Ürün TUR
Assistant Referee 2: Deniz Özaral TUR
Fourth Official: Filip Malárik SVK
Referee Observer: Ladislav Gadosi SVK

Stromsgodset IF – AZ Alkmaar
Referee: Roman Jitari MDA
Assistant Referee 1: Victor Luchița MDA
Assistant Referee 2: Artur Macovei MDA
Fourth Official: Marius Lien NOR
Referee Observer: Claus Bo Larsen DEN

Progres Niederkorn – FC Midtjylland
Referee: Danilo Nikolić SRB
Assistant Referee 1: Dimitrije Vlasačević SRB
Assistant Referee 2: Bojan Laluja SRB
Fourth Official: Cédric Biever LUX
Referee Observer: Alain Hamer LUX

AJ Auxerre – Valletta FC
Referee: Chrístos Vergétis GRE
Assistant Referee 1: Konstantínos Triandafýllou GRE
Assistant Referee 2: Ioánnis Karagizópoulos GRE
Fourth Official: Hakim Ben Salem FRA
Referee Observer: Leslie Irvine NIR

FC Basel – Sabah FC
Referee: Patrik Kolarić CRO
Assistant Referee 1: Luka Pajić CRO
Assistant Referee 2: Ivan Starčević CRO
Fourth Official: Hajrim Qovanaj SUI
Referee Observer: Rudy Bossen NED

Aberdeen FC – Puskas Akademia
Referee: Lukasz Kuźma POL
Assistant Referee 1: Jakub Winkler POL
Assistant Referee 2: Maciej Kosarzecki POL
Fourth Official: Daniel McFarlane SCO
Referee Observer: Kenneth Clark SCO

FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup 2024 – Group Stage (Matches 9-12)

19 October 2024

Nigeria – Ecuador
Referee: Frida Klarlund DEN (photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Fie Bruun DEN
Assistant Referee 2: Katarzyna Wasiak USA
Fourth Official: Olatz Rivera Olmedo ESP
Reserve AR: Fernanda Gomes BRA

Dominican Republic – New Zealand
Referee: Asaka Koizumi JPN
Assistant Referee 1: Amal Badhafari UAE
Assistant Referee 2: Riiohlang Dhar IND
Fourth Official: Daiane Muniz BRA
Reserve AR: Maira Mastella BRA

Spain – Korea
Referee: Ghada Mehat ALG
Assistant Referee 1: Soukaina Hamdi MAR
Assistant Referee 2: Yara Abdelfattah EGY
Fourth Official: Vimarest Diaz DOM
Reserve AR: Suwida Wongkraisorn THA

Colombia – USA 

Referee: Alina Peşu ROU
Assistant Referee 1: Daniela Constantinescu ROU
Assistant Referee 2: Anita Vad HUN
Fourth Official: Le Thi Ly VIE
Reserve AR: Ha Thi Phuong VIE

Football Australia has appointed Jon Moss as its new Head of Referees

Football Australia has announced the appointment of Jon Moss as its new Head of Referees, marking a significant step forward in enhancing the quality and consistency of officiating across Australian football. Moss brings a wealth of experience to the role, having officiated over 500 professional matches, of which 285 were in the English Premier League including every major Cup Final. His most recent position was as Video Assistant Referee (VAR) Manager for the Scottish Football Association, further broadening his expertise in modern officiating technologies.

In his new role, Moss will be responsible for: overseeing match officials’ development programs, implementing best practices in officiating, enhancing professionalism and accountability within the refereeing community, improving the integration of technology in match officiating, fostering stronger relationships between referees, clubs, and other stakeholders. "I'm excited to join Football Australia and contribute to the growth of the game in this country," Jon Moss stated. "My goal is to elevate the standard of refereeing at all levels, from grassroots to the A-Leagues, ensuring that Australian football continues to thrive and gain international recognition." Moss's appointment is effective immediately, and he will be based at Football Australia's headquarters in Sydney.

Source: FFA

FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup 2024 – Group Stage (Matches 1-8)

16 October 2024

Dominican Republic – Ecuador
Referee: Abigail Byrne ENG (photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Ceri Williams WAL
Assistant Referee 2: Paulina Baranowska POL
Fourth Official: Alina Pesu ROU
Reserve AR: Daniela Costantinescu ROU

New Zealand – Nigeria
Referee: Carly Shaw-MacLaren CAN
Assistant Referee 1: Gabrielle Lemieux CAN
Assistant Referee 2: Katarzyna Wasiak USA
Fourth Official: Olatz Rivera Olmedo ESP
Reserve AR: Anita Vad HUN

Spain – USA
Referee: Asaka Koizumi JPN
Assistant Referee 1: Amal Badhafari UAE
Assistant Referee 2: Riiohlang Dhar IND
Fourth Official: Jelena Cvetković SRB
Reserve AR: Karolin Kaivoja EST

Korea – Colombia
Referee: Shamira Nabadda UGA
Assistant Referee 1: Fanta Kone MLI
Assistant Referee 2: Nancy Kasitu ZAM
Fourth Official: Frida Klarlund DEN
Reserve AR: Fie Bruun DEN

17 October 2024
Korea DPR – Mexico
Referee: Daiane Muniz BRA
Assistant Referee 1: Maira Mastella BRA
Assistant Referee 2: Fernanda Gomes BRA
Fourth Official: Olatz Rivera Olmedo ESP
Reserve AR: Gabrielle Lemieux CAN

Kenya – England
Referee: Alejandra Quisbert BOL
Assistant Referee 1: Gabriela Moreno PER
Assistant Referee 2: Vera Yupanqui PER
Fourth Official: Vimarest Diaz DOM
Reserve AR: Katarzyna Wasiak USA

Japan – Poland
Referee: Deily Gomez CRC
Assistant Referee 1: Gabriela Jimenez CRC
Assistant Referee 2: Kindria Aguero CRC
Fourth Official: Shamira Nabadda UGA
Reserve AR: Fanta Kone MLI

Brazil – Zambia
Referee: Le Thi Ly VIE
Assistant Referee 1: Ha Thi Phuong VIE
Assistant Referee 2: Suwida Wongkraisorn THA
Fourth Official: Ghada Mehat ALG
Reserve AR: Soukaina Hamdi MAR

UEFA Women’s Champions League 2024/25 – Group Stage (Matchday 2)

16 October 2024 

Juventus FC – Bayern München
Referee: Ivana Projkovska MKD (photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Nargis Magau KAZ
Assistant Referee 2: Svitlana Grushko UKR
Fourth Official: Hristiyana Guteva BUL
Referee Observer: Eleni Kiriou GRE

SKN St. Pölten – Manchester City WFC
Referee: Iuliana Demetrescu ROU
Assistant Referee 1: Mihaela Țepușă ROU
Assistant Referee 2: Roxana Ivanov ROU
Fourth Official: Ana Terteleac ROU
Referee Observer: Caroline De Boeck BEL

FC Barcelona – Hammarby IF
Referee: Riem Hussein GER
Assistant Referee 1: Daniela Göttlinger GER
Assistant Referee 2: Jasmin Matysiak GER
Fourth Official: Angelika Soeder GER
Referee Observer: Aušra Kance LTU

Arsenal WFC – Valerenga
Referee: Marta Huerta De Aza ESP
Assistant Referee 1: Guadalupe Porras Ayuso ESP
Assistant Referee 2: Iragartze Fernández Esesúmaga ESP
Fourth Official: Ainara Acevedo Dudley ESP
Referee Observer: Sofia Karagiorgi CYP

17 October 2024
Real Madrid – Celtic FCW
Referee: Silvia Gasperotti ITA
Assistant Referee 1: Francesca Di Monte ITA
Assistant Referee 2: Giulia Tempestilli ITA
Fourth Official: Martina Molinaro ITA
Referee Observer: Hilda McDermott IRL

Galatasaray – AS Roma
Referee: Tess Olofsson SWE
Assistant Referee 1: Almira Spahić SWE
Assistant Referee 2: Monica Lokkeberg NOR
Fourth Official: Lovisa Johansson SWE
Referee Observer: Esther Azzopardi MLT

VfL Wolfsburg – Olympique Lyonnais
Referee: Désirée Grundbacher SUI
Assistant Referee 1: Susann Küng SUI
Assistant Referee 2: Linda Schmid SUI
Fourth Official: Olivia Tschon AUT
Referee Observer: Dagmar Damková CZE

FC Twente – Chelsea FCW
Referee: Maria Ferrieri Caputi ITA
Assistant Referee 1: Tiziana Trasciatti ITA
Assistant Referee 2: Stefania Signorelli ITA
Fourth Official: Deborah Bianchi ITA 

Referee Observer: Ivana Vlaić BIH

Referee Martinez reveals Ronaldo’s ‘true colours’ after heated argument

Honduran referee Said Martinez 'exposed' Portuguese superstar Cristiano Ronaldo after having a disappointing interaction with him during a Saudi Pro League match. "Cristiano Ronaldo is very difficult due to his temperament, he is a very competitive person, which makes him feel there's a lot of injustice towards him, so he complains a lot,” he said. These comments came after the referee disallowed two goals of the Portuguese forward.

Speaking to the Manchester Evening News, Martinez opened up about the incident. "We disallowed two goals for him, with VAR and everything, but there was a play that upset him because he felt he was fouled in the attack leading to a goal against them. They were losing,” he revealed. Continuing further he added: "He stayed 10 meters away from me and said: 'It's always the same with the referees, you always think you're the stars, but we don't bring you here to be the stars, we are the stars,' in perfect Spanish. He started calmly but then got agitated and I just looked at him provocatively to see if he would get closer to me, but he didn't." In addition, the Honduran referee said that Ronaldo made harsh comments over calling him up for confrontation in the half time. "After checking the VAR, I asked him to come closer. Cristiano is Cristiano, and if he doesn't want to come, he won't. But he came over to where I was and I said to him: “You're a great player, but what you said at half-time isn't right. I respect you a lot, but we're here to do our job just like you are”, Martinez stated. Meanwhile, in a surprising turn of events, Martinez, 33 started praising Ronaldo over accepting his mistake. Showing his true self, the Al Nassr’s captain said: 'Yes, you're right; it wasn't the right way to express myself. I apologise'. Indeed, he offered an apology and for the rest of the match, he didn't make any complaints, even delivering a stunning free kick goal." Ronaldo has scored 66 goals and provided 18 assists in 73 games while representing Al Nassr.

Source: GeoSuperTV

UEFA Nations League 2024/2025 – Group Stage (Matchday 4)

13-15 October 2024

League A

Germany – Netherlands
Referee: Slavko Vinčič SVN (photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Tomaž Klančnik SVN
Assistant Referee 2: Andraž Kovačič SVN
Fourth Official: David Šmajc SVN

VAR: Nejc Kajtazovič SVN

AVAR: Alen Borošak SVN

Referee Observer: Juan Fernández Marín ESP

Italy – Israel
Referee: Ricardo De Burgos Bengoetxea ESP
Assistant Referee 1: Iker de Francisco Grijalba ESP
Assistant Referee 2: Alfredo Rodríguez Moreno ESP
Fourth Official: Pablo González Fuertes ESP

VAR: Carlos Del Cerro Grande ESP

AVAR: Adrián Cordero Vega ESP

Referee Observer: Rusmir Mrković BIH

Belgium – France
Referee: Irfan Peljto BIH
Assistant Referee 1: Senad Ibrišimbegović BIH
Assistant Referee 2: Davor Beljo BIH
Fourth Official: Luka Bilbija BIH

VAR: Tomasz Kwiatkowski POL

AVAR: Pawel Pskit POL

Referee Observer: Kjell Alseth NOR

Bosnia and Herzegovina – Hungary
Referee: Anthony Taylor ENG
Assistant Referee 1: Gary Beswick ENG
Assistant Referee 2: Adam Nunn ENG
Fourth Official: Darren England ENG

VAR: David Coote ENG

AVAR: Constantine Hatzidakis ENG

Referee Observer: Cyril Zimmermann SUI

Poland – Croatia

Referee: Alejandro Hernández Hernández ESP

Assistant Referee 1: José Naranjo Pérez ESP

Assistant Referee 2: Diego Sánchez Rojo ESP

Fourth Official: Juan Pulido Santana ESP
VAR: César Soto Grado ESP
AVAR: Jorge Figueroa Vázquez ESP
Referee Observer: Sabri Çelik TUR

Scotland – Portugal
Referee: Lawrence Visser BEL
Assistant Referee 1: Rien Vanyzere BEL
Assistant Referee 2: Thibaud Nijssen BEL
Fourth Official: Simon Bourdeaud’hui BEL
VAR: Bram Van Driessche BEL
AVAR: Jan Boterberg BEL
Referee Observer: Stefano Podeschi SMR

Spain – Serbia
Referee: Daniel Stefański POL
Assistant Referee 1: Dawid Golis POL
Assistant Referee 2: Michal Obukowicz POL
Fourth Official: Wojciech Myć POL
VAR: Piotr Lasyk POL
AVAR: Pawel Raczkowski POL
Referee Observer: Bertrand Layec FRA

Switzerland – Denmark
Referee: Halil Meler TUR
Assistant Referee 1: Kerem Ersoy TUR
Assistant Referee 2: Ibrahim Uyarcan TUR
Fourth Official: Arda Kardeşler TUR
VAR: Gianluca Aureliano ITA
AVAR: Daniele Doveri ITA
Referee Observer: David Malcolm NIR

League B

Kazakhstan – Slovenia
Referee: Craig Pawson ENG
Assistant Referee 1: Lee Betts ENG
Assistant Referee 2: Neil Davies ENG
Fourth Official: Darren Bond ENG
VAR: Peter Bankes ENG
AVAR: Andrew Madley ENG
Referee Observer: Karel Vidlák CZE

Finland – England
Referee: Giorgi Kruashvili GEO
Assistant Referee 1: Levan Varamishvili GEO
Assistant Referee 2: Zaza Pipia GEO
Fourth Official: Giorgi Avazashvili GEO
VAR: Benoît Millot FRA
AVAR: Aleko Aptsiauri GEO
Referee Observer: Jorn-West Larsen DEN

Greece – Ireland
Referee: Joey Kooij NED
Assistant Referee 1: Joost van Zuilen NED
Assistant Referee 2: Patrick Inia NED
Fourth Official: Jannick van der Laan NED
VAR: Clay Ruperti NED
AVAR: Jeroen Manschot NED
Referee Observer: Bernardino González Vázquez ESP

Austria – Norway
Referee: Tamás Bognár HUN
Assistant Referee 1: Balázs Buzás HUN
Assistant Referee 2: Péter Kóbor HUN
Fourth Official: Gergő Bogár HUN
VAR: István Vad HUN
AVAR: Ferenc Karakó HUN
Referee Observer: Giorgi Vadachkoria GEO

Georgia – Albania
Referee: Danny Makkelie NED
Assistant Referee 1: Hessel Steegstra NED
Assistant Referee 2: Jan de Vries NED
Fourth Official: Allard Lindhout NED
VAR: Rob Dieperink NED
AVAR: Erwin Blank NED
Referee Observer: Viktor Shvetsov UKR

Ukraine – Czechia
Referee: Guillermo Cuadra Fernández ESP
Assistant Referee 1: Guadalupe Porras Ayuso ESP
Assistant Referee 2: Inigo Prieto López ESP
Fourth Official: Miguel Ortiz Arias ESP
VAR: José Munuera Montero ESP
AVAR: Valentín Pizarro Gómez ESP
Referee Observer: Christopher Lautier MLT

Iceland – Turkey
Referee: Damian Sylwestrzak POL
Assistant Referee 1: Pawel Sokolnicki POL
Assistant Referee 2: Bartosz Kaszyński POL
Fourth Official: Marcin Kochanek POL
VAR: Marcin Kochanek POL
AVAR: Pawel Malec POL
Referee Observer: Milorad Mažić SRB

Wales – Montenegro
Referee: Filip Glova SVK
Assistant Referee 1: Daniel Poláček SVK
Assistant Referee 2: Peter Bednár SVK
Fourth Official: Lukáš Dzivjak SVK
VAR: Michal Očenáš SVK
AVAR: Martin Dohál SVK
Referee Observer: Kostadin Gerginov BUL

League C

Armenia – North Macedonia
Referee: Stuart Attwell ENG
Assistant Referee 1: Stuart Burt ENG
Assistant Referee 2: Akil Howson ENG
Fourth Official: Tony Harrington ENG
VAR: Christopher Kavanagh ENG
AVAR: Sian Massey-Ellis ENG
Referee Observer: Gediminas Mažeika LTU

Faroe Islands – Latvia
Referee: Philip Farrugia MLT
Assistant Referee 1: Alan Camilleri MLT
Assistant Referee 2: Duncan Sultana MLT
Fourth Official: Matthew De Gabriele MLT
VAR: Paolo Mazzoleni ITA
AVAR: Valerio Marini ITA
Referee Observer: Volodymyr Petrov UKR

Azerbaijan – Slovakia
Referee: Rohit Saggi NOR
Assistant Referee 1: Morten Jensen NOR
Assistant Referee 2: Anders Dale NOR
Fourth Official: Sigurd Kringstad NOR
VAR: Jochem Kamphuis NED
AVAR: Tom Hagen NOR
Referee Observer: Vadims Direktorenko LVA

Estonia – Sweden
Referee: Juxhin Xhaja ALB
Assistant Referee 1: Arbër Zalla ALB
Assistant Referee 2: Rejdi Avdo ALB
Fourth Official: Albert Doda ALB
VAR: Kreshnik Barjamaj ALB
AVAR: Olsion Yzeiraj ALB
Referee Observer: Mark Whitby WAL

Lithuania – Romania
Referee: Nicholas Walsh SCO
Assistant Referee 1: Graeme Stewart SCO
Assistant Referee 2: Calum Spence SCO
Fourth Official: Christopher Graham SCO
VAR: John Beaton SCO
AVAR: Ross Hardie SCO
Referee Observer: Viktor Kassai HUN

Kosovo – Cyprus
Referee: Matej Jug SVN
Assistant Referee 1: Matej Žunič SVN
Assistant Referee 2: Manuel Vidali SVN
Fourth Official: Dejan Balažič SVN
VAR: Asmir Sagrković SVN
AVAR: Rade Obrenovič SVN
Referee Observer: Murat Ilgaz TUR

Northern Ireland – Bulgaria
Referee: Jérôme Brisard FRA
Assistant Referee 1: Alexis Auger FRA
Assistant Referee 2: Nicolas Danos FRA
Fourth Official: Mathieu Vernice FRA
VAR: Eric Wattellier FRA
AVAR: Bastien Dechepy FRA
Referee Observer: Michal Beneš CZE

Belarus – Luxembourg
Referee: Atilla Karaoglan TUR
Assistant Referee 1: Ceyhun Sesigüzel TUR
Assistant Referee 2: Abdullah Özkara TUR
Fourth Official: Direnç Tonusluoğlu TUR
VAR: Christian Dingert GER
AVAR: Sören Storks GER
Referee Observer: Fredy Fautrel FRA

League D

Liechtenstein – Gibraltar
Referee: Horațiu Feșnic ROU
Assistant Referee 1: Valentin Avram ROU
Assistant Referee 2: Alexandru Cerei ROU
Fourth Official: Szabolcs Kovacs ROU
VAR: Ovidiu Haţegan ROU
AVAR: Sorin Costreie ROU
Referee Observer: Kristinn Jakobsson ISL

Malta – Moldova
Referee: John Brooks ENG
Assistant Referee 1: Simon Bennett ENG
Assistant Referee 2: Daniel Robathan ENG
Fourth Official: Samuel Barrott ENG
VAR: Michael Salisbury ENG
AVAR: Timothy Wood ENG
Referee Observer: Robert Schörgenhofer AUT

FIFA World Cup 2026 Qualifiers – AFC (Round 3, Matchday 4)

15 October 2024

Uzbekistan – UAE
Referee: Ma Ning CHN (photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Zhou Fei CHN
Assistant Referee 2: Zhang Cheng CHN
Fourth Official: Di Wang CHN
VAR: Fu Ming CHN
AVAR: Shen Yinhao CHN

Kyrgyzstan – Korea DPR
Referee: Mohammed Al Hoish KSA
Assistant Referee 1: Khalaf Al Shammari KSA
Assistant Referee 2: Yasir Al Sultan KSA
Fourth Official: Shukri Al Hanfosh KSA
VAR: Abdullah Al Shehri KSA
AVAR: Ibrahim Al Dakheel KSA

Iran – Qatar
Referee: Yusuke Araki JPN
Assistant Referee 1: Jun Mihara JPN
Assistant Referee 2: Kota Watanabe JPN
Fourth Official: Hiroki Kasahara JPN
VAR: Hiroyuki Kimura JPN
AVAR: Jumpei Iida JPN

Korea – Iraq
Referee: Rustam Lutfullin UZB
Assistant Referee 1: Andrey Tsapenko UZB
Assistant Referee 2: Timur Gaynulin UZB
Fourth Official: Asker Nadjafaliev UZB
VAR: Firdavs Norsafarov UZB
AVAR: Aziz Asymov UZB

Jordan – Oman
Referee: Khalid Al Turais KSA
Assistant Referee 1: Mohammed Al Abakry KSA
Assistant Referee 2: Khalaf Al Shammari KSA
Fourth Official: Faisal Al-Blwi KSA
VAR: Muhammad Bin Jahari SIN
AVAR: Alexander King AUS

Palestine – Kuwait
Referee: Abdulrahman Al Jassim QAT
Assistant Referee 1: Taleb Al Marri QAT
Assistant Referee 2: Saoud Al Maqaleh QAT
Fourth Official: Mohammed Al Shammari QAT
VAR: Abdulla Al Marri QAT
AVAR: Zahy Al Shmari QAT

Japan – Australia
Referee: Ahmad Al-Ali KUW
Assistant Referee 1: Abdulhadi Al-Anezi KUW
Assistant Referee 2: Ahmad Abbas KUW
Fourth Official: Ammar Ashkanani KUW
VAR: Abdullah Jamali KUW
AVAR: Abdullah Al Kandari KUW

China – Indonesia
Referee: Omar Al Ali UAE
Assistant Referee 1: Mohamed Al Hammadi UAE
Assistant Referee 2: Jasem Al Ali UAE
Fourth Official: Sultan Al Hammadi UAE
VAR: Mohammed Obaid UAE
AVAR: Yahya Al-Mulla UAE

Saudi Arabia – Bahrain
Referee: Salman Falahi QAT
Assistant Referee 1: Ramzan Al Naemi QAT
Assistant Referee 2: Majid Al Shammari QAT
Fourth Official: Abdulhadi Al Ruaile QAT
VAR: Khamis Al Marri QAT
AVAR: Mohammed Ahmed QAT