FIFA Arab Cup 2025 – Group Stage (Matches 6-8)

3 December 2025

Algeria – Sudan
Referee: Amin Omar EGY (photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Mahmoud El-Regal EGY
Assistant Referee 2: Ahmed Ali EGY
Fourth Official: Cristian Garay CHI
Reserve AR: Claudio Urrutia CHI
VAR: Fedayi San SUI
AVAR: Rodolpho Toski BRA

Iraq – Bahrain
Referee: Pierre Atcho GAB
Assistant Referee 1: Boris Ditsoga GAB
Assistant Referee 2: Styven Moutsassi CGO
Fourth Official: Glenn Nyberg SWE
Reserve AR: Mahbod Beigi SWE
VAR: Abdullah Al-Shehri KSA
AVAR: Khamis Al-Marri QAT

Jordan – UAE
Referee: Ahmed Al-Kaf OMA
Assistant Referee 1: Abu Al-Amri OMA
Assistant Referee 2: Rashid Al-Ghaithi OMA
Fourth Official: Campbell-Kirk Kawana-Waugh NZL
Reserve AR: Edward Cook NZL
VAR: Lahlou Benbraham ALG 

AVAR: Jarred Gillett ENG

FIFA set to use VAR for corner kicks at World Cup

FIFA is set to press ahead with plans to have VAR checks on the awarding of corner kicks at the 2026 World Cup despite domestic leagues rejecting the idea for the wider game. At an October meeting of the International Football Association Board (IFAB) - which determines the Laws of the Game - there was agreement that VAR could be expanded to cover incorrectly shown second yellow cards that lead to a red. But FIFA's proposal to review corners was rejected, meaning world football's governing body will need to effectively create a trial to use it in the United States, Mexico and Canada next summer. The measures will be discussed further at the next IFAB meeting in January, but FIFA has regularly applied trials to its competitions. Semi-automated offside technology and referees announcing VAR decisions to the crowd are two examples, and it could use the same mechanism to start reviewing corners.

Pierluigi Collina, FIFA's head of referees, has been a supporter of the change as part of a wider review of VAR protocol. Collina is open to going further, too, believing that any error that can quickly be identified by the VAR could potentially be communicated. The former referee has highlighted an incident in the Euro 2016 final, when Portugal was wrongly awarded a free kick in extra time for handball on the edge of the area that almost led to a goal. Football Association chief executive Mark Bullingham, who sits on the IFAB board, has previously told BBC Sport he is against it. If corners were to be added to protocol, it would mean that all leagues with VAR would have to check them. It would created significant additional delays as leagues would not have the means to make quick and consistent decisions. For these reasons, FIFA has been unable to get this through the IFAB panels, so it looks poised to run its own trial at the World Cup next year. One of the fundamentals of the Laws of the Game that apply at all levels is that a referee cannot change a restart decision even if they realise it is incorrect after play is back under way. So, once the corner is taken and play is live, the game must continue. For that reason, every corner will have to be reviewed by the VAR - although in most cases the decision will be obvious. FIFA believes it has the resources - from VARs to cameras to the ball technology - to make all decisions quickly. It will present a departure from VAR protocol, which is only intended to look at four specific areas: goals, penalties, red cards and mistaken identity. In the World Cup next year, the awarding of corners is set to be added to that list. If only the awarding of corners that directly lead to a goal were checked by VAR, it is possible that if the attacking team knew the referee should have awarded a goal kick, they might take it is short, knowing scoring directly from the corner would be disallowed by the VAR. Instead, they could try to work an opening after taking a short corner and because it was not directly from the kick, the goal would stand.

Source: BBC

FIFA Arab Cup 2025 – Group Stage (Matches 3-5)

2 December 2025

Morocco – Comoros

Referee: Ma Ning CHN (photo)

Assistant Referee 1: Zhou Fei CHN
Assistant Referee 2: Zhang Cheng CHN
Fourth Official: Abdulrahman Al-Jassim QAT
Reserve AR: Taleb Al-Marri QAT
VAR: Jumpei Iida JPN
AVAR: Khamis Al-Marri QAT

Egypt – Kuwait
Referee: Espen Eskas NOR
Assistant Referee 1: Jan Engan NOR
Assistant Referee 2: Isaak Bashevkin NOR
Fourth Official: Ismail Elfath USA
Reserve AR: Corey Parker USA
VAR: Dennis Higler NED
AVAR: Antonio Garcia URU

Saudi Arabia – Oman
Referee: Adham Makhadmeh JOR
Assistant Referee 1: Mohammad Al-Kalaf JOR
Assistant Referee 2: Ahmad Al-Roalle JOR
Fourth Official: Juan Benitez PAR
Reserve AR: Eduardo Cardozo PAR
VAR: Sivakorn Pu-Udom THA
AVAR: Allen Chapman USA

UEFA Women’s Nations League Final 2025/26 (Second Leg)

2 December 2025

Final
Spain – Germany
Referee: Silvia Gasperotti ITA (photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Giulia Tempestilli ITA
Assistant Referee 2: Stefania Signorelli ITA
Fourth Official: Frida Klarlund DEN
VAR: Aleandro Di Paolo ITA
AVAR: Michael Fabbri ITA
Referee Observer: Dagmar Damkova CZE

Match for Third Place
Sweden – France
Referee: Marta Huerta De Aza ESP
Assistant Referee 1: Guadalupe Porras Ayuso ESP
Assistant Referee 2: Eliana Fernandez Gonzalez ESP
Fourth Official: Olatz Rivera Olmedo ESP
VAR: Valentin Pizarro Gomez ESP
AVAR: Judit Romano Garcia ESP
Referee Observer: Silvia Spinelli ITA

FIFA Arab Cup 2025 – Group Stage (Matches 1-2)

1 December 2025

Tunisia – Syria
Referee: Juan Calderon CRC (photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Juan Mora CRC
Assistant Referee 2: William Arrieta CRC
Fourth Official: Mario Escobar GUA
Reserve AR: Luis Ventura GUA
VAR: Benjamin Pineda CRC
AVAR: Fedayi San SUI

Qatar – Palestine
Referee: Glenn Nyberg SWE
Assistant Referee 1: Mahbod Beigi SWE
Assistant Referee 2: Andreas Söderkvist SWE
Fourth Official: Campbell-Kirk Kawana-Waugh NZL
Reserve AR: Isaac Travis NZL
VAR: Jarred Gillett ENG
AVAR: Lahlou Benbraham ALG

Former UEFA Champions League final referee sent off by current Spanish FIFA referee

Getafe’s LaLiga victory over Elche produced one of the quirkiest stories of the matchday - and arguably the season. In the closing stages of the Week 14 clash at the Estadio Coliseum, referee Alejandro Hernández Hernández brandished a red card in the direction of the Getafe bench. At first glance, the recipient seemed to be José Bordalás, Los Azulones’ ever-fiery head coach. Bordalás even protested the decision as if it were aimed squarely at him. However, Hernández Hernández’s official match report revealed a surprising twist: the man sent off was a familiar face in officiating circles - Manuel Mejuto González, a former top-flight referee and now Getafe’s matchday delegate. “In the 90th minute, delegate Mejuto González, Manuel Enrique, was dismissed for the following reason,” reads the referee’s report documenting the incident. “As the person responsible for the stadium’s ball boys, he was held accountable for their behavior during the second half, which caused several delays in restarting play.”

Mejuto González, considered one of the best referees in Spanish football, ended his career in 2010 after officiating the Copa del Rey final on May 19, played between Atlético de Madrid and Sevilla, which Sevilla won thanks to goals from Diego Capel and Jesús Navas. An international referee since 1999, he participated in two European Championships and the legendary Champions League final in which Liverpool came back from 0-3 against AC Milan before winning on penalties.

Source: as

FIFA Futsal Women’s World Cup 2025 – Quarter-finals

1 December 2025

Argentina – Colombia
Referee 1: Mariia Myslovska UKR (photo)
Referee 2: Noelia Gutierrez Munoz ESP
Third Official: Monica Czudzinowicz POL
Fourth Official: Florentina Kallaba KOS
Timekeeper: Alice Vevodova CZE

Spain – Morocco
Referee 1: Zari Fathi IRN
Referee 2: Gelareh Nazemi IRN
Third Official: Liang Qingyun CHN
Fourth Official: Reem Al-Bishi KSA
Timekeeper: Panadda Khotsenaphattra THA

2 December 2025
Portugal – Italy
Referee 1: Oriana Zambrano VEN
Referee 2: Tayana Moreno VEN
Third Official: Anelize Schultz BRA
Fourth Official: Maria Caceres PAR
Timekeeper: Valeria Palma CHI

Brazil – Japan
Referee 1: Kimberly Valverde CRC
Referee 2: Krystin Pahia USA
Third Official: Marijana Orešić CRO
Fourth Official: Filipa Prata POR 

Timekeeper: Martina Piccolo ITA

Referee dishes out 17 red cards in a Copa Bolivia mass brawl

A Copa Bolivia quarter-final between Club Blooming and Real Oruro descended into chaos, with the referee dishing out a staggering 17 red cards, including 16 following a massive brawl that required police intervention with pepper spray.

The fracas began with what Bolivian outlet El Potosi described as a scuffle involving some Blooming players and Oruro's Sebastian Zeballos and Julio Vila. The altercation quickly spiralled as punches and kicks broke out in a frenzy, with both clubs' staff, including Oruro coach Marcelo Robledo, also getting involved. Oruro posted a picture on Instagram showing Robledo in hospital after Tuesday's brawl, which resulted in four of their players receiving red cards. 

Blooming fared even worse in the disciplinary stakes, with seven players sent off – six of those red cards coming after the brawl. The other six red cards were given to the teams' backroom staff, including the Oruro coach. Blooming shared an Instagram video saying a member of their security staff had undergone surgery for a fractured cheekbone sustained during the violence. Blooming advanced to the semi-finals after winning the tie 4-3 on aggregate, having taken a 2-1 advantage from the first leg. They will now face Club Bolivar, last year's Bolivian top-flight champions, in the semi-finals.

Source: Flashscore

CAF Confederation Cup 2025/2026 – Group Stage (Matchday 2)

28-30 November 2025

Olympic Safi – USM Alger
Referee: Mohamed Maarouf EGY (photo)

Azam – Wydad AC
Referee: Antoine Effa CMR

AS Otoho – CR Belouizdad
Referee: Celso Alvacao MOZ

Zesco United – Al Masry
Referee: Andre Kolissala CTA

Kaizer Chiefs – Zamalek
Referee: Samuel Uwikunda RWA

San Pedro – Djoliba
Referee: Brighton Chimene ZIM

Nairobi United – Maniema Union
Referee: Aklesso Gnama TOG

Singida Black Stars – Stellenbosch
Referee: Lamin Jammeh GAM

CAF Champions League 2025/2026 – Group Stage (Matchday 2)

28-30 November 2025

Rivers United – RS Berkane
Referee: Issa Sy SEN (photo)

AS FAR – Al Ahly
Referee: Ahmed Abdulrazg LBY

JS Kabylie – Young Africans
Referee: Ahmad Heeralall MRI

MC Alger – Mamelodi Sundowns
Referee: Jean Ouattara BFA

Petro de Luanda – Esperance de Tunis
Referee: Jean Ndala COD

Power Dynamos – Pyramids
Referee: Omar Artan SOM

St. Eloi Lupopo – Al Hilal
Referee: Dahane Beida MTN

Stade Malien – Simba
Referee: Andofetra Rakotojaona MAD