UEFA Champions League 2023/2024 – Round of 16 (First Leg, I)

13 February 2024

RB Leipzig – Real Madrid
Referee: Irfan Peljto BIH (photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Senad Ibrisimbegović BIH
Assistant Referee 2: Davor Beljo BIH
Fourth Official: Miloš Gigovic BIH
VAR: Pol van Boekel NED
AVAR: Dennis Higler NED
Referee Observer: Tomasz Mikulski POL

FC Copenhagen – Manchester City
Referee: Jose Sanchez Martinez ESP
Assistant Referee 1: Raul Cabanero Martinez ESP
Assistant Referee 2: Inigo Prieto Lopez ESP
Fourth Official: Cesar Soto Grado ESP
VAR: Juan Martinez Munuera ESP
AVAR: Guillermo Cuadra Fernandez ESP
Referee Observer: Roberto Rosetti ITA

14 February 2024
Lazio – Bayern München
Referee: François Letexier FRA
Assistant Referee 1: Cyril Mugnier FRA
Assistant Referee 2: Mehdi Rahmouni FRA
Fourth Official: Stephanie Frappart FRA
VAR: Jerôme Brisard FRA
AVAR: Willy Delajod FRA
Referee Observer: Costas Kapitanis CYP

Paris St. Germain – Real Sociedad
Referee: Marco Guida ITA
Assistant Referee 1: Ciro Carbone ITA
Assistant Referee 2: Giorgio Peretti ITA
Fourth Official: Fabio Maresca ITA
VAR: Paolo Valeri ITA
AVAR: Aleandro Di Paolo ITA
Referee Observer: Howard Webb ENG

CONMEBOL Libertadores 2024 – First Round (Second Leg)

13-15 February 2024

Defensor Sporting – Puerto Cabello
Referee: Carlos Benitez (PAR, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Eduardo Cardoso (PAR)
Assistant Referee 2: Eduardo Britos (PAR)
Fourth Official: Giancarlo Juliadoza (PAR)
VAR: Ulises Mereles (PAR)
AVAR: Milciades Saldivar (PAR)
Referee Assessor: Miguel Nievas (URU)
VAR Supervisor: Emerson De Carvalho (BRA)

Melgar – Aurora
Referee: Andres Matonte (URU)
Assistant Referee 1: Nicolas Taran (URU)
Assistant Referee 2: Martin Soppi (URU)
Fourth Official: Mathias De Armas (URU)
VAR: Leodan Gonzalez (URU)
AVAR: Antonio Garcia (URU)
Referee Assessor: Ana Perez (PER)
VAR Supervisor: Daniel Cardellino (URU)

Nacional – Aucas
Referee: Anderson Daronco (BRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Danilo Manis (BRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Neuza Back (BRA)
Fourth Official: Braulio Machado (BRA)
VAR: Pablo Gonçalves (BRA)
AVAR: Rodrigo Nunes (BRA)
Referee Assessor: Jorge Mercado (PAR)
VAR Supervisor: Victor Carrillo (PER)

Concacaf Champions Cup 2024 – First Round (Second Leg)

13-15 February 2024

CD Guadalajara – Forge FC
Referee: Mario Escobar (GUA, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Luis Ventura (GUA)
Assistant Referee 2: Humberto Panjoj (GUA)
Fourth Official: Julio Luna (GUA)
VAR: Ricardo Montero (CRC)
AVAR: Benjamin Pineda (CRC)

Tigres UANL – Vancouver Whitecaps
Referee: Said Martinez (HON)
Assistant Referee 1: Christian Ramirez (HON)
Assistant Referee 2: Walter Lopez (HON)
Fourth Official: Selvin Brown (HON)
VAR: Benjamin Pineda (CRC)
AVAR: Ricardo Montero (CRC)

Club America – Real Esteli
Referee: Ismail Elfath (USA)
Assistant Referee 1: Kyle Atkins (USA)
Assistant Referee 2: Corey Parker (USA)
Fourth Official: Pierre-Luc Lauziere (CAN)
VAR: Drew Fischer (CAN)
AVAR: Ekaterina Koroleva (USA)

Deportivo Toluca – CS Herediano
Referee: Armando Villarreal (USA)
Assistant Referee 1: Cory Richardson (USA)
Assistant Referee 2: Logan Brown (USA)
Fourth Official: Oshane Nation (JAM)
VAR: Ekaterina Koroleva (USA)
AVAR: Drew Fischer (CAN)

CF Monterrey – Comunicaciones FC
Referee: Ivan Barton (SLV)
Assistant Referee 1: David Moran (SLV)
Assistant Referee 2: Henri Pupiro (NCA)
Fourth Official: Juan Calderon (CRC)
VAR: Ricardo Montero (CRC)
AVAR: Benjamin Pineda (CRC)

CAF Africa Cup of Nations Final 2023: Beida (MTN)

The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has announced that Dahane Beida from Mauritania will be the referee for the final of the 2023 CAF Africa Cup of Nations, set to be played in Abidjan on Sunday. The highly anticipated final will see hosts Cote d'Ivoire face off against Nigeria at the Alassane Ouattara Stadium in Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire, on 11 February 2024. Dahane Beida, aged 32, will be the referee for this crucial match, marking his third appearance at this year's CAF AFCON. Previously, he officiated the match between Egypt and Mozambique, which ended in a 2-2 draw during the group stage, as well as the Round of 16 clash where Angola secured a 3-0 victory over Namibia. Beida's extensive refereeing experience includes officiating matches in various prestigious competitions such as the U-17 World Cup in New Zealand last year, as well as the second leg of the final of the CAF Confederation Cup 2022/23 between USM Alger and Young Africans in Algiers. He has also officiated in the CAF Champions League, CAF Confederation Cup, and the African Football League. Additionally, he played a significant role in last year's African Nations Championship held in Algeria. (Source: CAF)

11 February 2024

Nigeria – Cote d’Ivoire

Referee: Dahane Beida (MTN)

Assistant Referee 1: Jerson Dos Santos (ANG)

Assistant Referee 2: Diana Chicotesha (ZAM)

Fourth Official: Bouchra Karboubi (MAR)

Reserve AR: Seydou Tiama (BFA)

VAR: Mahmoud Ashour (EGY)

AVAR 1: Maria Rivet (MRI)

AVAR 2: Mohammed Ibrahim (SDN)

Referee Assessor: Yahya Hadqa (MAR)

AFCON 2023: Jiyed refused to referee the Match for Third Place in protest

The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has been forced to appoint a new referee, Bamlak Tessema, for the 2023 AFCON match for third place between South Africa and DR Congo after Moroccan official Redouane Jiyed refused to take charge in protest. According to reports, Jiyed pulled out as he wanted to officiate the Sunday’s final between hosts Ivory Coast and Nigeria, but CAF refused to appoint him for that game. News spread on social media platforms confirming that the Moroccan referee refused to officiate the match because he was hoping to lead the final, and after learning that he was assigned to manage the third-place match, he refused to referee that match, which may expose him to punishment by the Confederation of African Football. Moroccan reports added that Redouane Jiyed (44 years old), who is close to retirement, felt that the CAF Referees Committee was not treating him fairly, as it had excluded him from the selected referees at the Qatar World Cup, kept him in the video operations room, and deprived him of refereeing matches in the African Champions League.

Former World Cup referee Jamal Al-Sharif, the refereeing expert of Al-Araby, considered that the behavior of Redouane Jiyed was strange, especially since he was initially selected to be among the video assistant referees, before he was called upon to referee matches. Al-Sharif said about the Moroccan referee: “He is a distinguished referee at the African level, but at the World Cup in Qatar he was chosen only as VAR. Also, during this edition of the African finals, he was initially chosen among the VARs, but during the tournament he was resorted to referee some matches. CAF may have been looking to give him a chance in the tournament, considering that it is his last major competition, or to benefit from his extensive experience in managing difficult matches.” Al-Sharif added: “After he was assigned to officiate the third-place match, he did not have the right to refuse; a referee cannot decline any match, even in the local league, because that could expose him to punishment. This is an assignment by the referees’ committee, and the federation can change the referee, which is something that also happened to me personally. I was informed on one occasion that I was replaced and my colleague who was an assistant referee became the main referee. We exchanged roles, which made me a little angry, but, in the end, it was my duty and my role to contribute to the success of the matches; the referee must be committed. He has no moral or legal right to refuse; he must be honored by the appointment and must be subject to the decisions of CAF. If he is assigned, he must accept the decision, which is an honor for him and for any referee. I am surprised by this decision of the Moroccan referee. He may be punished because of this unacceptable behavior, unless he has objective reasons justifying this rejection.” (Source: Al Araby)

CONMEBOL Copa America Futsal Final 2024: Espindola (CHI) & Villalba (PAR)

10 February 2024

Final
Argentina – Brazil
Referee 1: Christian Espindola (CHI, photo)
Referee 2: Bill Villalba (PAR)
Third Referee: Andres Martinez (URU)
Reserve AR: Rolly Rojas (PER)
Timekeeper: Oriana Zambrano (VEN)
Referee Assessor: Nestor Valiente (PAR)

Match for Third Place
Venezuela – Paraguay
Referee 1: Lautaro Romero (ARG)
Referee 2: Valeria Palma (CHI)
Third Referee: Daniel Manrique (COL)
Reserve AR: Anelize Schultz (BRA)
Timekeeper: Rodrigo Concha (CHI)
Referee Assessor: Renata Leite (BRA)

CAF Africa Cup of Nations 2023 – Match for Third Place

10 February 2024

Congo DR – South Africa
Referee: Bamlak Tessema (ETH, photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Lahsen Azgaou (MAR)
Assistant Referee 2: Mostafa Akarkad (MAR)
Fourth Official: Omar Artan (SOM)
Reserve AR: Eric Ayimavo (BEN)
VAR: Lahlou Benbraham (ALG)
AVAR 1: Issa Sy (SEN)
AVAR 2: Stephen Onyango (KEN)
Referee Assessor: Ali Ahmed (SOM)

Seitz leaves FIFA to return to USSF

U.S. Soccer has announced that long-time American referee Kari Seitz has been named the Federation’s first Vice President of Refereeing. An accomplished referee with nearly 40 years of experience, Seitz has represented the United States at the highest levels on-and-off the field, and joins U.S. Soccer from FIFA where she most recently served as the Head of Women’s Refereeing for the sport’s international governing body.

Falling under the Federation’s strategic pillar to foster the best playing environments, Seitz’s hire signals U.S. Soccer’s continued emphasis on the importance of referees to the health of the game’s ecosystem in the United States. In her new role, she will lead the Federation’s Referee Department in the accelerated initiative to grow the number of high-quality referees across all levels of the game. In doing so, she will oversee U.S. Soccer’s increased investment in several new programs to grow the referee pipeline, the partnerships with the existing referee community and member base to reduce barriers to participation, and the overall improvement of the referee experience, including expanding access to digital resources, addressing referee abuse, and promoting the value of referees to the game. “Returning to the USA to lead the Federation’s Refereeing Department is a once in a lifetime opportunity. I want to thank U.S. Soccer for recognizing the importance of investing in refereeing, an often overlooked and underappreciated, yet integral part of the game,” said Seitz. “It is an incredible responsibility to lead the growth, development, and support of refereeing at all levels of the game, and I know with the support of the U.S. Soccer referee family our collective passion, experience, and knowledge can take refereeing in the USA to new heights.”

Possessing 28 years of on-field experience as a U.S. Soccer referee, Seitz served as a FIFA referee from 1999-2013, and set a benchmark for American referees on the world stage by officiating in a U.S.-record eight FIFA tournaments: the 1999, 2003, 2007 and 2011 Women’s World Cups, 2004, 2008 and 2012 Olympic Games and 2002 U-19 Women’s World Championship. Notably, Seitz oversaw the Third-Place Match between Sweden and France at the 2011 Women’s World Cup, which stood for 12 years as the highest-level World Cup game officiated by an American until Tori Penso refereed the 2023 Women’s World Cup Final last summer. Domestically, Seitz officiated in all of the USA’s first division professional leagues from 1998-2013, working matches in Major League Soccer, the Women’s United Soccer Association, Women’s Professional Soccer and National Women’s Soccer League. She also officiated three league championship matches – the 2009 and 2011 WPS Finals, and 2013 NWSL Final. After retirement from the field, Seitz continued to give back to the referee community by becoming a referee instructor, serving in that role in a variety of domestic events as well as international competitions including three FIFA competitions and one Concacaf Women’s World Cup qualifying event. In 2016, she joined FIFA where she served as the Head of Women’s Refereeing for the world governing body. To date, she is the only American to work in FIFA’s refereeing department. Along with overseeing the refereeing efforts for 15 world championship events in her time with FIFA, Seitz was responsible for leading the global development of women’s refereeing, including the four-year project to select, train, prepare the referees for the Women's World Cup, a process which ultimately transformed the opportunities for women referees globally. Additionally, she collaborated with leaders at FIFA’s six regional confederations and 211 member associations to support in the development of refereeing and led a team of Referee Technology experts to drive the implementation of referee technology tools at FIFA competitions and seminars. A 2005 recipient of U.S. Soccer’s Presidents Award, Seitz is a member of the Cal-North Soccer Hall of Fame. She graduated from Michigan State University in 1992 with a BA in Advertising and held various professional roles in marketing and media prior to moving to FIFA in 2016.

Source: USSF

AFC Asian Cup Final 2023: Ma (CHN)

The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has confirmed that Ma Ning from China will take charge of the AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2023 Final on Saturday, which will be staged at the iconic Lusail Stadium. Ma will become the first match official from China PR to oversee an AFC Asian Cup Final when he blows the whistle at 6pm to kick off the showdown between Jordan and Qatar in the 18th edition of Asia’s crown jewel. This will be Ma’s fourth assignment at Qatar 2023, having refereed the Group E fixture between Korea Republic and Bahrain, the Round of 16 match between Qatar and Palestine, and the Quarter-final between the Iran and Japan. It will be his fifth AFC Asian Cup match, after his debut at the 2019 edition. Having started his refereeing journey in college, Ma became a national referee a few years after graduating in 2003 and began to officiate in the Chinese Super League in 2010 before becoming a FIFA referee in 2011. He has refereed 37 matches at the AFC Champions League, including the second leg of the 2022 Final between Urawa Red Diamonds and Al Hilal SFC, having also officiated at the AFC Cup, AFC U-23 Asian Cup and FIFA U-17 World Cup Poland 2019. The Liaoning native featured at the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 as a fourth official in six matches – marking the first appearance of China officials at a FIFA World Cup in 20 years. (Source: AFC)

10 February 2024
Jordan – Qatar
Referee: Ma Ning (CHN)
Assistant Referee 1: Zhou Fei (CHN)
Assistant Referee 2: Zhang Cheng (CHN)
Fourth Official: Ilgiz Tantashev (UZB)
Reserve AR: Andrei Tsapenko (UZB)
VAR: Fu Ming (CHN)
AVAR: Jumpei Iida (JPN)
Referee Assessor: Saad Al-Fadhli (KUW)

IFAB to trial sin-bins and blue cards

Football's lawmakers IFAB are to trial sin-binning players and issuing blue cards. Sin-bins have been used at grassroots level for dissent, but their use could be extended to cynical fouls as part of a trial. A player would spend 10 minutes in the technical area after being given a blue card by a referee. It is not yet clear when the trial will start and which competitions it will involve.

IFAB (International Football Association Board) is scheduled to hold its annual meeting at Loch Lomond in Scotland on 2 March and sin-bin trials are listed as a topic for discussion in the agenda. Sin-bins were piloted in 2018-19, with the Football Association reporting a 38% total reduction in dissent across 31 leagues. They were introduced across all levels of grassroots football from the 2019-20 season in an attempt to improve levels of respect and fair play. The rule change was then implemented up to step five of the National League system and tier three and below in women's football. "I think [there is] frustration for fans watching games when they see a promising counter-attack that's ruined by that [a tactical foul]," FA chief executive Mark Bullingham previously said. "The question of whether a yellow card is sufficient for that has led to us looking at whether that should be involved in the protocol as well. The starting point was looking at player behaviour and dissent - we're then looking at whether we should extend it into other areas, such as tactical fouls, as well." (Source: BBC)

FIFA wishes to clarify that reports of the so-called 'blue card' at elite levels of football are incorrect and premature. Any such trials, if implemented, should be limited to testing in a responsible manner at lower levels, a position that FIFA intends to reiterate when this agenda item is discussed at the IFAB AGM on 1 March 2024. (Source: FIFA)