-
Björn Kuipers: from whining player to top class referee
Björn Kuipers was a football player every referee would hate. The 16-year-old captain of his team couldn’t stop whining at the man in black about wrong decisions. Not once, but e-ve-ry match. As a player he was the complete opposite of the referee who got appointed for the 2014 Champions League final due to his cool and calm style of refereeing. After Leo Horn (1957 and 1962), Charles Corver (1978) and Dick Jol (2001) the 41-year-old Kuipers is only the fourth Dutch referee who’ll referee the final of the biggest club competition in Europe. In 2021 he reached his pinnacle, as first ever Dutch referee in a final of a…
-
Hakan Anaz shares his Asian Cup 2019 experiences
Hakan Anaz is a referee instructor and assessor at the Asian Cup 2019. The 2014 World Cup assistant referee from Australia is now helping other referees to reach their top level. In this interview he shares his experiences during the 2019 tournament and looks at the future of refereeing in Asia. “I have no doubt that we have many world class referees in Asia who can easily referee a World Cup final in Qatar.” Asian Cup 2019 experiences How do you look back to the Asian Cup 2019? “First of all I would like to thank AFC for having the faith in inviting me to their flagship tournament, the…
-
FIFA sued over World Cup refereeing
A Colombian lawyer sued Fifa over World Cup refereeing decisions in the quarter final match between his national team and Brazil. According to BBC he wants the world football governing body to pay him 1bn euros because of “moral damages”. Colombian lawyer Aurelio Jiminez was quoted by the BBC about his case: “I felt very bad, I was heartbroken, my cardiac rhythm was altered and my relatives took me to the emergency room at the hospital. I was surrounded by my grandchildren who were crying a lot.” The Guardian tried to speak to referee of that match Carlos Velasco Carballo. He refused. His only comment: “Unfortunately I cannot talk about…
-
Windsor Barra Referee Hotel in Rio
The referees will stay at the Windsor Barra Hotel in Rio de Janeiro. The hotel is located beach-front with some very nice views over the water. Most important details of the hotel at a quick glance: It has 5 stars It is located in front of the exuberant beach of Barra da Tijuca, in Rio de Janeiro. It has a terrace with two swimming pools From the Windsor Barra Referee Hotel it is just an 30 minute drive to the Centro de Futebol Zico training ground where the referees will have their training sessions during the tournament. You can even make a virtual 360 degrees tour throught the Windsor Barra…
-
Joel Aguilar always goes for the final
When a referee didn’t turn up Joel Aguilar from El Salvador had to pick up the whistle. “When I was asked to be the referee I said no at first because I liked playing and in fact had poor relations with referees because I got sent off every so often,” Aguilar said to Reuters. “All of us who love football wish the national team to go to the World Cup. Given the choice between the team and a referee, everyone would pick the team, but I’m proud to be able to take part representing El Salvador,” Aguilar told Reuters. He even told SNTV later that going to the World Cup…
-
Yuichi Nishimura can bring Asian refereeing to new heights
Yuichi Nishimura is a big contestant of becoming the first Asian World Cup final referee. The 42-year-old referee from Japan has already shown his skills during the 2010 World Cup with a quarter final and the appointment as 4th official in the final officiated by Howard Webb. A report of newspaper UzDaily wrote shortly after the tournament: “I cannot predict the future but I won’t be surprised if there was an Asian, whether from Japan, Malaysia or even Bhutan, who would one day become THE referee for the World Cup final. The sky is the limit for Asian judges on field. And the dedication is there for them to reach…
-
Video: referees prepare for the 2014 World Cup
Referees of three confederations (UEFA, AFC and OFC) met in Zürich for a seminar prior to the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil. “Seminars like this are important to reset our focus”, says Felix Brych. “We are in the middle of the season at home and in the Champions League. You can’t lose the focus on the World Cup, that’s why this seminar is important.” For the German top class referee the exchange of thoughts with peers from other countries and continents is very important. The selected World Cup referees will also watch a lot of video’s and these meetings will help them to get a standard interpretations of the…
