The Dutch FA and sponsor insurance company ARAG gave all Dutch referees the chance to visit the Supercup for free. All referees will get a yellow Nike referee shirt, so one part of the Amsterdam Arena will turn yellow tonight. Would be a nice view when supercup stadium turns yellow because of all the referees.
Photo from ARAG who’ll sponsor all Dutch referees with a yellow Nike referee shirt.
The Dutch Supercup will be refereed by Richard Liesveld. He will be assisted by assistants Dave Goossens and Hessel Steegstra. Fourth official is Dennis Higler en extra assistants are Reinold Wiedemeijer and Ed Janssen. It’s the first time during an official match in The Netherlands that extra assistants are appointed.
UPDATE with reactions after the match
Dutch director of amateur football: “The Dutch FA is constantly promoting sportsmanship and respect and referees have a very important role. We want to stress how important they are with this campaign. Giving them a proper outfit will help with creating respect.”
Marc van Erven, CEO of sponsor Arag: “Using a referee shirt like the professionals will give amateur referees more authority, which makes them operate better on the pitch.”
And I also got interviewed on KNVB TV (YouTube service by the Dutch FA): “It shows some appreciation toward the referees. That’s very good. It’s very important for referees to wear a professional outfit. That’s what all refs need to take care of. It gives a referee some personal appeal towards the players that he wears neat clothing, he’s taken care of his appearance. I think that’s something which helps in getting more respect.”
Me during the interview for KNVB tv. It’s in Dutch. You can see it by clicking the image.