The committee has appointed the following referees to handle Saturday 15 June's games at EURO 2024.
Game 2, Group A
Cologne, 15 June 2024 15:00 CET
Cologne, 15 June 2024 15:00 CET
HUNGARY - SWITZERLAND
Referee: Slavko Vinčić SVNAssistant Referee 1: Tomaž Klančnik SVN
Assistant Referee 2: Andraž Kovačič SVN
Fourth Official: Rade Obrenovič SVN
Reserve Assistant Referee: Jure Praprotnik SVN
Video Assistant Referee: Nejc Kajtazovič SVN
Assistant Video Assistant Referee 1: Bartosz Frankowski POL
Assistant Video Assistant Referee 2: Tomasz Kwiatkowski POL
UEFA Referee Observer: Costas Kapitanis CYP
UEFA Delegate: Paolo Rondelli SMR
Game 3, Group B
Berlin, 15 June 2024 18:00 CET
Berlin, 15 June 2024 18:00 CET
SPAIN - CROATIA
Referee: Michael Oliver ENGAssistant Referee 1: Stuart Burt ENG
Assistant Referee 2: Daniel Cook ENG
Fourth Official: Anthony Taylor ENG
Reserve Assistant Referee: Gary Beswick ENG
Video Assistant Referee:Stuart Attwell ENG
Assistant Video Assistant Referee 1: David Coote ENG
Assistant Video Assistant Referee 2: Pol van Boekel NED
UEFA Referee Observer: Lutz Michael Fröhlich GER
UEFA Delegate: Filip Popovski MKD
Game 4, Group B
Dortmund, 15 June 2024 21:00 CET
Dortmund, 15 June 2024 21:00 CET
ITALY - ALBANIA
Referee: Felix Zwayer GERAssistant Referee 1: Stefan Lupp GER
Assistant Referee 2: Marco Achmüller GER
Fourth Official: Daniel Siebert GER
Reserve Assistant Referee: Jan Seidel GER
Video Assistant Referee: Bastian Dankert GER
Assistant Video Assistant Referee 1: Christian Dingert GER
Assistant Video Assistant Referee 2: Rob Dieperink NED
UEFA Referee Observer: Howard Webb ENG
UEFA Delegate: Peter Lundström FIN
I like very much that fourth official is form same country of main referee, even in case of strong referees like as Taylor or Siebert. Good choice. Probably for Italy-Albania I would dare a less sonorous name but they are the starting matches, so...
ReplyDeleteI also just wanted to mention that in the first four matches it was probably more important for the Commission to rely on teams with Fourth Officials from the same country than the possibility of using the latter as main referees in other matches just one or two days later.
DeleteFelix is back to Dortmund after the der Klassiker which took him out of whistling Dortmund matches.
ReplyDeleteIt seems like Google Translate refused to translate "Der Klassiker". But at least it didn't offer "Theremouth" for "Dortmund". ;-)
DeleteUnsurprising set of appointments (all make sense).
ReplyDeleteI'd go for
Pol v Ned - Kovacs
Den v Slov - Soares Dias
Eng v Ser - Manzano
If the commission relies on teams including Fourth Officials from the same country on the first three matchdays, we could see referees from Italy (Orsato/Guida) and the Netherlands (Makkelie/Gözübüyük) as well as maybe Gil Mazano/Tello (same mother tongue) on Sunday.
DeleteI was looking at the VAR's who haven't worked a fixture yet too into these appointments.
DeleteFritz w Popa & Valeri with Kovacs as an example
A Spanish team out or mixed with a Portugese would also make sense.
We could well see the first set of referees coming from the same country officiating in the same group very soon too for example Orsato & Guida in MD1 Group F or MD2 Group A
All regular assignments, I would say, not really much to add.
ReplyDeleteMaybe one could have expected a different choice for Italy - Albania, with something more for Zwayer, but it's indeed a start and everything is possible. One should also consider that some referees don't have many options.
So far, fourth officials mostly from main referees' countries, that's also good for language in case of issues, but I think it wont last all tournament. These early games are clearly considered more under the spotlights by committee.
About the observers, Lutz Michael Fröhlich will be at his second EURO tournament, after 2020 edition (rather a suprise to see again him, while you have Fandel, a very experienced and trusted one as well). Costas Kapitanis coming from Under 17 in his home country, and then Webb.
I also expected Felix Zwayer as Germany's number 1 possibly even at ESPITA or alternatively SRBENG. However, one should not overlook that the first matches are very sensitive and also in focus because the games at the weekend are followed by a particularly large number of TV spectators. In this respect, it is probably quite an honour to get such an early appointment.
DeleteI beg you, keep posting appointments in such precise way. I will surprise you with what google sheets can do in the end of the euro :) idk know to write you a message personally, but i'd like you to have a look at this
DeleteSo it seems like I am one of the few who correctly guessed Zwayer in ITA-ALB? I think that this game is good for him to start the tournament. There are some names ahead for the big games and is good for him to get an appointment in day 2 of the tournament. Bigger games will come soon for him.
ReplyDeleteI am rather surprised of Vincic's appointment. I expected a different type of referee there, the game was suitable for many names. I like the predictions of Dias and Gil Manzano here, it would have been a good chance for them to prove themselves that are ready for top games. Vincic has the most recent UCL final in CV. It is true that the early games are treated carefully by the Com, and rightly so. However, I was still expecting a ref with no such big profile as Vincic here. Another thing to mention, the games at 15 CET naturally have less TV spectators than the ones in the evening. I am not sure if the Com will think about this aspect during the tournament but it is a thing I considered when I made predictions.
Good game for Oliver, I think many expected a top 5 referee here.
Overall, not big surprises, all regular appointments. We all had our own preferences and today we rather looked at details in appointments that often are ignored.
So who will take care of Ned - Pol?
ReplyDeleteI think it will be Kovacs or Nyberg. For Nyberg it will be a big game where he can use his calm management.
What are your prededictions?
The Swedish referee usually worked with Dutch VAR. Still not impossible, if you pair him with Germans this time. Originally I had Vincic there, and Kovacs in AUT-FRA, there are six difficult games in group D and Marciniak, Turpin and Makkelie are unavailable here.
DeleteAfter having watched the full press conference by Rosetti, I think we can sum up the EURO guidelines for refereeing as the following:
ReplyDelete1) Zero tolerance on SFP, it looks like even the borderline cases punished by RC, according to Rosetti statements, will be accepted as good decisions.
2) A tackle on the ball with then a significant late contact also on opponent will be assessed as yellow card as standard. Playing ball will be not enough to save the player. Then, of course, in other cases could be different.
3) Illegal use of arms, when deliberately must be clear RC, in case of dangerous action while challenging for the ball, YC.
4) Holding: expected prevention before all set pieces, then if persistent action by defender, penalty mandatory decision and also VAR stuff.
5) A player simulating a serious injury for making his opponent booked, will be booked. That's will be interesting to check, I think it's hard to detect and you have to read the attitude and the mind of the player involved.
6) Handball: no YC on ball crossed in penalty area, no YC on shot on goals, YC only if handball is blatantly deliberate. No penalty if the arm is supporting body (the most problematic case in recent years). No penalty if defender kicks directly ball on his arm.
7) Dissent: we already said about this topic. Let's just hope we will see referees applying the guidelines. They will inform captains about the decisions, if asked by them, they will also reveal what they said to VAR during OFRs. Asking yellow card by classic gesture to referee, will mean YC to the player asking for it.
8) Confrontations: minimum two YCs, one per side, but it can be more.
Die Botschaft hör ich wohl, allein mir fehlt der Glaube.
DeleteGood breakdown. No mention of time-wasting from Rosetti?
DeleteNot directly about time wasting, but he was asked about additional time and the management of effective play by a journalist, he answered that they are working on that and Champions League is the competition with the most effective played time. Referees are instructed to facilitate and promote the fluidity of the games. He didn't enter more in detail about that, but I think we can argue that time wasting will be firmly punished by referees.
DeleteThat's great, thanks!
DeleteI expect that the referee for the match between France and the Netherlands, Daniele Orsato, will be the referee for the match between Spain and Italy Marciniak.
ReplyDeleteWhat are your expectations for the referee of the match between Poland and the Netherlands?
ReplyDeleteSoares Dias. Officially confirmed.
DeleteRosetti also confirmed that the yellow cards for dissent shown in the clubs competitions final were the start of new guidelines. More in particular, the ones by Vincic in CL final were extremely praised, because they had the expected result, with a very calm second half.
ReplyDeleteHe was also asked about Karasev and the Russian situation, he answered that he is sorry for the Sergei and let's see what will happen in future. He couldn't add more.
The most interesting appointment to read tomorrow will be surely the one for Slovenia - Denmark. Curious how the national team of UEFA president will be treated by committee: on paper, against Denmark, that's a game in which you could see even the least experienced referees at this tournament, Guida and Kruzliak, but a totally different appointment is possible as well. Another aspect to consider is: how long the appointments of "Upper Elite" referees will last? With Sunday game, this could be over. Quite sure it will end at maximum on Monday. So, there are also these aspects, one can think that all three Sunday games will be still under important spotlights.
ReplyDeleteI would say, and these predictions would mean a break after early appointments:
POL - NED Meler
SVN - DEN Guida
SRB - ENG Orsato
Totally agree and think Sunday will signal the end of the 'Elite Elite' referee appointments. Believe you will be spot on with the Guida prediction for SVN-DEN but unsure whether Orsato will officiate the evening fixture with his compatriot having a game earlier in the day. Stranger things have happened! I believe that Makkelie will be given SRB-ENG though unsure his approach will be conducive to a good game there. Hopefully his ego doesn't take over.
Delete@ 5th official:
DeleteI doubt we will see Makkelie on Sunday. Two Dutch VARs are active in Saturday games. To predict Sunday games, you should have a look at VARs that are not used yet.
For example the Portuguese VAR; Soares Dias is revealed in the post below. Another name is Kovacs in Group D as we haven’t seen Cătălin Popa yet. Kovacs in France vs Austria? We can also think of a crew that speak with a Spanish tongue: Tello/Manzano. And finally, Schärer/San.
Marciniak and Makkelie will have to wait a bit longer I guess.
And I’m not so sure we see Orsato early. I do expect an Italian crew Sunday/Monday, but rather Guida.
Agree with JK - VAR appointments so far to a degree giving things away.
DeleteNo reason to suggest Soares Dias on Pol v Ned isn't correct and a sensible choice.
Manzano/Tello with the Spanish VAR's could work on Slo v Den whilst Kovacs working the Eng v Ser game also works meaning that all final officials would be appointed early and to important matches.
I would suggest we would see Schrarer & Meler appointed to games on the Monday with their VAR's
Schrarer on the Aus v Fra game would be a good test for him and leaving other officials free for that group later on.
We could also see Nyberg on Monday with Dutch VAR's.
I personally would expect to see Makkelie a bit later and perhaps on Spa v Ita.
Soares Dias to officiate Poland x Netherlands on Sunday. Via FPF (Portuguese Football Association).
ReplyDeletePoland – Netherlands: Soares Dias
ReplyDeleteSlovenia – Denmark: Tello
Serbia – England: Kovács
No reason to suggest Soares Dias on Pol v Ned isn't correct and a sensible choice.
ReplyDeleteManzano/Tello with the Spanish VAR's could work on Slo v Den whilst Kovacs working the Eng v Ser game also works meaning that all final officials would be appointed early and to important matches.
I would suggest we would see Schrarer & Meler appointed to games on the Monday with their VAR's
Schrarer on the Aus v Fra game would be a good test for him and leaving other officials free for that group later on.
We could also see Nyberg on Monday with Dutch VAR's.
I personally would expect to see Makkelie a bit later and perhaps on Spa v Ita.
Logical names for Monday.
DeleteMakkelie never does well in England games, hopefully he gets a different game
ReplyDeleteAs an English man I would have Makkelie as often as we could, as we would have with Kuipers
DeleteAlways enjoyed having Collina too. We had a v good record with him in charge
Would be very happy with Kovacs too
DeleteAgree I’d have taken Kovacs but also fine with Orsato. Makkelie has done 5 england games (from memory) and 4 of them were a disaster, really surprised you think that tbh
DeleteThe 5 games I’m referring to
Delete1. Spain 2018 NL - wrong disallowed Welbeck goal
2. Belgium 2020 NL - horrendous foul detection from first minute. Wrong free kick led to goal, missed 2YC for Belgium.
3. Germany Euro 2021. Excellent
4. Denmark Euro 2021. Missed penalty on Kane in normal time and wrong penalty with Sterling in extra time.
5. Germany UNL 2022. 2 VAR interventions, England penalty was clear as day and had to be spotted on field
I might have missed it in the blog, but is there a special focus for referees announced by the committee? Beside strict dealing with protests. And what's the level of intervention for VAR? Thank you for your help!
ReplyDeleteAs this hasn't really mentioned yet:
ReplyDeleteIt's quite remarkable IMO, that Oliver gets one of or maybe even the most sonorous game of MD1 - above e.g. Taylor - after no great appointments in the KO stage and only 3 CL games all season.
For Zwayer one has to remember that it is his debut at a big tournament, so it makes sense to not directly give him a top clash. However still a good appointment because the game will have a lot of attention due to the Saturday evening - and also because of the involved teams, who can be tricky to referee.
HUN-SUI can be seen as a direct duel for 2nd place on paper, which could justify a top appointment there.
The reputation and the progress of Oliver in UEFA career has been always something particular. One could say that,differently from other referees, and especially from his countryman Taylor, indeed, it was very hard to detect a clear path for him, in terms of expecting certain appointments to follow. After the famous Real Madrid - Juventus and for so many years so far, he got always regular appointments, but you can't say that he reached very top moments, or, on the contrary, he had an extremely poor form. He attended big tournaments, but in such occasions it was the same. It looks like he is in "stand by" for a very long time. Now I think we can explain this choice by commitee indeed in this way: big games for Oliver at the beginning of the tournament, while Taylor maybe kept for the ones to follow, would be reasonable, but at the same time, one should expect definitely something more for Oliver.
DeleteAbout Zwayer, indeed it's a very strange situation for him, due to the management of German Elite referee, one can say that at moment he is considered Germany nr. 1, given the reputation by committee, but this is only his first big tournament. Nevertheless, I wouldn't have found wrong to see him in a more sonorous game, on paper. On the other hand, Siebert has already two big tournaments, and maybe under this point of view, we can understand why he was the second choice for Germany, after Zwayer. Still, it looks as quite weird context because all people, including how he was presented as referee for ITA - ALB in Italy, sees him as the best German at moment... time for him to achieve something more, definitely!
I'm wholeheartedly pleased and beyond ecstatic to hear that UEFA is FINALLY taking a stand against dissent and the other boorish behavior that's poisoning football.
ReplyDeleteBecause of this, I'm actually looking forward to EURO 2024!
But, I've got a feeling that it's going to end up like Qatar 2022. Where there was a strong and strict start by the first few referee's. Only for it to fizzle out and return to pre tournament norm for what remained of the competition.
The players have been spoiled for far too long for them to have to change their behavior overnight. I foresee a lot of cards being shown in the first couple matches. Which will "freak out" the Referee Committee who will in turn capitulate to the pressure from the teams and the executive higher ups. At that point, I will once again check out and no longer follow the tournament.
As most of you know. The Copa America will also be contested this summer. And TBH, I'm not looking forward to it. Nor do I plan to watch it. Because I've seen enough from CONCACAF and CONMEBOL referee's in their respective club competitions.
I would love to be wrong in my assessment of these referees. But Enrique Cáceres and Nicola Rizzoli are dragging their respective confederations further away from the level of UEFA and more towards AFC and CAF levels. Where the levels of leniency is nauseating!