Thursday, 16 October 2025

FIFA Under-20 World Cup Chile 2025 - Referee Appointments for KO Stage

The following officials have been appointed for KO Stage at 2025 FIFA Under-20 World Cup.




Round of 16

7 October 2025, 21:30 CET
UKRAINE - SPAIN
Referee: Jalal Jayed MAR
Assistant Referee 1: Lahsen Azgaou MAR
Assistant Referee 2: Mostafa Akarkad MAR
Fourth Official: Nazmi Nasaruddin MAS
Reserve Assistant Referee: Zairul Khalil Tan MAS

8 October 2025, 01:00 CET
CHILE - MEXICO 
Referee: João Pinheiro POR
Assistant Referee 1: Bruno Jesus POR
Assistant Referee 2: Luciano Maia POR 
Fourth Official: Omar Abdulkadir Artan SOM
Reserve Assistant Referee: Gilbert Cheruiyot KEN

8 October 2025, 21:30 CET
ARGENTINA - NIGERIA 
Referee: Maurizio Mariani ITA
Assistant Referee 1: Daniele Bindoni ITA
Assistant Referee 2: Alberto Tegoni ITA 
Fourth Official: Jalal Jayed MAR
Reserve Assistant Referee: Lahsen Azgaou MAR

8 October 2025, 21:30 CET
COLOMBIA - SOUTH AFRICA 
Referee: Khalid Al Turais KSA
Assistant Referee 1: Mohammed Al Abakry KSA
Assistant Referee 2: Abdulrahim Al Shammari KSA
Fourth Official: Irfan Peljto BIH
Reserve Assistant Referee: Senad Ibrišimbegović BIH

9 October 2025, 01:00 CET
JAPAN - FRANCE
Referee: Katia Itzel García MEX
Assistant Referee 1: Sandra Ramírez MEX
Assistant Referee 2: Karen Díaz MEX
Fourth Official: Kevin Ortega PER
Reserve Assistant Referee: Michael Orue PER

9 October 2025, 01:00 CET
PARAGUAY - NORWAY 
Referee: Keylor Herrera CRC 
Assistant Referee 1: William Chow CRC
Assistant Referee 2: Víctor Ramírez CRC
Fourth Official: Joseph Dickerson USA
Reserve Assistant Referee: Logan Brown USA 

9 October 2025, 21:30 CET
USA - ITALY 
Referee: Gustavo Tejera URU 
Assistant Referee 1: Carlos Barreiro URU
Assistant Referee 2: Agustin Berisso URU
Fourth Official: Omar Abdulkadir Artan SOM
Reserve Assistant Referee: Abelmiro Montenegro STP

10 October 2025, 01:00 CET
MOROCCO - SOUTH KOREA 
Referee: Dario Herrera ARG
Assistant Referee 1: Cristian Navarro ARG
Assistant Referee 2: José Savorani ARG 
Fourth Official:  João Pinheiro POR
Reserve Assistant Referee: Bruno Jesus POR 

Quarterfinals

11 October 2025, 22:00 CET
SPAIN - COLOMBIA
Referee: Joseph Dickerson USA
Assistant Referee 1: Logan Brown USA 
Assistant Referee 2: William Chow CRC
Fourth Official: Keylor Herrera CRC 
Reserve Assistant Referee: Víctor Ramírez CRC

12 October 2025, 01:00 CET
MEXICO - ARGENTINA 
Referee: Jalal Jayed MAR
Assistant Referee 1: Lahsen Azgaou MAR
Assistant Referee 2: Mostafa Akarkad MAR
Fourth Official:  João Pinheiro POR
Reserve Assistant Referee: Luciano Maia POR 

12 October 2025, 22:00 CET
USA - MOROCCO 
Referee: Kevin Ortega PER
Assistant Referee 1: Michael Orue PER
Assistant Referee 2: Jesús Sánchez PER
Fourth Official: Dario Herrera ARG
Reserve Assistant Referee: Cristian Navarro ARG 

13 October 2025, 01:00 CET
NORWAY - FRANCE 
Referee: Irfan Peljto BIH
Assistant Referee 1: Senad Ibrišimbegović BIH
Assistant Referee 2: Davor Beljo BIH 
Fourth Official: Nazmi Nasaruddin MAS
Reserve Assistant Referee: Zairul Khalil Tan MAS

Semifinals

15 October 2025, 22:00 CET
MOROCCO - FRANCE
Referee: Gustavo Tejera URU 
Assistant Referee 1: Carlos Barreiro URU
Assistant Referee 2: Agustin Berisso URU
Fourth Official: Dario Herrera ARG
Reserve Assistant Referee: Cristian Navarro ARG 

16 October 2025, 01:00 CET
ARGENTINA  - COLOMBIA 
Referee: João Pinheiro POR
Assistant Referee 1: Bruno Jesus POR
Assistant Referee 2: Luciano Maia POR 
Fourth Official: Joseph Dickerson USA
Reserve Assistant Referee: Logan Brown USA 
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41 comments:

  1. Philipp S6 October 2025 at 23:39

    Some referees (K.Herrera, Tejera, D.Herrera) already with their fourth game makes you wonder about the status of those with only two games.
    Ortega: He is only a replacement, so understandable he is considered less for games. However he could remain a valuable option with his experience.
    Aragon: Should be out due to performance
    Dickerson: Normally a clear candidate for a further game. Maybe a bad sign for him that both CONCACAF colleagues got a R16? And one AR is injured. However still more expected than not to see him again, I think.
    Gamouh: After not appearing even as 4th on MD3 and in R16 (so far), he might be another one on the injury list.
    Artan: Hard to say, whether he simply is behind Jayed (and therefore done) or whether he will get a direct QF - both seems possible.

    On another note: In spite of the low number of remaining referees, FIFA managed to maintain confed neutrality (on the referee position), to only repeat one referee/team pairing (Tejera with USA) and to give everyone but Jayed at least 3 rest days after their last GS game.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. usaref8 October 2025 at 15:20

      I would argue you are going to see Dickerson on 11-October.

      Remember there is a short calendar and a smaller pool. Also the United States could advance on the bottom half of the bracket. You knew you would likely need a non-UEFA referee available for one of the two 11-October QFs (now that Spain and Mexico have advanced, it seems like he will get the Spain match). And I would suggest that Dickerson is above Garcia (for sure) and Herrera (likely) in the pecking order. Also, waiting for the QF gives Blanchard a longer chance to recover.

      Delete
  2. Peter7 October 2025 at 09:26

    The management of Jalal Jayed and Lahsen Azgaou seems particularly strange to me: On October 7, they handle UKR - ESP, and exactly 24 hours later they are in another stadium in another city for ARG - NGA as Fourth Official and Reserve Assistant Referee. If their first game goes into extra time and a penalty shootout, we would be talking about a maximum of 20 hours (not including post-match meetings) in which they would have to sleep and travel from Valparaíso to Santiago, in order to officiate as Africans in a match with African participation. I do not see the necessity to rush this team around in such a way.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Chefren7 October 2025 at 09:55

      Moreover, their assignment in Argentina - Nigeria breaks the confederations rule at least for VARs. Don't know if this happened before but maybe they are a replacement for that game?

      Delete
  3. diego61210 October 2025 at 05:34

    I’d say for QF:
    MEXARG- Peljto
    ESPCOL- Dickerson
    MARUSA- Ortega
    NORFRA- Mariani or Pinheiro

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Philipp S10 October 2025 at 10:13

      My predictions are:
      MEXARG: Peljto (Nasaruddin)
      ESPCOL: Artan (Dickerson)
      MARUSA: Pinheiro (Al-Turais)
      NORFRA: Mariani (Jayed)

      3 UEFA referees might be a bit much, but there is a decent chance, that there are no more games, where there would be confed neutrality for them.

      Delete
    2. Abdiaziz ahmed yousuf11 October 2025 at 19:16

      Can we expect pinheiro or mariani in the final if not one of them appointed semifinal?

      Delete
  4. diego61210 October 2025 at 17:40

    WOW (!) Jayed gets MEXARG, big trust with the Morrocan.
    I’d say in case of a good performance his WC chances increase considerably…

    Peljto with NORFRA, Dickerson in ESPCOL and Ortega gets MARUSA.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Chefren10 October 2025 at 17:57

      Not common to get a Round of 16 and then a Quarterfinal, it's clear to me in this case that Collina wanted to check how much the Moroccan could get before making the choice. So, should have been a good performance for him in Ukraine - Spain. Another referee, and not an official from CAF but from either UEFA or CONMEBOL, would have got directly the quarterfinal...

      Delete
    2. usaref10 October 2025 at 20:54

      While it's impressive for Jayed individually, I think we all need to temper our conclusions about any assignments from this tournament. The pool is shallow. It got smaller with injuries. There is only FVS. The selected individuals didn't *appear* to be major WC candidates to begin with.

      We shall see what happens. But as examples, Ortega is flat-out bad and Dickerson will remain the understudy to Elfath this year. Maybe (probably?) things are different with CAF, as it's important to find enough referees that FIFA has some trust in. But I'm intepreting everything from this tournament at least somewhat cautiously.

      Delete
  5. Abdiaziz ahmed yousuf10 October 2025 at 18:45

    Can we expect pinheiro or Mariani in the final if not one of them appointed in semifinal?

    ReplyDelete
  6. RAPenjoyer11 October 2025 at 20:43

    Any clips from the reviews from the round of 16?

    ReplyDelete
  7. Chefren12 October 2025 at 11:47

    Clips from Mexico - Argentina, not an easy game for Moroccan referee.

    22' Request Mexico possible penalty
    https://streambug.org/cv/8749ff

    66' Request Argentina possible penalty
    https://streambug.org/cv/0b4a6e

    89' Mass confrontation - Request Argentina possible RC
    https://streambug.org/cv/4f6387

    90'+6 Request Argentina possible RC
    https://streambug.org/cv/838da0

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Philipp S12 October 2025 at 13:16

      Can't teams only make two requests in a game?
      And the 89' must be counted as rejected request, because it was only a YC and not a RC, right?
      Am I missing something?

      Delete
    2. Ref12 October 2025 at 17:43

      In the 89th minute (ARG) submitted their first VAR review request for a potential red card. After review, the request for a red card was rejected. However, the referee identified the incident as more of unsporting behaviour rather than violent conduct. Therefore, instead of a red card, the player was cautioned. Since it was that player second yellow card of the game, he was sent off, which still benefited Argentina.
      Later, in the 96th minute, Argentina used their second and final VAR review request.

      Delete
    3. Chefren12 October 2025 at 17:48

      Sorry Philipp, it was my mistake in writing, 66' was a call by Mexico.

      Delete
    4. usaref13 October 2025 at 01:20

      You all understand that the 89' request by Argentina was precisely because the player was on a caution, correct? I really hope no one is naive enough not to see that.

      This is a backdoor method to get a review on a 2CT. With VAR, that never gets reviewed for VC. But there are no restrictions on a coach with FVS; he doesn't need to have a serious accusation of VC to request the review. The Argentinian coach KNEW it was a second yellow and KNEW Jayed would have to give it once at the monitor. So he knew that his "rejected" review would work.

      Delete
    5. Philipp S13 October 2025 at 07:44

      Yes, and one can discuss, whether this is a positive point or a negative one.
      The positive argument is, that a deserved and nearly mandatory YC (+sending-off) is not missed, but issued after the review.
      The negative argument is, that many referees would avoid this card and that it therefore changes the refereeing too much. Plus, that it feels like abuse of the review possibility for RCs.

      Delete
    6. usaref13 October 2025 at 16:47

      The negative argument is that it allows managers to manipulate officiating. And for them to further become central characters in a sport that is supposed to be about the players. This is the path to our sport becoming more like the NFL and it is very much not a good thing.

      Delete
    7. Philipp S13 October 2025 at 18:36

      Yes, I absolutely agree.
      I have never understood, why the "challenge" system should be better than the VAR system.
      It's OK, that they tested it, but the conclusion from this tournament should be mostly negative.

      Delete
  8. Ref12 October 2025 at 18:17

    MEXICO - ARGENTINA
    Referee: Jalal Jayed had both positive and negative moments throughout the match. His overall performance was acceptable, with no major errors, but several small issues affected his overall control and consistency.

    Positive side of him is that he had good awareness of the match environment, understanding that both teams were highly physical and tended to complain frequently. He showed confidence in his decisions.

    Negative side:
    Man Management: His control over player emotions was limited. This may have been partly due to language barriers, but that cannot serve as a full excuse. Better communication and emotional engagement could have reduced tension and improved player behavior.

    Reaction to Pressure: Several yellow cards appeared reactionary rather than preventive. For example, 62" min the caution to Argentina’s #.7 seemed to result more from Mexican players’ protests than from the actual nature of the foul. Similarly, the yellow card to Argentina’s No. 20 during substitution at 80" showed poor reading of the moment; the player was sprinting off the field, and the booking appeared unnecessary. In certain situations, Jalal opted for disciplinary action when strong verbal management would have been more effective. This shows an area for development in his match control approach.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Philipp S12 October 2025 at 18:51

      And he missed two sending-offs (89' + 90'6), right?
      Corrected after review, but still two rather obvious actions, which could/should have been solved correctly in the live situation.

      Thanks for the report though.

      Delete
  9. Philipp S13 October 2025 at 07:45

    SF predictions:
    MAR-FRA: K.Herrera (Dickerson)
    ARG-COL: Tejera (Artan)

    ReplyDelete
  10. Abdiaziz ahmed yousuf13 October 2025 at 11:54

    Arg vs colo : pinheiro
    Mar vs france: mariani

    ReplyDelete
  11. Chefren13 October 2025 at 18:52

    Peljto.
    At first he must be praised for detecing very quickly this injury with player bleeding:
    https://streambug.org/cv/13f2a8

    Then, called to OFR for a possible penalty, fully agree with final decision, it was just an attempt by Norway, given the score against them at that moment:
    https://streambug.org/cv/e418c0

    ReplyDelete
  12. Abdiaziz ahmed yousuf14 October 2025 at 10:18

    I think joao pinheiro prove that he is one of best when fifa chose you to officiate important games that is certificate for your qualification

    ReplyDelete
  13. Refff14 October 2025 at 11:47

    Peljto for the final?

    ReplyDelete
  14. Scandinavian Referee14 October 2025 at 22:32

    Have they finally cleared yellow cards before the semifinals?

    ReplyDelete
  15. diego61216 October 2025 at 06:33

    I’m pretty sure that Mariani will officiate the final.

    Maybe K. Herrera or Artan for the third place ganme.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Philipp S16 October 2025 at 08:37

    Final predictions
    COL-FRA: K.Herrera (Jayed)
    ARG-MAR: Garcia (Peljto)

    ReplyDelete
  17. Abdiaziz ahmed yousuf16 October 2025 at 10:51

    I said before appointment in semifinal pinheiro and if not one of them is appointed other will be in the final so all expectation says Mariani will be in the final

    ReplyDelete
  18. Anonymous16 October 2025 at 11:18

    And now the pivotal question: Was Mariani truly the finest referee in Chile, or does a potential appointment to officiate the final match constitute yet another case of political maneuvering?

    Would anyone who watched the games care to provide insight on this matter?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. kawhi16 October 2025 at 11:33

      don’t know if he actually was the best, anyway his performance in Brazil Mexico, including his explanations after the OFRs, were absolutely on point, so not undeserved for sure

      Delete
  19. Chefren16 October 2025 at 11:29

    MOROCCO - FRANCE
    Referee: Gustavo Tejera URU

    28' OFR requested for a possible penalty for holding, penalty given, but officials didn't look fully convinced before taking final decision at monitor
    https://streambug.org/cv/00ae68

    71' OFR, possible penalty for handball, nothing
    https://streambug.org/cv/8af6a3

    98' Cynical foul, YC and management
    https://streambug.org/cv/5ea682

    101' and 107' two YCs and RC to French player for similar fouls
    https://streambug.org/cv/9df52f
    https://streambug.org/cv/84e1d7

    118' OFR requested for possible handball, desperate last attempt by France, but nothing, maybe even handball by attacker
    https://streambug.org/cv/96ef43

    ReplyDelete
  20. Anonymous16 October 2025 at 11:29

    Off-topic:

    The head of referees in [Country X] recently discussed high-profile incidents in a media interview, focusing solely on errors by young and non-FIFA referees, while ignoring controversies involving the “FIFA”-officials.

    Is this fair to young and non-FIFA referees? Or does such an approach aim to protect FIFA referees for their upcoming European games?

    Or is it poor leadership and could it be a case of oversized egos among the top tier, who rarely admit mistakes? After all, true accountability shouldn’t be selective…

    Your thoughts?

    ReplyDelete
  21. Chefren16 October 2025 at 12:08

    ARGENTINA - COLOMBIA
    Referee: João Pinheiro POR

    It was a very hot CONMEBOL duel, but the Portuguese referee didn't change his style and he liked once again to stay at the very edge in terms of disciplinary control, with th risk of losing the game.
    Both reviews at monitor happened aftter pitch decisions in which the Portuguese referee had already decided for two yellow cards.
    In my opinion his original decisions can be supported, and he did rather well in confirming them after the review, but still, one could question about a very different approach, instead of this very minimal one that can lead to conflicts during the game between players.
    In addition, a correct second YC for a clear situation.

    62' Management, OFR, possible RC for violent conduct, referee didn't change
    https://streambug.org/cv/aa3de3

    79' Second YC, in my opinion too short whistle for what was turning to be a very crucial call, maybe an advice by fourth official?
    https://streambug.org/cv/dc311a

    81' YC for reckless and another YC for pushing opponent. Then called to OFR for possible SFP and confirmed YCs, OK for me, as said before, no evident mistakes,. but still a feeling...
    https://streambug.org/cv/b385a1

    To follow another very clear reckless challenge was correctly punished and another YC for time wasting to Argentina.
    For me, the Portuguese has good skills, but definitely he is a referee that stays too much in the background and in a very dangerous manner, if you ask me. Hard to end games in a very clean way by having this style. Hope the future will prove I'm wrong.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. M16 October 2025 at 18:02

      Yes,but then again we have to have in mind that any CONMEBOL match with high stakes results very much like this match.

      Very temperamental players,hard challenges and it's very hard to keep all 22 players on the field.

      Especially when Argentina is playing,whether their seniors or their juniors,they tend to make any games difficult for refs,just look at their last game vs Mexico on this WC.

      I was very surprised that he didn't show any cards in 1st half to calm players,there were moments when it looked like match might be sliping from his control,but the score 0-0 was keeping things under control.

      Once Argentina scored,then everything was happening.

      From Argentina's dark arts to Colombia's frustrations.

      Anyway, ref managed to stay in shadow,all of his bookings were correct and that's all that matters.

      Delete
  22. diego61216 October 2025 at 17:32

    Rosetti observing Barcelona-Olympiakos on Tuesday.

    Mikulski replaced.

    ReplyDelete

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