Please find below the referees assignments for 2025 FIFA Arab Cup
Monday 1 December 2025
Group A
14:00 CET - Al-Rayyan (Ahmad bin Ali Stadium)
TUNISIA - SYRIA
Referee: Juan Gabriel Calderón Pérez CRC
Assistant Referee 1: Juan Carlos Mora Araya CRC
Assistant Referee 2: William Andrés Arrieta Barrantes CRC
Fourth Official: Mario Alberto Escobar Toca GUA
Reserve Assistant Referee: Luis Aroldo Ventura Chacón GUA
Video Assistant Referee: Benjamín Pineda Ávila CRC
Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Fedayi San SUI
Group A
16:45 CET - Al-Khawr (Al-Bayt Stadium)
QATAR - PALESTINE
Referee: Glenn Nyberg SWE
Assistant Referee 1: Mahbod Beigi SWE
Assistant Referee 2: Andreas Söderkvist SWE
Fourth Official: Campbell-Kirk Kawana-Waugh NZL
Reserve Assistant Referee: Isaac Travis NZL
Video Assistant Referee: Jarred Gavan Gillett AUS/ENG
Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Lahlou Benbraham ALG
Tuesday 2 December 2025
Group B
13:00 CET - Al-Rayyan (Khalifa International Stadium)
MOROCCO - COMOROS
Referee: Mǎ Níng CHN
Assistant Referee 1: Zhōu Fēi CHN
Assistant Referee 2: Zhāng Chéng CHN
Fourth Official: Abdulrahman Ibrahim Al-Jassim QAT
Reserve Assistant Referee: Talib Salam Al-Marri QAT
Video Assistant Referee: Jumpei Iida JPN
Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Khamis Muhammad Al-Marri QAT
Group C
15:30 CET - Lusail (Lusail Stadium)
EGYPT - KUWAIT
Referee: Espen Andreas Eskås NOR
Assistant Referee 1: Jan Erik Engan NOR
Assistant Referee 2: Isaak Elias Skjeseth Bashevkin NOR
Fourth Official: Ismail Elfath USA
Reserve Assistant Referee: Corey Michael Parker USA
Video Assistant Referee: Dennis Johan Higler NED
Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Antonio Joaquín García Noni URU
Group B
18:00 CET - Al-Rayyan (Education City Stadium)
SAUDI ARABIA - OMAN
Referee: Adham Muhammad Tuma Makhadma JOR
Assistant Referee 1: Muhammad Mustafa Hassan Al-Kalaf JOR
Assistant Referee 2: Ahmad Munis Nadi Al-Ruwaili JOR
Fourth Official: Juan Gabriel Benítez Mareco PAR
Reserve Assistant Referee: Eduardo Cardozo Escobar PAR
Video Assistant Referee: Sivakorn Pu-udom THA
Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Allen Chapman USA
Could soneone please share a link of Mbappe’s goal where he scored immediately after it touched the hand? Correct decision, but I want it for educational purposes.
ReplyDeleteVS Girona.
Deletehttps://streambug.org/cv/c4db75
DeleteThank you very much.
DeleteWhy an onfield review though since it’s a factual decision? Once it touched the hand and was scored, there is nothing to be viewed in the opinion of the referee. They could just say it via headset in a few seconds.
DeleteWith some delay, but that's not important, here some clips from the most underexposed game of last Tuesday, Donatas Rumšas in Slavia Prague - Athletic Bilbao.
ReplyDeleteTo me, borderline between challenging and very challenging.
Not very challenging in terms of crucial decision, but definitely full of clumsy challenges and agitated players.
How much was the Lithunian referee able to stamp his mark on the game?
15' YC for disturbing keeper before releasing the ball
https://streambug.org/cv/5750df
19' YC for dissenting action, kicking ball after whistle
https://streambug.org/cv/f6a335
21' Possible YC for reckless, to me better to give it
https://streambug.org/cv/41e886
26' Management
https://streambug.org/cv/a7384c
40' YC reckless
https://streambug.org/cv/e3a9d3
42' Management - YC to coach
https://streambug.org/cv/323720
Full sequence of end of first half
https://streambug.org/cv/a986dd
A penalty area incident, OK to play on, it was nothing, but then poor management with player on the ground, but going unnoticed by Lithuanian officials, you can see that he stopped the game too late when the other team had already conducted an attack, so a goal or a even more challenging situation would have turned into chaos. More alertness needed. To be discussed also the resume of the game (how he managed it). To follow in the very last minute of added time, a YC for reckless.
60' Possible foul (not clear), then another YC to the other coach
https://streambug.org/cv/961bbd
86' Conflict, management, YC, cooperation AR
https://streambug.org/cv/a61210
90' Another conflict, management
https://streambug.org/cv/e775e6
A really rough match, as I had anticipated earlier in my comment, and certainly the Lithuanian referee, compared to a previous version of himself that we have seen, has raised his level of strictness, which is evident in certain situations. There are clear improvements, in my opinion, however, full control of very tense matches like this one is, I think, still not fully within his possibility. From my point of view, things didn't completely explode here mostly because the players, at some point, stopped themselves. Still, the fact that all these conflicts continued until the end, even when the referee had previously tried some preventive measures, gives the impression of a referee who is not perceived as extremely strong figure on the pitch.
This could be understandable, as the referee is still relatively new at certain levels, though some time has already passed. I believe that a fairly positive assessment can definitely be drawn from his experience so far regarding the possibility of promotion to Elite status, but the committe will make its evaluations. He has worked hard on this aspect, of course, but from my perspective, he might still lack a little something for a full Elite level.
We should also say that, compared to other referees, he certainly wouldn't be that bad, and the judgment must absolutely take into account the difficulty of the matches. One could have expected a bit more in terms of prevention and alertness toward the players. Among other things, I liked his slightly angry expression toward the end of the game; he should probably do this a bit more often to change his style when needed.
Forgot to add, you can see this in some clips, but it's rather my perception, you see him very often talking with players that is basically a good thing in terms of communication, but in some circumstances to me he gave the idea that players rather exercited pressure trying to "instruct" him! Should have shown a more severe approch in some cases, but that's rather a perception issue and I can be wrong, as the dialogues with players can be genuine in some cases.
DeleteThank you for the interesting report!! I think Rumsas is pretty much locked in for promotion to Elite (after several years of waiting) at this point.
DeleteDay 2 appointments:
ReplyDeleteMARCOM: Ma Ning (CHN)
EGYKUW: Eskås (NOR)
KSAOMA: Makhadmeh (JOR)
Good start of the tournament, pretty solid performance from Calderón Pérez .
ReplyDeleteI don't know if it was commented in here, but big discussion on potential RC in PSG/Monaco with the contact on the goalkeeper Chevalier. What are your opinions? Referee was Turpin
ReplyDeleteCuriously I just saw the incident and I must say I’m surprised that wasn’t RC…
DeleteTo me, it's not clearly RC, since the contact isn't that far above the ankle.
DeleteClear RC was missed, and French DTA official Gautier publicly stated that Turpin was wrong, as was VAR referee Pignard.
DeleteTo whom it may interest, José Luis Munuera Montero mic'd up at the Sevillan derby Sevilla-Betis on Sunday, a similar format to Busquets Ferrer last year in the Madrid derby. Unfortunately no substitles available for now.
ReplyDeleteGood performance by the Andalusian in the very first derby with a "local" referee, including a correct RC for SEV7 for a 'tackle as an attack'. Just like Busquets Ferrer last year, he had to send the players to the dressing room for 10 minutes due to persisting crowd misbehaviour (throwing bottles, lighters...), albeit with the players much more reluctant to follow him this time, as it was in 88th minute and everyone wanted the match to end asap due to the result.
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IFI5xfODzZU
Glenn Nyberg with a good performance in QATPLE. His disciplinary was unsurprisingly lenient but players helped him much with their good behaviour and there were no issues with control at all. The only big incident will make Qatari supporters upset (especially that Palestine won) although Nyberg EXCELLENTLY read it through!!!
ReplyDeletehttps://streamff.link/v/353e5c73
I watched the game and agree. "Busacca-coded" performance by Nyberg (including allowing his AR1 to be shouted to his face by a Palestine player with no card) but otherwise basically fine, closely patrolling the incidents as he usually does. As you mentioned, correct no-PK decision in 66', the only remarkable PAI/KMI of the match.
DeleteOn a side note, I noticed that the Kiwi FO spent the whole 2H almost glued to the Qatar manager, by far more prone to complain and make gestures than his Palestinian peer.
For the umpteenth time, Busacca should know that not every referee can afford to adapt their style to current FIFA Refcom doctrine without being 'disarmed'. Fortunately Nyberg is one of them.
Day 3 appointments:
ReplyDeleteALGSDN: Omar (EGY)
IRQBHR: Atcho (GAB)
JORUAE: Al-Kaf (OMA)
TUNSYR (Juan Gabriel Calderón Pérez)
ReplyDeletehttps://files.fm/u/yqm6zz4bda
06' - blatant mobbing by 21SYR and 7SYR(captain) after blatant tactical foul by 13TUN, no disciplinary sanctions
23' - blatant tactical foul by 19SYR, public warning only
36' - missed off-the-ball holding by 13TUN
39' - YC 11SYR for SPA holding, mandatory
41' - missed mandatory YC 4SYR for SPA tackle
47' - YC 15TUN for SPA, mandatory
50' - dissenting behaviour of 7SYR after a play-on call
54' - YC 2TUN for SPA tackle, mandatory
60', 87', 90+2', 90+5' - several cases of delaying the restart by SYR players, no action taken
74' - PAI holding, nothing
Difficult to assess performances if FIFA encourage their referees to keep both eyes closed to unsporting behaviour...