The long-awaited time has arrived. UEFA is working at new categories, this time with very significant changes.
Only reliable information will be published in this post, as well as the PDF documents when they will be available.
New UEFA Elite Category Referees
Men
Erik Lambrechts BEL
Christopher Kavanagh ENG
Nicolas Walsh SCO
Sven Jablonski GER
Donatas Rumšas LTU
Rade Obrenović SVN
Women
Emanuela Rusta ALB
New UEFA First Category Referees
Men
Jasper Vergoote BEL
Radoslav Gidzhenov BUL
Patrik Kolarić CRO
Javier Alberola Rojas ESP
Jérémie Pignard FRA
Daniel Schlager GER
Rob Hennessy IRL
Andrea Colombo ITA
Edgars Maļcevs LVA
Ishmael Barbara MLT
Miloš Milanović SRB
Michal Očenáš SVK
Martin Matoša SVN
Oleksii Derevinskiy UKR
Women
Emily Heaslip ENG
Tatyana Sorokopudova KAZ
Filipa Pereira Cunha POR
Milica Milovanović SRB
Anastasya Mylopoulou GRE
Martina Molinaro ITA
María Eugenia Gil Soriano ESPSofiya Prychyna UKR
Karoline Marie Jensen NOR
Vanja Janković SVN
Demotion from Elite to Category 1:
Men
Anastasios Sidiropoulos GRE
PDF Documents
New UEFA Elite Category Referees
ReplyDeleteErik Lambrechts BEL
Christopher Kavanagh ENG
Nicolas Walsh SCO
Sven Jablonski GER
Donatas Rumsas LTU
Rade Obrenovic SVN
New UEFA First Category Referees
Jasper Vergoote BEL
Radoslav Gidzhenov BUL
Patrik Kolaric CRO
Javier Alberola Rojas ESP
Jeremie Pignard FRA
Daniel Schlager GER
Rob Hennessy IRL
Andrea Colombo ITA
Edgars Malcevs LVA
Ishmael Barbara MLT
Milos Milanovic SRB
Michal Ocenas SVK
Martin Matosa SVN
Robert Jones mérite d'être promu catégorie 1
ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteNone of the officials deserved the Elite category.
I think this was a golden opportunity missed for De Burgos Bengoetxea to move up to the Elite category.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately for him, it will probably be difficult to achieve that goal with Alberola Rojas' promotion to the first category.
I predict that the Committee will pay more attention to the young Spaniard after this promotion.
In my opinion also ricardo de burgos and luis godinho deserved to be the elite
ReplyDeleteI don't obrenovic deserves to be uefa elite referee more than ricardo de burgos and luis godinho but despite rosseti is uefa head every thing is possible
ReplyDeleteAhmed, you are so funny. By the way, you still are biased with the portuguese referees. Why Godinho should be in Elite? He didn't had many games in Champions League, so tell us why he should be in Elite. And Obrenovic is Elite, because Jug retired.
DeleteWell when we saw, all promotions are well deserved. Congrats to the either New Elite,First Categroy officials. At the next update for promotion, I expect Bengoetexa, Minakovic. Little bit sorry for Brooks that Injury stops him, but he will surely have his chance.
ReplyDeleteElite promotions in the last few years:
ReplyDeleteWinter 2026 (6): Rumsas (LTU), Jablonski (GER), Walsh (SCO), Obrenovic (SVN), Kavanagh (ENG) & Lambrechts (BEL)
Summer 2025: N/D
Winter 2025 (2): Pinheiro (POR) & Mariani (ITA)
Summer 2024: N/D
Winter 2024 (2): Eskas (NOR) & Guida (ITA)
Summer 2023 (3): Nyberg (SWE), Peljto (BIH) & Hernández Hernández (ESP)
Winter 2023: N/D
Summer 2022: N/D
Winter 2022 (8): Letexier (FRA), Siebert (GER), Massa (ITA), Schärer (SUI), Jovanovic (SRB), Sánchez Martínez (ESP), Gozubuyuk (NED) & Meler (TUR)
Summer 2021: N/D
Winter 2021 (1): Stieler (GER)
Summer 2020: N/D
Winter 2020 (3): Vincic (SVN), Kovács (ROU) & Grinfeld (ISR)
Summer 2019 (2): Kruzliak (SVK) & Kulbakov (BLR)
Winter 2019 (1): Del Cerro Grande (ESP)
Summer 2018 (3): Gil Manzano (ESP), Soares Dias (POR) & Bastien (FRA)
Winter 2018 (2): Taylor (ENG) & Oliver (ENG)
Summer 2017 (2): Makkelie (NED) & Zwayer (GER)
Winter 2017: N/D
Summer 2016: N/D
Winter 2016: N/D
Summer 2015 (8): Marciniak (POL), Orsato (ITA), Turpin (FRA), Hategan (ROU), Nijhuis (NED), Bebek (CRO), Karasev (RUS) & Sidiropoulos (GRE)
I consider these promotions to the Elite as a joke....
ReplyDeletePromotion to Rade Obrenovic is a very big joke…Thks President Ceferin !
ReplyDeleteI consider this promotion asign of what has reached uefa refereeing from alow and disastrous level
ReplyDeleteThis would be an alleged ranking of the new Elite referees, based on their Champions League assignments so far:
ReplyDeleteDonatas Rumsas LTU
Rade Obrenovic SVN
Erik Lambrechts BEL
Christopher Kavanagh ENG
Nicholas Walsh SCO
Sven Jablonski GER
It's interesting to start from this analysis to discuss then the choices by committee. Once again one can see how different is a promotion from another: the Lithuanian has been in focus for years, with his debut in CL made back on 2021. He has the longest experience among all new names. Obrenovic follows, Lambrechts is third-placed. It looked then a different affair for the other three names, Kavanagh, Walsh and Jablonski. The German was promoted rather immediately after his Champions League debut, if we compare again with Rumsas, there are 4 years of difference between them after the CL debut. Of course, this doesn't make everything, but you know when it's about big federations, that's possible. Kavanagh (4 Champions League games so far) can be included in the speech. I think in the end UEFA "gave up" and they decided to promote an English referee, too long time without a third name to add to Oliver and Taylor. Really sorry for Brooks, surely in focus for that, but the injury stopped him, at least for now. The German didn't need big efforts (I want to remember I'm just giving opinions without judging the referees) to convince Rosetti, but he showed to be ready when there was a chance. Even if already promoted, I'm sure he will be now managed well by committee, without repeating Siebert at EURO as Category 1 (well, at least this time under this point of view, promotion was extremely quick).
Then,. I must say I fully agree with Mikael opinion about Kavanagh, thinking about this promotion years ago was impossible, given the absolutely inadequate style of the English referee. But in recent times he improved and he deserved this nomination, so far. One can't believe a federation like England survived so many years with only Oliver and Taylor.
DeleteAs for Walsh, I was asked an opinion some days ago on the blog and I was wrong. Let's go back to the path of the young Scottish then: CL debut more than a year ago, September 2024, then a very negative moment, he even disappeared. He was back in recent months, gaining some credit, didn't show an excellence so far, but very likely all was good in the game with Rosetti and that's it for now. Will have to show more to demonstrate he deserved that. After Collum, Scotland finds again an Elite referee, how far can he go? 35 years old and surely this is the argument from which to start. Not pushing him, but working with the due time.
Lambrechts: maybe the example of the most "expected" path in terms of time, for a promotion to Elite, 7 CL games and about two years of "final" development. But for me, as said before, he got even less than what he could have. Now will be big task for him to be there after a very strong name, impossible to make comparison, like De Bleeckere.
As for Obrenovic, I can only say that a referee after the performance with Rosetti in Monaco would have been in big trouble, but the Slovenian recovered and after that surely showed rather good performances. Nevertheless, and I say that trying to be as objective as possible, othe referees don't get so many chances. You must start from the concept that you want to promote a referee and not the contrary, so you can just delay the final decision. However, one must admit they waited when he didn't deserve, and that's at least a honest management. Now it will be up to him to have learned the lesson.
Rumsas is a referee that now, having been in focus for years and years, can immediately raise the bar, getting very big games and why not.. trying to achieve "suddenly" more in terms of reputation inside the Elite category. We will see how things will go for him, I'm convinced UEFA committee has been very, very harsh with him over the years and that's evident. He is the name that can tell us by far more than all the others.
Next comment to follow: the referees who could have been expected but didn't get a promotion.
How I can believe ricardo de burgos and luis godinho didn't deserved to be promoted to the elite ? For it is shame for who made this promotion
DeleteAbout other potential candidates to Elite, my read is the following, I tried to include all possible names, starting from the most expected from my point of view (Sozza and Lukjančukas).
DeleteSozza: CL debut after a rather medium path as Category 1 referee, in case of positive feedbacks by committee, belonging to a big federation, like Jablonski, he would have got it for sure. But.. I'm convinced they saw like all people can do, by watching serie A games, that he is definitely shaky at moment, some good things, but then suddenly poor performances, also, his recent UEFA assignments were not the excellence, and so I think they didn't want as for now, but quite sure time for him will come in (short?) future (38 y.o.).
Lukjančukas: one can be sure, Under 21 EURO on last June was definitely a very negative turning point of his career, it looked like everything stopped for the Lithuanian. If we compare what before... seems very harsh such a treatment, but the technical assessment by Rosetti seems clear.
Now, one must also add that, being a "fight" with Rumsas for a spot, it would have been almost impossible to see two Lithuanian promoted, so a choice had to be made, however there were moments in past in which it looked that he had overtaken his countryman. In the end, this never happened, but he can still build a future, starting again (34 years old right now). 6 Champions League games so far, not to be thrown away.
Gishamer: too recent focus, the path should continue and we will see how it will go.
Sylwestrzak: he has full time ahead, no worry.
Godinho: not for now, maybe committee made a thought, but definitely not enough in terms of assignment for him, CL debut went rather wrong.
Schnyder: you can think that after Rosetti's observation the process was stopped, at least for now, but future will say more.
Then, some of you repeatedly mentioned De Burgos Bengoechea. But honestly, this is what on wikipedia you can easily call "recentism". looking at something belonging to current times, but not adding it to the historical context with his rather long experience as rather very disapponting Category 1 referee. It's true that Spanish refereeing at moment is not at his best, but no doubts all the current Elite referees are best officials than De Burgos, who just showed good games in the start of this season (once again, that's my point of view...). Impossible to think about a promotion, honestly.
I do believe Brooks road to replace Taylor in 2027 is as open as ever, as long as he keeps himself free of injuries. As already pointed out, England for a long time has only had two Elite referees, while other "Big 5"-countries has had three or even four.
DeleteA referee you forgot to mention, Chefren, is Minakovic, who I also do believe has a big chance of being an Elite referee come 2027. Yes, he hasn't made his UCL debut yet, but he has got big games in UEL that could in other cases have gone to an Elite referee, which means focus is likely on for him too
Chefren, what's your take on the Category 1 promotions?
DeleteDe Burgos is Elite material IMO and is in fantastic shape right now but Chefren is right, he only has one CL GS game. Similar situation to Jablonski who made his CL GS debut this season, but (besides consistent good performances) the Bremer probably got more focus as Germany is in more of a hurry to find a short-term replacement for 1981-born Zwayer and Stieler. Similar case with Kavanagh and 47-year-old (!) Taylor and Obrenovic/Vincic.
DeleteMy main complaint with these promotions: 1) Lambrechts, too weak ref for my taste and 2) Obrenovic, for sure a talented ref but too inconsistent and prone to lose the plot in his games, it's good that they didn't promote him when he failed the tests in previous years, but it can't be ignored that so many referees wished they got the amount of chances the Slovenian had.
Seems like more than rewarding excellence, UEFA this time focused exclusively on punishing referees under focus who failed the test such as Schnyder, who would surely be Elite if it wasn't for Barcelona - Olympiacos under Rosetti.
Very, very happy for Rumsas, a referee I've been 'monitoring' for several years now.
@Ref Fif hopefully later today I will have time to write a comment about them as well....
DeleteAnd I think I forgot to mention Petrescu, among others, but it seems that after Velasco Carballo observation in past months and having missed the chance, he wasn't in focus anymore. Romanian situation continues to be very particular.
Hopefully not a very long comment this time!
DeleteSome referees were absolutely expected as promoted in Category 2 and I don't think there is that much to say.
Starting from Talents and Mentors 2025 we have in this set:
Jasper Vergoote, Javier Alberola Rojas, Andrea Colombo.
To follow, a referee like the Bulgarian was expected to be more considered by committee, given the final assignment for the EURO Youth tournament he handled. But maybe, it's not a case that this happens when Kabako is once again stopped in his career, the current Category 1, rather very experienced in the role, remains a mystery for me.
As for Kolaric, as said, Strukan has been demoted so an internal change inside the Croatian UEFA list.
Really sorry for Strukan but one can't say that he didn't deserve that.
Jérémie Pignard should be a new French in focus for development, while I have a feeling they are not fully satisfied with the "former" promising Delajod (personal idea).
Schlager replaces the German Cat. 1 who retired after his Conference League game.
Očenáš: here I must say, hard to understand what about Slovakia after Kruzliak, it seems they can't find a solid Category 1, I would have insisted on Glova but I don't know why this didn't happen.
Derevinskiy attended the FIFA tournament so he is considered for the next Ukranian after Balakin.
Matoša: Jug out and the nwe Slovenian in... easy to understand here.
Milanović: good development shown by the Serbian, I heard many people talking positively about him, so we will see.
An Irish referee appears again on the "big" scene after a rather long time, Hennessy was another name in focus and one could have expected something for him, curious to see how he will perform with rather more "exposed" games.
Ishmael Barbara was followed closely by UEFA in youth competition and a spot for something more to Malta seems to be always open.
Finally, Maļcevs: after Treimanis here Latvia with another chance. I'm really sorry for Treimanis, his path was incredible. But one can't say that he wasn't given chances. Now we will see with this new name, but one must also admit that reaching the level of Treimanis already in terms of consideration, for a referee from a country like Latvia is very, very hard, so one must nevertheless praise what Treimanis did at least until a certain moment of his career...
Thank you Chefren!
DeleteIt's clear that UEFA has decided to expand their Elite pool which on the surface of things might be sensible due to the increased number of games, but this does of course also mean that the bar to get in will also be lower. Whether or not this is a compromise you are willing to make is indeed a big decision.
ReplyDeleteOne criteria you still have to maintain though is that an Elite referee has to be reliable, you will have to be sure that they will in at least 90-95% deliver a satisfactory performance for the level required. This is a criteria which I do believe have tanked referees like Ekberg and Visser who has been in focus, but in the end not promoted. I don't believe just a lower bar could justify promoting someone like Obrenović who also on his day could be a very good referee, but has arguably had bigger and more "drops into the ditch" than the aforementioned Swede and Belgian.
We,will see if their promotion will happen in July for this two referee
ReplyDeleteWow what an amazing day for Scottish football an elite referee once again. Many congratulations to Nick.
ReplyDeleteOT: I just watched PSV - Atletico, played last Tuesday. Since there weren’t any comments on Michael Oliver‘s performance, I will give a short report even though I can’t provide the excellent reports with videos often provided by ESR, Chefren and Mikael.
ReplyDelete8 DtR by ATM#23, rather passive verbal warning given
15 good play on in SPA scenario
20 correct YC reckless challenge to PSV#34
33 supportable YC LoR holding to PSV#22 after advantage
37 missed mandatory YC reckless challenge to PSV#3 after advantage/goal scored, YC to ATM coach Simeone for dissent (already third big dissenting action by him, good to set a border there)
38 play on in possible SPA scenario
39 possible retaliation for the unpunished reckless challenge before the goal, conflict
41 correct YC SPA holding to PSV#17
47 YC for UB to ATM#20, conflict before corner kick and extremely clever to then award a defensive free kick for Atlético to balance things out in a way
51 correct YC reckless challenge to ATM#8
54 correct YC reckless challenge to PSV#3
63 frustration by PSV#22, possible 2nd YC for dissent
67 wrong offside procedure, AR2 raises flag during attack
90+2 correct YC reckless challenge to ATM#3
The game was definitely a challenging one. Not regarding KMIs (absolutely nothing there), but a though match to handle, especially in the first half.
If Oliver would have punished that reckless challenge before Atlético‘s goal in 37‘ (this situation being unpunished definitely caused tension afterwards), we would speak about an purely excellent performance. I think Oliver knows best that he simply should have booked that player.
But still a good performance by the British, who also had a pretty high general acceptance throughout the match.
IMO, Oliver is definitely the main candidate for CL final, even more after Zwayer’s recent controversy.
Great, I don't promise anything but if time available I will publish some clips, I couldn't comment that much on CL games for this reason and I'm really sorry for that!
DeleteJust a few clips to have an idea.
Deletehttps://streambug.org/cv/9bdf12
Possible (missed?) YC for reckless before goal, but very good advantage.
Just wanted to point out: the school of UEFA refereeing gives us evident signals of their lessons. Referees instructed to show the advantage gesture only when they are sure a goal is about to score, like in this case, or when they consider "given" the advantage, never too early and immediately after the foul, because things can change in a while (delayed whistle waiting...).
39' Possible reaction, violent conduct, but for me rather nothing, OK by VAR
https://streambug.org/cv/e59176
47' Corner kick, management, players not interested in referee's instruction.
https://streambug.org/cv/e4977e
This clip shows how often players are not interested in playing, Oliver couldn't do other than booking player and after that all accepted the defensive free kick, from these particulars you can read how much a decision is SPOT ON in the specific game.
Looks indeed another very good one by Oliver, no crucial incidents and he controlled a rather agitated game. Honestly, I must make a confession, in past I liked Taylor, but the recent Taylor honestly can't compete with the level that now Oliver has reached, even in terms of motivation.
I agree about the (very) good advantage in 37, always nice when it results in a goal. But I think the YC is a very very evident miss by Oliver, not only bc of reckless, but bc of a DOGSO. YC after advantage is mandatory there... simply ignored by the englishman?
DeleteIs it a bit strange that Kolarić was promoted to UEFA First Category Referees without a single league match of any competition this season? I think he has one game in the Conference League last season. What is the situation with the other refs promoted to the First category in terms of refereed European games this season? Is there a chance that Kolarić will win a Europa League game in the first month?
ReplyDeleteVergoote: 3UECL (2 this season), U17 Euro QF (2024), U17WC R32 (2025)
DeleteGidzhenov: 5UECL (2 this season), U17 Euro Final (2024)
Kolarić: 1UECL (none this season), U17 Euro GS (2025)
Alberola Rojas: 3UECL (2 this season), U19 Euro GS (2025), U20 Copa Libertadores SF
Pignard: 5UECL (2 this season)
Schlager: 1UEL (this season), 5UECL (1 this season)
Hennessy: 1UEL (none this season), 3UECL (2 this season), U19 Euro Final (2025)
Colombo: 3UECL (2 this season), U19 Euro SF (2025), UYL Final (2024/25), U17 WC QF (2025), U20 Copa América (2025)
Maļcevs: 2UECL (this season)
Barbara: 2UECL (1 this season), U19 Euro SF (2024)
Milanović: 5UECL (2 this season), U17 Euro QF (2023)
Očenáš: 5UECL (2 this season), U17 Euro SF (2023)
Matoša: 2UECL (this season)
Derevins'kyy: 4UECL (2 this season), U17 Euro Final (2025), U17 WC R16 (2025)
Thank you as always Euro Soccer Refere, great work as always, we can see that the "least experienced" referees have only 2 UECL appearances and this seems to be the minimum standard required, but Kolarić only one, however he attended a Youth EURO.
DeleteBut I can anticipate another movement, maybe the most important one in this case, Strukan has been demoted to Category 2. So selecting Kolarić for a promotion to Cat. 1 can just mean a replacement as for now, differently from other referees.
Nobody must understand a promotion of Referees in Cat.1 after only officiating two (or in the case of Kolaric only one) games in Conference League phase and coming from federations like Bulgaria (Gidzhenov), Malta (Barbara) or Latvia (Malcevs). With full respect to their achievements and work, I really question where the experience for real big games f.e. in Europa League should come from.
DeleteFrom their national competitions they will not receive it.
Would be interesting for our analysis in the future, who where the observers of these promoted referees in their Conference League games.
OBSERVERS for newly promoted First Category referees this season
DeleteVergoote:
22-07-25 Lech Poznań - Breiðablik (Stefan Meßner)
31-07-25 Santa Clara - Varaždin (Chaim Ya'akov)
14-10-25 Hungary U21 - Türkiye U21 (Levan Paniashvili)
23-10-25 AEK Athens - Aberdeen (Cüneyt Çakır)
11-12-25 U. Craiova - Sparta Praha (Sergejus Slyva)
Gidzhenov:
29-07-25 Qairat - KuPS (Tomasz Mikulski)
14-08-25 Hibernian - Partizan (Jari Järvinen)
17-09-25 Liverpool U19 - Atlético U19 (Frank De Bleeckere)
02-10-25 Noah - Rijeka (Marco Borg)
14-10-25 Spain U21 - Finland U21 (Halis Özkahya)
21-10-25 PSV U19 - Napoli U19 (Sven Bindels)
27-11-25 Omónia - Dynamo Kyiv (Konrad Plautz)
Kolarić:
31-07-25 Häcken - Anderlecht (David Malcolm)
01-10-25 Dortmund U19 - Athletic U19 (Rien Koopman)
14-10-25 Northern Ireland U21 - Germany U21 (Alberto Undiano Mallenco)
22-10-25 Sporting CP U19 - Marseille U19 (Lutz Michael Fröhlich)
12/15-11-25 U19 Quali (Martin Hansson, Mika Peltola)
Alberola Rojas:
09-10-25 Faroe Islands - Montenegro (Matteo Simone Trefoloni)
06-11-25 Celje - Legia (Aliaksiej Kuĺbakoŭ)
27-11-25 Strasbourg - Crystal Palace (Viktor Kassai)
Pignard:
22-07-25 Slovan Bratislava - Zrinjski (Markus Strömbergsson)
28-08-25 Rayo Vallecano - Nioman (Aleksandar Stavrev)
02-10-25 Legia - Samsunspor (Knut Kircher)
18-11-25 Czechia U21 - Portugal U21 (Erol Ersoy)
11-12-25 Samsunspor - AEK Athens (Giorgi Vadachkoria)
Schlager:
07-08-25 AIK - Győr (Goran Mihaljević)
14-08-25 Paks - Polissya (Charálambos Kalogerópoulos)
28-08-25 U. Craiova - Başakşehir (Vadims Direktorenko)
02-10-25 AEK Larnaca - AZ Alkmaar (Kevin Parry)
06-11-25 Bologna - Brann (Augustus Viorel Constantin)
Hennessy:
08-07-25 The New Saints - Shkëndija (Emil Laursen)
31-07-25 Brøndby - HB Tórshavn (Mehmet Murat Ilgaz)
02-10-25 Lech Poznań - SK Rapid (Draženko Kovačić)
27-11-25 Rijeka - AEK Larnaca (Vítor Manuel de Melo Pereira)
Colombo:
30-07-25 Qarabağ - Shelbourne (Alexandru Deaconu)
28-08-25 Déifferdeng - Drita (Chrístos Nikolaḯdis)
02-10-25 Slovan Bratislava - Strasbourg (Jan Willem Wegereef)
12-10-25 Faroe Islands - Czechia (Michaíl Koukoulákis)
11-12-25 Rijeka - Celje (Stávros Mándalos)
Maļcevs:
31-07-25 Linfield - Žalgiris (William Collum)
07-08-25 Milsami Orhei - Virtus (Robert Schörgenhofer)
08-09-25 Kazakhstan U21 - England U21 (Halis Özkahya)
17-09-25 Ajax U19 - Inter U19 (Karen Nalbandyan)
01-10-25 Napoli U19 - Sporting CP U19 (Martin Hansson)
11/14-10-25 U19 Quali (Juan Antonio Fernández Marín, Erol Ersoy)
06-11-25 Lausanne-Sport - Omónia (Mika Peltola)
11-12-25 Jagiellonia - Rayo Vallecano (Georgi Yordanov)
Barbara:
15-07-25 Inter Escaldes - FCSB (Ian Stokes)
31-07-25 Beitar Jerusalem - Sutjeska (Carlos Clos Gómez)
02-10-25 Raków - U. Craiova (Karel Vidlák)
22-10-25 Nantes U19 - Sabah U19 (Emil Laursen)
14-11-25 Switzerland U21 - France U21 (Vladimír Medveď)
26-11-25 Crvena zvezda U19 - Žilina U19 (Nenad Đokić)
Milanović:
22-07-25 RFS - Malmö (Alain Hamer)
13-08-25 Başakşehir - Viking (Marco Fritz)
09-09-25 Netherlands U21 - Israel U21 (Marco Fritz)
02-10-25 Omónia - Mainz (Viktor Kassai)
15/18-11-25 U19 Quali (Karen Nalbandyan, Alexandru Tean)
11-12-25 Fiorentina - Dynamo Kyiv (Shmuel Shteif)
Očenáš:
21-08-25 Raków - Arda (Mattias Gestranius)
09-09-25 Scotland U21 - Portugal U21 (Paolo Dondarini)
02-10-25 KuPS - Drita (René Temmink)
27-11-25 AZ Alkmaar - Shelbourne (Martin Atkinson)
Matoša:
22-07-25 Copenhagen - Drita (Juan Antonio Fernández Marín)
14-08-25 Astana - Lausanne-Sport (Uno Tutk)
09-09-25 Kosovo U21 - Spain U21 (Zoltán Szarka)
17-09-25 PSG U19 - Atalanta U19 (Martin Atkinson)
06-11-25 SK Rapid - U. Craiova (Ognjen Valjić)
11/17-11-25 U17 Quali (Jan Willem Wegereef, Vadims Direktorenko)
11-12-25 Shelbourne - Crystal Palace (Iain Robertson Brines)
Derevins'kyy:
30-07-25 FCSB - Shkëndija (Martin Hansson)
21-08-25 Rosenborg - Mainz (René Temmink)
02-10-25 Celje - AEK Athens (Gunnar Jarl Jónsson)
12-10-25 Croatia - Gibraltar (Barış Şimşek)
11-12-25 KuPS - Lausanne-Sport (Gevorg Hovhannisyan)
It's a pity for Vasilis Fotias because he is a very good referee, the best in Greece lately, and he has both the ability and the experience for the highest level like Champions League and Europa League. Don't forget that he was the official in the UEFA EURO U21 final and the last summer he attended the annual session which is organised by UEFA, with other nominated Elite referees. So, let's see the official announcements from mr. Rossetti and comment later
ReplyDeleteFotias was promoted to First Group last year. He has no CL match so a promotion would be highly unlikely.
DeleteKavanagh and Jablonski were really on UEFA's radar given the latest appointments and definitely succeeded, though I think the promotion came a bit quick .. but overall not a solid list at all .. And laughing at Obrenovic being elite ..
ReplyDeleteI agree with, among others, @Ref-Aut above.
ReplyDeleteYou see Kolarić and Matoša receiving accelerated promotions because a compatriot drops off the list. At the same time, however, many Category 2 referees have to follow a very long and difficult path to promotion. That is baffling.
Matoša — the next Slovenian being fast-tracked to the top?
Is there anyone willing to take a stab at an analysis of the 1st half of the season as well, particularly with a view to the 2026 World Cup and the UEFA finals?
ReplyDeleteHere are my brief observations:
• Oliver and Letexier are currently the standout referees. They have the X-factor. I still believe Oliver should have been awarded last season’s UCL final, but Rosetti did not dare to do so because of Inter (with Rosetti’s domestic reputation taking precedence). Is Letexier on track for a final this season? The question is whether a UCL final might come too early in terms of long-term motivation.
• Vinčić is getting many top appointments and is a master at avoiding controversy. You rarely see him make a truly decisive call in a match. Time and again, the coin seems to land his way and he stays clear of the eye of the storm. It is actually impressive how consistently he manages that.
• Kovács: after his third UEFA final, his performances have clearly dipped; that trend started around the Club World Cup. Is this a motivation issue? What stands out in particular is his increasingly sluggish positioning. Let’s hope we will see the ‘old’ Kovács soon.
• Turpin and Zwayer stand out for an excessive number of OFRs. The German, in particular, appears nervous and uncertain. That said, both have had a relatively high number of key moments in their matches.
• Siebert seems to be enjoying an international “revival.” He sticks to a no-nonsense style that works for him, and that deserves credit.
• Taylor and Makkelie have performed quite well so far. Both are relatively lenient on disciplinary matters, and that approach seems to work: little to no controversy. What stands out to me about Makkelie is that he solved many key decisions without VAR. It is, however, interesting that neither of them is considered for top-tier matches (for now), while Zwayer and Turpin were appointed to top-tier matches after a lot OFRs.
• Nyberg has enormous potential: smooth performances, but not yet truly tested in challenging UEFA-games. The appointment to the FIFA Derby of the America’s is a good sign though. Eskås has been more inconsistent (highs and lows, Brugge–Atalanta). It is now up to both of them to show consistency over a longer period, to be considered for UEFA finals.
• Peljto has already been discussed at length. I have the sense that his harsh treatment is politically motivated — essentially finding an “argument” to keep him out of the World Cup squad, because there are more referees than WC spots and Peljto seems an easy victim…
• Schärer is once again unfortunate. I wonder to what extent he could be considered for a support role at the World Cup. He is very talented and, in theory, given his age, could still be involved in two more World Cups in 2030 and 2034.
• Pinheiro I have hardly seen in action, so it is difficult to judge. I would find it surprising if he were already in World Cup contention, given that he has only recently become Elite. He has a certain lenient style that appeals to UEFA/FIFA (even if he does not always appear fully in control). But, the entertainment factor is becoming increasingly important.
• With Italian referees, it is mainly a matter of quantity. They dominate UCL appointments without performances necessarily justifying that level of presence. Mariani will be pushed to the World Cup, mainly because two compatriots failed. When two people fight, a third benefits…
• Spain is puzzling to me. The focus seems to be on Sánchez Martínez for the World Cup. His somewhat aggressive style may work in certain matches but can also add fuel to the fire. Hernández has done well to recover after a poor start to the season.
Was robert Jones unlucky not to be promoted to 1st group or do you think he needs more time
ReplyDeleteRobert is a good referee. Hes only had a couple of league phase games. Hes probably not out of the question as a future Cat 1 even possibly a elite. He just needs games.
DeleteAnybody with a video of Barcelona's offside goal today? People don't know that it can be offside when the ball is played backwards. So it's a good situation to show.
ReplyDeletehttps://streamff.com/v/b7e2b5b2
DeleteThank you.
DeleteHow difficult it is to manage Getafe?
ReplyDeleteJust ask Jesus Gil,protests on every decision he makes and we are seeing that old Bordalas' Getafe that we all love😉.
I now believe that Mario Escobar will referee the Intercontinental Cup final between Flamengo and PSG.
ReplyDeleteIf the referee comes from CONCACAF, which I think will happen, they will give it to Elfath instead of Escobar IMO. Saving Escobar for a Arab Cup SF.
DeleteGentelmans good morning. I have one question,what happened with Strukan. Heard that he is demoted, but when said demoted is it meant go to the second category, or no more with Fifa Badge in 2026? Also,if demoted to second cat,what is reason?
ReplyDeleteHe has been demoted to Category 2. Technical reasons are (apparently) clear if you followed the discussions about him on the blog.
DeleteYes, I closely followed, so yes,inconistent performances, some mistakes. I thought about did something happen that I missed :). Really sorry for him, 2 and a half years he was one of most promising. Hope he will recover.
DeleteChange of direction from the referee committee. They have tended not to appoint referees to games as opposed to demote them. Hoping the national committee will do the right thing and make the change.
DeleteChange of direction? As far as I’m concerned, this has been going on for almost a decade already.
DeleteThat’s Rosetti policy at its finest. Since taking office in 2018, Rosetti scrapped the third and fourth categories to speed up promotions. And instead of formally demoting referees, certain refs simply stop receiving appointments — at which point the national associations choose the pragmatic option.
@Chefren do you have the PDF with the lists?
ReplyDeleteI'm eager to know the referees that are joining the FIFA list in 2026 and who they replace (such as Busquets Ferrer -> Soto Grado)
No, we must wait some days. At moment UEFA made their decisions, but all about the rest, including new FIFA referees for 2026, it's up to FIFA. They must approve them, before UEFA categories' releases. The information included in this post is very, very early if compared to the other occasions in past.
DeleteOnce available, the lists will be immediately published here.
To add, it seems that another movement involves Glova, with Dohal promoted, the former is relegated to Cat. 2. About him, I really don't understand what he did wrong over the years. It's strange management, I would like opinions from Slovakian readers!
About Slovak refereeing:
DeleteIn last few months lot of things happened.
At first, like two years ago anonymous e-mail´s started about how referees comitee doing it´s job. Informations were from how some referees didn´t pass fitness tests or LoTG tests, but still been appointment, their grades from observers (which should be confidential) and how some referees with big errors been apointmented. How Ivan Kruzliak was deposed to 2nd division for his error (probably cost him 2021 EURO) to more boulvare informations like about alcohol on TOP group seminars. After thath in February 2025 long serving referees comitee chairman Marian Ruzbarsky resigned (served since 2010 as member and since 2014 as chairman). After that some things changed to more transparency f.e. Referees now have to explain their decision to media, if they are ask, Referees commitee publish some videos with explanation and so on. But still there is not enough time to make systematic changes, mainly because in February/March there will be Presidential ellections in Slovak FA and it look to me that after 3 election periods more than one candidate (Reasons, maybe next time, if you want).
About referees on Slovak FIFA list:
Ivan Kruzliak (Elite) - Best slovak referee at this time, still OK age, in March will be 42 years old, so good 2-3 seasons before him and we all hoping some UEFA final (Supercup, UECL...), still in race to 2026 WC, but I´m more sceptical to that.
Filip Glova (Cat.1) - Still young referee on February will be 38 years old, IMO his biggest problem is consistency. He refereed many great matches in domestic competitions, but there were some to forget (DAC-Slovan 2024/25 title decider), so still some room to imrovment.
Michal Očenáš (Cat.1 new) - One of our greatest talents, domestic first division debut at 24, FIFA listed as 26 years old. Also active as great lector in regional/counties seminars (can say from my own experience), so far was over viewed on UEFA level, also had some bad matches, but his performances in last 2 seasons have stepped up.
Bálint Kiss (Cat.2 new FIFA) - Also great talent, perfectly physicaly, still need some experience in bigger matches. (49 matches in 1st division)
Lukáš Dzivjak (Cat.2 new FIFA) - OK choice, still young in September had 30. Also need more experience in bigger matches (40 matches in 1st division)
Hi Chefren,
DeleteMH_SVK described it a little generally, but I partly agree with his opinion.
Glova transfer to the second group is a huge shock. In terms of his performance in the domestic league this season, he was the most consistent and one of the best referees. He had some minor problems in international matches, but these were mainly caused by the poor quality of the VAR from SVK, who made inappropriate interventions. From UEFA's point of view, this is all the more surprising given that Glova has been part of the Elite seminars in recent years and I had the feeling that he was a potential replacement for Kružliak in the elite in the future.
It is all the more surprising that he has been replaced by Očenáš. There is a diametric difference between these two referees. Especially in their performances on the international stage. While Glova has good management, game reading, and foul detection skills, Očenáš comes across as very stressful and tense. His advantage is rather that he knows how to sell himself better.
However, he is one of the top five referees in Slovakia. He has been performing consistently for a long time. However, his performances at home and away are quite different, especially away, where he seems quite tense and stressed. He will certainly defend the FIFA list, but it is a big surprise that he replaced Glova in the first group. His performance away from home reached the level of the second group, and it was rather expected that he would specialize more as a VAR.
Last year, he caused a big scandal when he did not give a clear red card in the Lithuania-Wales match, despite the intervention of the Italian VAR. There was quite a lot of commotion around this because Rosetti emphasized that it was a major violation of UEFA guidelines.
It is only speculation whether politics played a role in this case. Slovakia, especially through women's football, has good relations with Dagmar Damková, who is also a member of the UEFA Referees Committee. One of Damková's friend started this season as an observer of several matches in the Slovak top league. Maybe it's a coincidence, maybe not... It's just a conspiracy theory, but it would explain a lot, and Slovak readers will certainly understand.
The new names Kišš/Dzivjak are very promising for the future. Both are athletic and at a good age (30 years old). They already have seasons in the top league behind them and have refereed difficult matches that decided the title. I think these two names will be on the UEFA list for a long time and there won't be as much rotation as in recent years.
The problem was that in the past, referees were placed in fifth place based on political decisions. Gemzický was nominated for the UEFA list in the past, but he failed the English tests. A year later, the referees' committee put Dohál, who is 38 years old, on the list. Right at the start of the first FIFA camp for new referee, he had a problem with the yoyo test, which he had to retake in Slovakia. He is an average referee in the domestic competition. His problem is his long-term inconsistent performance. He can referee a very good match, but then he repeats mistakes, has low self-confidence, and poor match management. His inclusion was more political.
Kraľovič has been refereeing difficult matches in Slovakia for a long time. He was removed from the list due to his age. It can be expected that he will still accompany Kružliak as the fourth referee at some matches. On the positive side, two young and promising referees have been added to the UEFA list after a long time.
Dohal VAR FIFA 2026 (no referee FIFA 2026)
ReplyDeleteSlovak referee FIFA 2026 (ranking):
1. Ivan Kružilak
2. Filip Glova
3. Michal Očenáš
4. Bálint Kišš (new, 1994)
5. Lukáš Dzivjak (new, 1995)- program UEFA CORE
Out: Martin Dohál, Peter Kráľovič
Sorry my mistake about Dohal above. I meant Ocenas promoted to Cat. 1.
DeleteI see the problem more on the VAR list. Kružliak usually gets nominations with VAR from the Netherlands or Italy. Glova had VAR from Slovakia at matches, which caused him several problems. The most experienced and best VAR in Slovakia is Očenáš. Glova has almost no matches as a VAR for UEFA. Dohál's performance is inconsistent, and he has had several problems this season. Marhefka is more experienced, having been on the FIFA list in the past. He is a reliable referee and VAR in the domestic competition.
DeleteThere is a problem with VAR training in Slovakia. There is a lack of experts with experience in VAR. In the past, Rosetti himself came to the Czech Republic to give a presentation. Carlos Clos Gómez has recently started working with the Referees' Committee in the Czech Republic to help with a new concept for training referees. His task will be to unify decision-making on the pitch and with VAR.
In Slovakia, VAR training is minimal and almost non-existent. There has been a long-term lack of a concept. Many people take turns in the VAR position, and there is a lack of specialization. It happens that someone goes to VAR after only a few months. In Slovakia, we have a VAR center in two cities, but it is not used for ongoing testing and improvement of video referees.
Many referees have long-standing problems with classifying offenses and standardizing VAR interventions. There is no concept, feedback is almost non-existent, and it is more like self-teaching. Unfortunately, this is not only a problem with VAR, but also extends to referees and assistants.
Another problem is that the Referees' Committee has not had a referee or assistant with UEFA experience for a long time. Currently, the Referees' Committee is composed of people who have been average or below average in the domestic top league during their careers. There is also a member who has only refereed at the amateur level. As a result, the committee is unable to respond to current trends and set a concept because it lacks the necessary experience and expertise.
Yet Slovakia has had several excellent international assistants: Slyško, Balko, Suchý, Brendza, Somoláni, as well as referees: Micheľ, Vnuk, Vlk, Trutz, Olšiak, Valášek. Most of them are currently not involved in Slovak refereeing at all.
Agree about lack of training of VAR. Since VAR project started training happened in minor competitions f.e. Senec in Regional championship Bratislava, Memorial Gejzu Princa... For last 2 seasons at Memorial Gejzu Princa were referees from regional loeer division. Also acording my informations new VAR certification process is suspended. About the potential heads of refereeing...
DeleteMichel and Trutz are out because their relationship with clubs in Slovak 1st division (Slovan Bratislava and Tatran Presov) also Michel has lost all "moral right" after his multiple scandalous behavior to team officials and referees.
Balko discredited himself as SsFZ referees comitee chairman, when he after few years started referees "rebelion", but IMO it was not his fault, maybe only if we critisize him for comitee members apointmetns. Also his leadership was bit "dictatorship", but maybe only to stop "rebelion".
Vnuk is curently State Secretary at ministry of agriculture, so I don´t think he would been interested for the Slovak FA referees comitee chairman.
Slysko would be good choice, but he is strongly opposing current FA president.
Olsiak also would be great choice, but acording my informations he refused multiple offers for similar roles .
Wonder if Sidiropoulos is actually leaving the list due to age rather than being demoted to cat 1. If he isn't then it'll be the first demotion from elite in a while.
ReplyDeleteThat happened to Craig pawson he was demoted due to age to make way for brooks and retired at the end of the year
DeleteI think that TC021002 meant exactly a demotion from Elite Category, this is very rare indeed if not impossible to happen, last names were Bebek and Moen about 8 or more years ago .
DeleteSorry to be late to comment this interesting post and I don't want to bore you repeating what you already commented because I agree on most of you. Just to say that Jablonski was not expected to me and has a huge growth, to express my gladness for Scotland and Belgium to be represented by a man in the elite and finally for Rumsas, fully expected Obrenovic, probably a little bit overrated Kavanagh. It seems that now only Austria (sorry Peter :-) ), among historical strong football countries, is missing an elite. Is it available the full pdf file ? Finally I will never understood why Karasev could be still in the elite list and honestly speaking IMO Jovanovic and Grinfeld too would more fit 1st class category.
ReplyDeleteApart from Austria, I think Czechia too has not had an Elite for a while since the time of Kralovec
Delete@MARIO: I only looked at this article again today and read your reference to me. ;-)
DeleteTo be honest, the absence of Austrian referees from the elite category seems justified to me. I cannot judge whether all the other elite referees truly deserve their status. However, our current number 1 did not convince me either during his UCL debut or in his subsequent EL appearance. Even in Austria, he was regularly criticized by the media. I believe UEFA prefers it when one of their best referees goes unnoticed in their home country for a year or two. Personally, I would not see him as 'elite material' anyway. No idea who currently has the best chances to get there. Stefan Ebner? Jakob Semler? Arnes Talic? ...
Internationally, however, Hungary also seems to have largely disappeared from the scene: After Viktor Kassai, who is now working in/for Austria, not much has been happening there either.
@Adams A.A. The situation in Czechia is pretty complicated after almost all experienced referees including Královec had to leave due to the 2020 corruption scandal. Berka miraculously survived but he doesn’t have a chance to become an elite referee due to lack of skills. Vast majority of referees in the Czech league have debuted within the last 4 years so they have zero experience. Hopefully one day the situation will get better.
DeleteYes, we have to wait to see ho will be new FIFA AR in Romania, because Vasile Marinescu and Ovidiu Artene will have this sunday the last game and then retired.
ReplyDeleteWell, I am glad to see that they finally made a relegation with Sidiropoulos. But why not do the job completely and also relegate Stieler, Grinfeeld and Karasev?
ReplyDeleteMEN – NEW (2026)
ReplyDeleteAND Vilanova Simarro Andrés
ARM Mahtesyan Yura
AUT Talic Arnes
AZE Kurbanov Tural
BLR Shumilau Ihar
BUL Minev Vasil
BUL Velikov Martin Zhivkov
CYP Christodoulou Ioannis
CZE Všetečka Jan
DEN Graagaard Lasse Læbel
ESP Busquets Ferrer Mateo
GER Brand Benjamin
GRE Polychrónis Fótios
IRL O'Dowd Aaron
ITA Zufferli Luca
KAZ Ismuratov Arman
LTU Paulauskas Vilius
LTU Švėgžda Dovydas
LUX Thomas Loïc
LVA Ratnieks Kristaps
MKD Trpchevski Stojancho
NED Hensgens Robin
NOR Støfringshaug Mathias
POR Oliveira da Silva David Rafael
RUS Egorov Egor
RUS Shafeev Rafael
RUS Sukhoi Aleksei
SCO Lee Ryan
SCO Nicolson Duncan
SUI Kanagasingam Anojen
SVK Dzivjak Lukáš
SVK Kišš Bálint
SVN Tozan Mateo
TUR Aydın Cihan
TUR Ergün Ozan
WOMEN – NEW (2026)
AUT Hirtl Lena
AUT Hofer Fabienne
BIH Petak Senida
CZE Čampišová Natálie
CZE Hausnerová Monika
ESP Cebollada López Paola
GEO Shengelia Tamta
GER Lutz Davina
IRL Purcell Claire
LTU Birglait Ilona
NED Plandsoen Manon
POR Carneiro Amorim de Morgado Afonso Ana Luisa
POR Mota Paiva Andrada Maria Ines
SUI Reichmuth Nadine
SVK Vajdeckova Petra
TUR Durmuş Gamze
UKR Vasylchenko Veronika
FUTSAL – NEW (2026)
ALB Stolaj Albano
ARM Yeritsyan Tiran
AUT Vucanovic Njegos
BIH Dulić Ena
CRO Nakic Nina
CZE Rygl Luboš
DEN Rossen Jonas
ENG Perry Esther
EST Toom Richard
FIN Määttänen Janne
GEO Bliadze Grigol
GER Lüders Maximilian
GER Schreiber Florian
IRL Geraghty Glen
ITA Dimundo Antonio
LTU Drungilas Kevin
MKD Uroshevikj Aleksandar
NED Koene Dyon
NOR Stenseth Vilde Visten
POL Mrozek Barbara
POL Szczołko Kamil
POR Pereira Sinval Joao Pedro
POR Silva Moreira Jose Miguel
RUS Bagirov Ruslan
SCO McLullich Duncan
SVN Božič Alen
TUR Saglam Muhammed Furkan
UKR Kuzmin Andrii
Sorry, two names missing on the list: Alex Johnson MLT and Patryk Gryckiewicz POL.
DeleteWhat about assistant referees ?
DeleteOne must wait for FIFA on 01/01/2026.
DeleteThey are not categorized by UEFA so we can't have any official document.
Probably Ilona Birgėlaitė (not Birglait).
DeleteSorry for this mistake!
DeleteGryckiewicz has been a FIFA referee since 2025 :)
DeleteSorry indeed, only Maltese name was missing,!
DeleteSo a brief reflection on the situation in Scotland, John Beaton’s very intresting Fifa career has come to an end, on the other hand, Scottish refereeing has returned to Europes top stage after Walsh’s promotion to the Elite category which argubly is deserved. Finally we see Ryan Lee and Duncan Nicolson come through, two promising referees. Its a new chapter with names like Beaton, Clancy and Mclean fading away. Changing subject the very respected Mr Dallas Jr, is doing very well on Var duties. In conclusion a change is breaking through the Scottish land in terms of refereeing. Some very exciting times.
ReplyDeleteIrfan Peljto has been appointed to officiate the big Greek football derby between PAOK and Panathinaikos.
ReplyDeleteFifa referee is announced in 2026 is there a formation for that
ReplyDelete@Abdiaziz ahmed yousuf: Yes, the new FIFA referees will take their oath in front of a Swiss Guard formation with full military honors.
DeleteSorry I mean information
DeleteChefren,I just checked the UEFA website.The delegates for Champions League round of 7 matches have been announced.Does this also mean the referees have been appointed?
ReplyDeleteIt can happen that delegates are appointed long time before the games, but in this case I think no observers and referees, it's too early for that (a month).
DeleteNdala Ngambo à l'ouverture de la CAN 2025
ReplyDeleteGood for him.. he is one of the big pretourmament favorites to get the final. Hope to see a nice performance from him
DeleteAny news on Beach Soccer FIFA list?
ReplyDeletehttps://www.englandfootball.com/articles/2025/Dec/19/match-officials-from-england-named-on-fifa-referees-list-for-2026-20251912
ReplyDeleteEngland list...Wade Smith replaces Lee Betts and Leoni Harland replaces Grace Lowe on the AR list. Betts likely leaving due to age and Lowe is a WSL (tier 1) referee now.
Who do they replace in the FIFA list?
ReplyDeleteVilanova (AND) - None, either previously unused or gained country slot
Mahtesyan (ARM) - Hovhannisyan
Talic (AUT) - Kijas
Kurbanov (AZE) - None, either previously unused or gained country slot
Shumilau (BLR): Dmitriev
Minev & Velikov (BUL) - Draganov & Popov
Christodoulou (CYP) - Theouli
Všetečka (CZE) - Szikszay
Graagaard (DEN) - Kristoffersen
Busquets Ferrer (ESP) - Soto Grado
Brand (GER) - Schroder
Polychronis (GRE) - None, either previously unused or gained country slot
O'Dowd (IRL) - McLaughlin
Zufferli (ITA) - Maresca
Ismuratov (KAZ) - Omarov
Paulauskas & Svezgda (LTU) - Valikonis + unused/gained slot
Thomas (LUX) - Torres da Rocha
Ratnieks (LVA) - None, either previously unused or gained country slot
Trpchevski (MKD) - Kachevski
Johnson (MLT) - Farrugia Cann
Hensgens (NED) - Higler
Støfringshaug (NOR) - Hagenes
Silva (POR) - Veríssimo
Egorov, Shafeyev & Sukhoy (RUS) - Lyubimov, Meshkov & Shadykhanov
Lee & Nicolson (SCO) - Beaton & unused/gained slot
Tozan (SVN) - Jug
Dzivjak & Kiss (SVK) - Kralovic & Dohál
Kanagasingam (SUI) - Tschudi
Aydin & Ergun (TUR) - Kardesler & Küçük
Fábio Veríssimo POR continues to be a FIFA referee
DeleteRefereeing in the Italian Super Cup semifinals in Saudi Arabia was unfortunately negative for Rocchi once again. However, if we compare Zufferli and Chiffi, the one wither best outing is still the former, the new international referee from Friuli. In fact, yesterday, the match between Napoli and Milan was not officiated perfectly, with significant mistakes in the first half, including an obvious yellow card for Rabiot and a management style overly focused on minimizing cards, although at a certain point he had to change course out of necessity. Also, a possible violent conduct by Milan keeper after a foul by opponent. Nevertheless, there were some good decisions, such as not awarding a penalty to Napoli, given that the attacker had clearly sought the penalty and could certainly have been booked for simulation. The key point, however, was to deny the penalty and referee was fine in that. In the second half, the match had some ups and downs, but overall, the referee brought it to end, although the new international official must learn that he cannot officiate every game trying to spare all yellow cards. When they are needed, they are neede, but he is a referee with personality who follows his own path.
ReplyDeleteAs for Chiffi, a much more experienced referee who has been on the international scene for some time, although he has never reached top levels, his limits were once again evident tonight. Apart from the two crucial incidents in the penalty areas, the match was not particularly demanding. He basically decided not to book anyone and stuck to this principle until the end of the match. In addition, he missed an obvious handball in the penalty area in the first half, which was correctly sent to the monitor, and then awarded a penalty that was later overturned by VAR because the contact was created by the attacker, he positioned himself ahead exactly to be hit. In this case, however, the VAR intervention in Italy is somewhat controversial, as some argue there is a rule allowing the attackers to position themselves anywhere. Overall, Chieffi was poor. Now, the final match between Napoli and Bologna should be refereed by Colombo from Como. Rocchi had considered an alternative with Guida, who has not officiated in Serie A in recent rounds, but unfortunately Napoli's presence means the referee from that city can't take charge of the match.
Chefren, In the context of the category update, do you think Sylwestrzak will advance to Elite? If so, when? Do you think UEFA is looking for Marciniak's successor and that Sylwestrzak will replace him? Or even if Marciniak is still around, will Sylwestrzak advance and Poland will have two Elite referees? Is that possible?
ReplyDeleteIf little Slovenia can have two Elite referees, surely so could Poland...
DeleteAbsolutely possible for Poland to have two Elite referees, no problem. I think it's normal that he hasn't been promoted so far, and Marcinak doesn't matter. The Polish is young so I'm sure it will happen on next updates, maybe on December 2026 if everything goes well for him.
DeleteThank you for your answers
DeletePretty challenging game for Brooks doing Tottenham vs Liverpool. Home crowd weren't happy but don't think he made any major errors. Had an OFR for a red but don't think it was an awful miss in real time. Some of the players lost their head in the second half.
ReplyDeleteClear foul missed in 2nd Liverpool goal, completely lost control of the games, terrible fouls detection missing at least 3YC and potentially 2 RC for Richarlison and for Van de Ven for a strong tackle, on Isak, then chaos at the end of the game not adding much time. I don’t know how this is an ok game.
DeletePretty good performance by Brooks tonight. Glad to see he is good now. Hope to have his chance to be promoted to Elite in December 2026,alongside with Minakovic and Szylwestrak. We will see if he have the CL debut this season.
ReplyDeleteSorry but I read Cristian Romero was given only second YC for that action? It was a clear violent conduct as reactioin, big mistake here if not straight red.
ReplyDeleteAs for the other red card given after VAR review in first half, I agree, could have been difficult to spot the low contact with studs up, but 100% clear red card.
Perhaps tactical ploy by the referee given you cannot appeal a yellow card? The player is being sent off anyway?
DeleteI dont know how you can say he was good?
ReplyDeleteAverage,and that's compliment for his performance.
Sure challenging match,but if we examine,it's no surprise why he lost control of this match.
Firstly,VAR corrected him and decided to call him for VAR check.
If I'm not wrong,that's his mistake.
2nd,plenty cards were missed,one big one to Richarlison where he elbowed Frimpong brutally.
Also,2nd yellow to Romero is unaccaptable, straight red needed to be shown there.
3rd,potential foul on Romero when Ekitike scored?
And finally,in added time there was some delay,atleast one more minute should have been played.
We also had Madley today,who had at moments challenging match for him,but teams like Newcastle and Chelsea can be always challenging.
We had 2 situations in 1st half where Chelsea player is fouled,lies down but he allows Newcastle players to continue.
That resulted in 2 YC's for protests that could have been avoided if Madley managed that situations lot better.
Also towards the end potential DOGSO that was not whistled.
I didn't love Madley's performance, with the likely missed penalty, and the possible DOSGO I think was not something for VAR as the ball wasn't under his control (but likely foul missed), but I really liked his playing on then showing YCs for dissent when players were down 'hurt'. I'm sorry, but if it's not serious (such as a head injury) then he shouldn't stop the game, and the players know that! So that was the one thing I really liked about his performance
DeleteOn some of the above on Brooks, yes, some control was lost as the game progressed.
ReplyDeleteRomero very lucky to only get a 2YC, I agree with the above on that.
The first RC was odd, as the game was played in a good spirit until then, and the foul was very unexpected, but clear SFP and Attwell correct to intervene.
The 2nd goal was regular. There is no way - in the English game at least - that anyone would want or expect a foul for such small contact. No foul easily accepted by most.
Richarlison on Frimpong for me was a missed foul only (careless use of arm), but to not stop play when Frimpong was down with bleeding from the mouth/head, then to let play restart quickly when the ball went out and not allow treatment was very poor management.
Richarlison after scoring seemed to put his hand around the neck of Ekitike on the floor. How that was ignored, but Szoboszlai booked for reacting to Richarlison made no sense unless the first incident was completely missed.
And I also agree with the above, the Van der Ven tackle on Isak as he scored was completely overlooked (by players, fans, and TV), and seemed reckless at least.
I think Brooks had a decent ~80mins, but lost his way towards the end. And I think both Brooks' and Madley's matches would have been difficult to control regardless by the end of the games, but they both could have done more to help the situation by more accurate and consistent decision making
Not a very good performance in an easy game at Real Madrid. The second yellow card (send off) wan not reckless. Clear feigning of an injury by Bellingham. Regular careless foul. Followed up a couple of minutes later with an incorrect yellow card again.
ReplyDeleteThen insecure body language giving Real Madrid a penalty which was changed to a free kick. Which also probably was incorrect as it absolutely looked like on the penalty area line. Good yellow card for simulation earlier. That was it.
@Chefren: we might need the Afcon Page now.
ReplyDeleteMali-Zambia: Artan (SOM) VAR Benbraham(ALG)
Egypt Zimbabwe : Sy (Senegal) VAR ?
South Africa Angola : Ismail ( Sudan)) VAR ?
S.Africa-Angola: Mimisa Dickens (ken)
DeleteEgypt-Zimbabwe: Jalal Jayed (mar)
dear chefren, very interesting uefa lists. question: what about the female referees, included in both male and female categories, who are registered in the last uefa list for first half 25/26 to men, for example Frappart or Martincic? No name in the actual one ...
ReplyDeleteVery good observation, I was thinking about that but I didn't write. Honestly no real explanation, but having to guess it's easy to think they abolished this practice because in reality the female referees in men's list never got something consistent with their positions and the women assignments never reflectd this categorization. I would say there is a confusion about what they should / want to do. For the sake of finding some logic here,. good that they abolished this idea.
Deletethank you chefren!
ReplyDeleteA statement from William Collum regarding John Beaton stepping down from the UEFA list.
ReplyDeleteCollum also paid tribute to John Beaton, who has taken the decision to step away from the FIFA international list due to increased work commitments.
“John has been a great servant to Scottish refereeing and has represented us at the highest levels of the game, he became a FIFA referee in 2012 and was promoted to the UEFA First Category in 2016. During his international career, John officiated in more than 160 European and international matches."
“Highlights of his career include being part of the officiating team at UEFA EURO 2016 and refereeing last season’s UEFA Europa Conference League Round of 16 match between Fiorentina and Panathinaikos. His final international appointment in the middle came last month, when he took charge of Lille v Dinamo Zagreb in the UEFA Europa League.
“I would like to thank John for his outstanding contribution and for representing Scottish refereeing so well on the international stage. He will continue to play a key role as one of our top domestic match officials.”