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
The information provided may be incomplete as the process is still in course. To know the removed names from all categories, mostly due to retirement or other reasons, we have to wait for the official lists.
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
ReplyDeleteWell 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
It'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
ReplyDelete