2026/27 UEFA Champions League - Referee Observers for MD1

UEFA has assigned the following observers to MD1 of 2026/27 Champions League, league phase.

Carlos Velasco Carballo observing a debut in Slavia Praha - Lens? 

Must-Read for Football and Refereeing Fans: "The Impossible Job" by William Ralston

"The Impossible Job": Why You Will Never Watch a Football Match the Same Way Again.

FIFA Decision to Suspend Balogun Ban

Following the suspension of the US player's ban, here are some reactions.

Roberto Rosetti: "At EURO, only the captains will be allowed to talk to referees, the other players doing that will be booked"

Roberto Rosetti wrote a piece for Italian newspaper "La Gazzetta dello Sport". Here the translation for you.

Law5 Blog is close to Ovidiu Hațegan and we want to wish him a speed recovery!

 As refereeing blog, we are close to the Romanian after what happened to him. 

Kateryna Monzul back to officiate in Italian Women's Serie A on next Sunday

Kateryna Monzul (UKR) will officiate a game of Italian Women's serie A, Inter - Sampdoria, to be played on 20 March 2022.

Damir Skomina has retired from international refereeing

The Slovenian Elite referee, after a very long injury, has decided to retire from refereeing, starting a different adventure in football.  

7 August 2021: Björn Kuipers day

The Dutch referee has announced that today it will be his last game before retirement. He will be in charge of Dutch Super Cup. 

Pierluigi Collina: "Honored to be considered nr. 1 but I also have a bit of nostalgia"

Some days ago Pierluigi Collina has released an interesting interview to the Italian newspaper "Il Corriere della Sera". Law 5 The Referee has translated it for you. 

Pierluigi Collina has been voted by France Football as best football referee ever

Referee Makkelie relishing big Cologne date

Dutch referee Danny Makkelie, who takes charge of Friday's UEFA Europa League final, talks about his career and what makes a top match official.

Laws of the Game Revisions, 2020-21

International Football Association Board have announced the changes for the Laws of the Game for the season 2020-21. Decisions will come into force on 1st June 2020. 

Full document can be found below. 

Fred complains to Michael Mullarkey during the Brazil - Chile game at World Cup 2014
Would the goal ruled out by the Howard Webb's refereeing team stand after 1st June 2020?
IFAB announced a revision to the nature of handling for the 2020-21 season

Norway - Terje Hauge appoints himself as head of refereeing two months before he got the job?

A story reported by one of the most important Norwegian newspapers on its website: vg.no. 

133rd Annual General Meeting of The IFAB: sensible changes to make the game better

Today the International Football Association Board (IFAB) held its 133rd Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Aberdeen, Scotland. The meeting was chaired by the President of the Scottish Football Association (SFA), Alan McRae and was attended by representatives from FIFA and the football associations of England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

RIP Peter Mikkelsen

1960 - 2019

Mark Geiger named PRO Director of Senior Match Officials

The Professional Referee Organization has announced that Mark Geiger, one of the most heralded U.S. referees over the past two decades, has been appointed as Director of Senior Match Officials. He will oversee the work of officials operating at the Major League Soccer level with immediate effect.

Former FIFA referee Tony Chapron suspended after Nantes - PSG incident

Former FIFA referee Tony Chapron has been officially suspended by French Referees Committee, following the incident occurred in yesterday's Ligue 1 match between Nantes and PSG.