Members Blogs

L'arbitre Blog - Week 47

As you may have noticed, I’m far behind on blog posts. As a result, I’ve decided to tell this story in flashback because there are tales and stories to tell about the last six months. I will tag posts and title them with Past/Present as we jump back-and-forth. Present I begin with a jump to […] Continue reading...

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Dutch Referee Blog - Offside: second last defender at Chelsea vs Bournemouth

Last weekend showed us a great case study for offside. Second last defender is the key word for it. Have you seen the game Chelsea vs Bournemouth? Check out Murray’s goal for Bournemouth. Was the referee correct to allow the goal? At offside situations you usually look at the last person in a kit of […] Continue reading...

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Dutch Referee Blog - Pulling shirts and shorts in football

Pulling shirts and shorts in football, Neymar giving the referee a shirt and more news. Photo series: Pulling shirts and shorts in football Dutch newspaper De Volkskrant publishes a photo series in the middle pages of their newspaper everyday. Last week they made a collections where playres pulling shirts and shorts in football. A nice […] Continue reading...

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Africa in the Dutch polders

How the national squad of Eritrea ended up in a small Dutch town. Read their story: Eritrea. The article (which is about nine months old) has even sparked a documentary, which can be viewed here. Please note that it is in Dutch.

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L'arbitre Blog - Super Cup, Day 3

Day 3 It was a relaxing start to the day because I had plenty of time before my games. I was initially afraid I had arrived late because the dressing room was empty. I frantically got changed into gear and rushed out to look for everyone and where I was assigned to. The first set […] Continue reading...

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Dutch Referee Blog - How LFA Referees keeps and trains young referees

Nice short video on Youtube from the LFA Referees where they tell something about their courses and how they try to get young referees ready for the game. What can you do to keep your officials and prevent them to walking away? That’s a good question for LFA Referees while the number of referees is […] Continue reading...

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Dutch Referee Blog - Referee assessor: getting a notification in advance?

Dutch FA announces the Referee assessor now in advance for all amateur referees. That led to some curiosity online. I also heared about the first referee who called off his game because he saw in the online portal that a stern assessor would visit him. That latter is a bad thing. My solution would be […] Continue reading...

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Dutch Referee Blog - Referee news: South-American referee gets police protection

Few news stories this week: South-American referee gets police protection, video of Dutch dj’s who tried to referee a game (which was quite challenging) and few more interesting links. South-American temper … I am happy I’m not a referee there. Doesn’t get better after reading headlines like: “Soccer-Referee gets police protection as Boca win Copa […] Continue reading...

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Jack Taylor: Soccer Refereeing. A Personal View

In addition to memoirs (Jack Taylor: World Soccer Referee), 1974 WC final referee Jack Taylor also wrote a short book in an attempt to encourage young people to take up refereeing. There's a brief review of this book on my website Refereeingbooks. Enjoy!

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Dutch Referee Blog - How is it to be an MLS Referee

Ever wondered how it is to be an MLS Referee? Nice documentary from Daltonic Films with behind the scenes footage. Do you want to become a professional referee? Continue reading...

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Dutch Referee Blog - Photo album: referee at DHC A1 vs DSO A1

I officiated a weekend ago a u19 game and found an oline photo album. The photographer gave me permission to use the photo’s from me as referee at DHC A1 vs DSO A1. All photo’s of that game: Gert Wildering on Facebook. Continue reading...

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Refereeing Books - Clive Thomas: ahead of his time

Hi, I posted another review this weekend, about 1970s favourite whipping boy referee Clive Thomas. Did you know he co-authored a book on fitness, training and nutrition that was actually quite good and in some ways ahead of his time? Yeah, it took me by surprise too. Read more here: Soccer Referee: A guide to fitness & technique Happy reading!

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Dutch Referee Blog - Lau van Ravens: “Referees makes mistakes, that’s all in the game”

Bobby Charlton, Eusebio, Johan Cruijff, Franz Beckenbauer: these are just some of the players who played in matches officiated by Lau van Ravens. These days, Lau frequents the parks in the west of Holland every weekend, paying special attention to the refs doing their matches. “Reffing has become much harder”, the 93-year-old former top-flight referee […] Continue reading...

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Dutch Referee Blog - Week of the Referee in The Netherlands

Until this weekend it was the Week of the Referee in The Netherlands. A special moment created by the KNVB (the Dutch FA) to thank the referees for what they do on the football pitch every week. After my holidays I found the following sweatband (where I can put a toss coin in) in my mailbox. […] Continue reading...

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Dutch Referee Blog - Euro 2016 referee kits

Found some pictures online with a preview of the Euro 2016 referee kits. What are your thoughts on it? Do you like them better than the 2015/2016 Champions League referee kits? Continue reading...

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L'arbitre Blog - FIFA Referee Age Limit Abolished

Rumours have been surfacing over the past few years confident that FIFA would abolish the age limit on international referees. Each time, it would return stronger in the form of news articles and even once, from the Third Team. Nothing concrete ever became of it despite the acceptance that it was a close-minded perspective to […] Continue reading...

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Dutch Referee Blog - Referee news: Arsenal petition against Mike Dean

Referee news: Arsenal petition against Mike Dean, latest international referee appointments plus watching other sports and learn from it. Arsenal fans launch petition to stop Mike Dean refereeing their games – and it’s VERY popular. Over 100.000 people signed the petition now, so it can be discussed in parliament. The referee has sent off two Gunners […] Continue reading...

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Refereeing round the World - Arthur Ellis

Hi, I posted another book review last week, this one about It's a Knockout! favourite ump Arthur Ellis. Hope you like it! Here's the link: Refereeing round the World

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Dutch Referee Blog - Referee Marija Kurtes felt like a prisoner in Belfast

Marija Kurtes is a promising female referee from Germany. Earlier this year one of her decisons was all over the news. She made a mistake in Northern Ireland during the match Norway – England after a penalty kick. In this story on Dutch Referee Blog how referee Marija Kurtes felt like a prisoner in Belfast plus her personal […] Continue reading...

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Dutch Referee Blog - Referee news: Collina teaches new offside rule

Referee news: Collina teaches new offside rule, appointments for the first Champions League round and a new referee badge. Uefa is a bit late with a short explanation of the new interpretation on the offside rule. But it’s always good to see different people explain it. Here’s how Collina teaches new offside rule. Ahead of […] Continue reading...

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