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Scotland’s top referees did their first pre-season fitness test last weekend. A big moment for the the refs at Stirling University. The official kit was presented, the season is going to start soon. But how do Scotland’s top referees prepare … Continue reading → Continue reading...

Gazprom is looking for 3 kids who want to be Referee Escort during the Uefa Super Cup in Cardiff. You can win 2 tickets: one for the kid, one for you. The message that Gazprom has sent out: “If your … Continue reading → Continue reading...

The jaywalking referee showed up in New York to prevent people from illegal or reckless pedestrian crossing of a roadway – also known as jaywalking. In his US Referee outfit he joins the streets of the Big Apple. With this … Continue reading → Continue reading...

RA I received some motivation in Week 26 to work harder on my local RA initiatives since I was a representative from the younger group of referees. The referees in the past generation had taken charge when they were moving up through the ranks always having the young injection of enthusiasm so I sat down to look at other RAs and what was successful for them and what could be replicated for our own. I spent a lot of time working on some documents and packages including an initiative list to get things rolling and moving forward. Let’s see how that goes. Game #4 Looking back to Game #4, I had chatted with a fellow official who asked me a simple question. So, when you’re an Assistant Referee, what do you want to see in a Referee...

The FIFA World Cup Brazil 2014 has, unfortunately, concluded today. After a month long fiesta with businesses losing billions of dollars in lost productivity, life must return to what was known as ‘normal’ after having witnessed more than 6000 minutes of football. The post-show depression disorder will sweep across the planet as most leagues are in the off-season now. How I will survive? I don’t know. My favourite goal was David Luiz’s free kick goal against Colombia (Sorry Colombia). The eruption of emotion from the goalscorer and the fans on conclusion of the ball striking the back of the net embodies why Brazil is the dream host of football’s largest tournament. The referees of the tournament will also have had a great time in...

So I have been noticing that a lot of Google searches arrive at this blog searching for various terms and phrases like: Why are my Ervocom flags not working? How do I fix my Ervocom flags? Ervocom cross tip screws Ervocom referee flags faulty Ervocom beeper is not working Any basic maintenance for Ervocom flags can be found on my Ervocom Maintenance and Flags post. Basic maintenance involves changing the battery or adjusting the volume/vibration settings. Anything beyond that will likely involve some advanced knowledge of the flags. Best way to solve that is to contact Ervocom directly at info@ervocom.ch Describe the problem you have and accompany photos if it’s a physical problem and they can advise if it’s something they can have...

So if you have practiced Law questions before, you may have come across areferee.com. I did dozens and dozens of these quizzes late last year so much so that I’ve exhausted the question bank of 772 questions which were repeated many times across the various quizzes. I highly recommend it to any referee looking to improve their knowledge of the LOTG and to be open-minded on various scenarios that could develop off some half-described scenarios. I did have a mission to achieve 50/50 on a 50-question quiz over the past off-season but had no luck. I recommend trying the same but I’m sure you’ll find the mutual feeling below on some questions that mark your answer wrong. It’s addicting yet extremely annoying at times because of the...

There have only been 19 before and there is a possibility of a repeat with Howard Webb on the list. The FIFA World Cup Final (Match 64) is the most prestigious appointment for a referee as it is contested between two sides fighting for the ultimate footballing prize, the World Cup. Despite there being many fantastic and memorable matches in club competition, there is no tournament that brings the energy and passion that the World Cup does making it the most unique shared human experience. Amongst almost 1 million referees worldwide, many dream of reaching this stage and for the 15 trios that remain in Brazil, it will be revealed on Friday as to who will have the prestige of walking out into the Maracanã leading the teams in front of...

There have been few idol figures in football when it comes to the world of refereeing but if you should ask anyone who they think the best referee ever is, Pierluigi Collina would win by a country mile. It poses a second question. Will we ever find someone like him who holds almost an elite status? Who do you think the best current modern referee is and I think slowly but surely, Howard Webb is stepping out into the limelight. Despite what was described as a “blemish” for the beautiful game’s 2010 World Cup final that Howard Webb took charge of, Webb’s refereeing has become less and less controversial and he has cemented his figure with players on the field including television viewers who are now quite well aware of his name. These...

With the final four matches of the tournament remaining, the FIFA Referees’ Committee had it’s decisive moment and sat down to decide which officiating crews would remain in Brazil. Brazil, Germany, Argentina and Netherlands’ respective national football teams are the sole survivors of the competition right now but the same cannot be said of their referee representatives other than Brazil’s Sandro Ricci. The dreaded moment in the conference room then came. Crews called up one by one to be congratulated by select dignitaries on their work during the tournament but it meant only one thing. They were going home. The anticipation, the nervousness and the fear must have run through every referee’s mind on their past performances and to...

The 2009 season ended on both a great and a sour note. I was appointed along with my mentor, WB, to the Schools U19 Boys Cup final. The home team had also progressed to this fixture and it was an anticipated match happening at the nearby school. The match played with very little controversy, if any, and ended with a positive result for the away team. The sour note at the end of the season was that my mentor, WB, was moving on and leaving the school and country and as was unfortunate, all good things come to an end. He’s still in contact with me on the bright side and following my progress! I spent the next year starting my own refereeing initiative with MS called the ‘Football Refereeing Club’ to find others interested and getting...

A recent Google home page banner. How many people is this true for? or is it more like…? This week has been more or less busy. I had the first day off and thank goodness. I needed it to recover off such an energy sapping/draining game on Sunday from Game #4. It was a good day of recovery. Tuesday Tuesday was meant to be off too until I received a blast e-mail in the afternoon from an assignor looking for a ref elsewhere. I looked at the location and didn’t think much about it since it was far away. There was another e-mail two hours later. I did take a peek at it and saw it was just outside my usual boundary of accessibility (I would lose money on the game). Later after work, it was still on my mind. It had been a tiring day...

I consider this Game #4 this season because these games qualify me as being active. It was no ordinary appointment either. I won’t lie to you here. I was definitely nervous pre-match. It was set to be a highly competitive match. All Cup matches are because there must be a winner and only one team will prevail. Sunday was match day and there was nothing else on my schedule, on purpose, to do otherwise. This gave me perfect planning time. Pre-Match I woke up with plenty of time ahead of me planned with meals and a timeline of what I wanted to get done before the game. Only three hours before, I could feel the blood pumping and a bit of adrenaline. I was nervous! I was also very excited. I began listening to some music or rather my...

The idea of this post came from Week 22 Part 2. I was chatting with a referee colleague who discussed how he felt before a game and how he has done his best to change how he comes into a game from now on so that it wouldn’t affect his officiating. Spelt out, he meant Mental Preparation. This is something always on my mind in the build-up to a game and I have found matters even more as the calibre and competition level of games increase. I need to be in a better mental state prior to the game in order to perform to the best of my abilities. I have found both sides of the coin when I have had great mental preparation and a clean slate and the opposite where even my own ARs have distracted me and my frame of mind wasn’t clear entering...

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A well talked about incident but if you found this through Google, it’s very likely you will not find what you are looking for. This post does not focus on the accuracy of the decision. Yuichi Nishimura (JAP) had the honour of officiating the opening match of the 2014 Brazil FIFA World Cup. I admired his officiating style throughout the match and one decision of his match was not forgotten. The penalty incident involving the Brazilian, Fred. Have a look. I think it’s fair to say, point-blank, that this wasn’t a penalty. The yellow attacker falls with minimal contact and appeals. If you are wondering how this could have happened, see The Third Team’s explanation...

I’m starting this post off with a picture of the Mexican coach, Miguel Herrera. Cuneyt Cakir had played an advantage off a Brazil foul and called it back because it failed to materialise. There were then appeals for a caution for the Brazil offender and the coach asking for a card. Here it is and my first GIF! Of course I don’t condone him asking for a card since it is not his responsibility nor right. I have to say that I had a good chuckle off this one because his shrug and calm-ask was quirky and overall, not pushy. Mens Cup line went well. I always seem to be assigned to the touchline with the most crucial decisions. Somehow always… I had several crucial no-offside decisions to make which upset the defenders. I’m sure they...

So if you already haven’t checked our JGMA’s website, you should! This detail is so awesome on all the posted documents with all the research and comparison to animal body language as well. http://www.garcia-aranda.com/eng/?page_id=2139 The Ultimate Referee Notice that body language is an important part. Laws of the Game Body language Body language is a tool that the referee uses to: • help him control the match • show authority and self-control Body language is not: • an explanation of a decision This is best explained by the video in the previous part. Other Links on Body Language A GREAT source is the Bucks Referees Association who posted a document. The original link is this but I have re-hosted it on this domain so...