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1 December 2018 Final Spain – Mexico Referee: Marie-Soleil Beaudoin (CAN, photo) Assistant Referee 1: Princess Brown (JAM) Assistant Referee 2: Stephanie Yee Sing (JAM) Fourth Official: Maria Carvajal (CHI) Reserve AR: Sarah Jones (NZL) Match for Third Place New Zealand – Canada Referee: Riem Hussein (GER) Assistant Referee 1: Kylie Cockburn (SCO) Assistant Referee 2: Mihaela Tepusa (ROU) Fourth Official: Salima Mukansanga (RWA) Reserve AR: Oleksandra Ardasheva (UKR)

Mexican referee Adalid Maganda has begun a hunger strike outside the headquarters of the country's Football Federation (Femexfut) in protest at his dismissal. After being sacked in April, Maganda attempted to return to his job but did not reach an agreement with the country's referees commission for his reinstatement. The 34-year-old, who originates from the town of Huehuetan in the state of Guerrero, accused the referee commission of racism and discrimination. He said Arturo Brizio, president of that commission, insulted him for both his skin color and his height. The last game Maganda took part in was on Jan. 16 as a fourth official. He has set up camp outside the Femexfut headquarters and is refusing to eat until he gets his job back. "I'm not fighting for money," Maganda told local media. "I'm just fighting for fairness and dignity. I want my job back as what I achieved I earned by putting in a lot of effort on the pitch, without getting any gifts fro...

21 November 2018 USA – Mexico Referee: Ivan Barton (SLV, photo) Assistant Referee 1: Chantal Boudreau (CAN) Assistant Referee 2: Jassett Kerr (JAM) Fourth Official: Kimbell Ward (SKN)

29 November 2018 Vorskla Poltava – Arsenal Referee: Bartosz Frankowski (POL, photo) Assistant Referee 1: Marcin Boniek (POL) Assistant Referee 2: Dawid Golis (POL) Fourth Official: Adam Kupsik (POL) Additional AR 1: Daniel Stefański (POL) Additional AR 2: Zbigniew Dobrynin (POL) Referee Observer: Eugen Strigel (GER) Spartak Moskva – Rapid Wien Referee: Paweł Gil (POL) Assistant Referee 1: Konrad Sapela (POL) Assistant Referee 2: Marcin Borkowski (POL) Fourth Official: Krzysztof Myrmus (POL) Additional AR 1: Krzysztof Jakubik (POL) Additional AR 2: Piotr Lasyk (POL) Referee Observer: Salustià Ciprés (AND) Astana – Dynamo Kyiv Referee: Ivan Bebek (CRO) Assistant Referee 1: Tomislav Petrović (CRO) Assistant Referee 2: Miro Grgić (CRO) Fourth Official: Goran Pataki (CRO) Additional AR 1: Mario Zebec (CRO) Additional AR 2: Goran Gabrilo (CRO) Referee Observer: Asim Xudiyev (AZE) FC Zürich – AEK Larnaca Referee: Aleksey Eskov (RUS) Assistant Referee 1: Dmitri Mosyakin (RUS) Assistant Referee...

28 November 2018 Mexico – Canada Referee: Anastasia Pustovoitova (RUS, photo) Assistant Referee 1: Ekaterina Kurochkina (RUS) Assistant Referee 2: Maria Sukenikova (SVK) Fourth Official: Sandra Braz (POR) Reserve AR: Mariana Almeida (ARG) New Zealand – Spain Referee: Yoshimi Yamashita (JPN) Assistant Referee 1: Naomi Teshirogi (JPN) Assistant Referee 2: Makoto Bozono (JPN) Fourth Official: Laura Fortunato (ARG) Reserve AR: Mary Blanco (COL)

27 November 2018 AS Roma – Real Madrid Referee: Clément Turpin (FRA, photo) Assistant Referee 1: Nicolas Danos (FRA) Assistant Referee 2: Cyril Gringore (FRA) Fourth Official: Hicham Zakrani (FRA) Additional AR 1: Ruddy Buquet (FRA) Additional AR 2: Nicolas Rainville (FRA) Referee Observer: William Young (SCO) AEK Athens – AFC Ajax Referee: Michael Oliver (ENG) Assistant Referee 1: Stuart Burt (ENG) Assistant Referee 2: Simon Bennett (ENG) Fourth Official: Stephen Child (ENG) Additional AR 1: Paul Tierney (ENG) Additional AR 2: Andre Marriner (ENG) Referee Observer: Haim Jakov (ISR) CSKA Moskva – Viktoria Plzeň Referee: Danny Makkelie (NED) Assistant Referee 1: Mario Diks (NED) Assistant Referee 2: Hessel Steegstra (NED) Fourth Official: Rob van de Ven (NED) Additional AR 1: Kevin Blom (NED) Additional AR 2: Jochem Kamphuis (NED) Referee Observer: Karen Nalbandyan (ARM) Bayern München – SL Benfica Referee: Daniele Orsato (ITA) Assistant Referee 1: Lorenzo Manganelli (ITA) Assistant Ref...

The problem with chasing perfection is that it doesn’t exist. That’s what I feel like we’re doing with Video Assistant Referees in football right now. VAR was introduced because the football community weren’t willing to trust referees or accept mistakes anymore. The new technology was supposed to make everything clear-cut. It was supposed to stop the howlers. Well, when you look at the media scrutiny of VAR since it was introduced, we seem to be ‘debating’ refereeing decisions more than ever before. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not against the use of technology, but it seems that we haven’t fixed a single thing. In fact, even when the right call has been made by VAR – as we saw with the Wanderers’ disallowed goal in the Sydney Derby – people still aren’t happy. I heard people argue that the technology shouldn’t have been used or that it wasn’t a foul or that Zullo ‘wouldn’t have got there anyway’. At the end of the day, the officials made a ruling. Michael was impeded by Jaushua Sotirio who...

27-28 November 2018 AS Roma – Real Madrid Referee: Fedayi San (SUI, photo) Assistant Referee 1: Jean-Yves Wicht (SUI) Assistant Referee 2: Carmine Sangiovanni (SUI) Fourth Official: Francesco Fourneau (ITA) Referee Observer: Matteo Trefoloni (ITA) CSKA Moskva – Viktoria Plzeň Referee: Aleksandr Aliyev (KAZ) Assistant Referee 1: Yevgeni Karlov (KAZ) Assistant Referee 2: Anton Sysoyev (KAZ) Fourth Official: Aleksandra Ponomareva (RUS) Referee Observer: Nikolay Ivanov (RUS) AEK Athens – AFC Ajax Referee: Trustin Farrugia Cann (MLT) Assistant Referee 1: Roberto Vella (MLT) Assistant Referee 2: Christopher Francalanza (MLT) Fourth Official: Aristotélis Diamandópoulos (GRE) Referee Observer: Ioánnis Tsachilídis (GRE) Manchester United – Young Boys Referee: Robert Harvey (IRL) Assistant Referee 1: Emmett Dynan (IRL) Assistant Referee 2: Mark Gavin (IRL) Fourth Official: Anthony Backhouse (ENG) Referee Observer: Stephen Lodge (ENG) TSG Hoffenheim – Shakhtar Donetsk Referee: Christophe Pires (L...

27-28 November 2018 GNK Dinamo – FC Astana Referee: Pavel Orel (CZE, photo) Assistant Referee 1: Radek Kotík (CZE) Assistant Referee 2: Petr Caletka (CZE) Fourth Official: Ivan Vučković (CRO) Referee Observer: Dragutin Poljak (CRO) Dynamo Kyiv – RSC Anderlecht Referee: Dzianis Ščarbakoŭ (BLR) Assistant Referee 1: Juryj Chomčanka (BLR) Assistant Referee 2: Anton Husieŭ (BLR) Fourth Official: Denys Shurman (UKR) Referee Observer: Volodymyr Petrov (UKR) FC Minsk – PAOK Referee: Dejan Jakimovski (MKD) Assistant Referee 1: Dejan Nedelkoski (MKD) Assistant Referee 2: Daniel Vasilevski (MKD) Fourth Official: Anton Lašuk (BLR) Referee Observer: Alieh Čykun (BLR) Hertha BSC – Qabala FK Referee: Ferenc Karakó (HUN) Assistant Referee 1: Tibor Csatári (HUN) Assistant Referee 2: Norbert Bornemissza (HUN) Fourth Official: Lasse Koslowski (GER) Referee Observer: Edgar Steinborn (GER) Chelsea – Elfsborg Referee: Kristoffer Hagenes (NOR) Assistant Referee 1: Anders Dale (NOR) Assistant Referee 2: R...

24 November 2018 Spain – Korea DPR Referee: Katalin Kulcsar (HUN, photo) Assistant Referee 1: Katalin Török (HUN) Assistant Referee 2: Lucie Ratajova (CZE) Fourth Official: Sandra Braz (POR) Reserve AR: Oleksandra Ardasheva (UKR) Japan – New Zealand Referee: Ekaterina Koroleva (USA) Assistant Referee 1: Felisha Mariscal (USA) Assistant Referee 2: Deleana Quan (USA) Fourth Official: Lucila Venegas (MEX) Reserve AR: Stephanie Yee Sing (JAM) 25 November 2018 Ghana – Mexico Referee: Maria Carvajal (CHI) Assistant Referee 1: Leslie Vasquez (CHI) Assistant Referee 2: Loreto Toloza (CHI) Fourth Official: Laura Fortunato (ARG) Reserve AR: Rocio Puente Pino (ESP) Germany – Canada Referee: Salima Mukansanga (RWA) Assistant Referee 1: Fanta Kone (MLI) Assistant Referee 2: Bielignin Some (BFA) Fourth Official: Yoshimi Yamashita (JPN) Reserve AR: Sarah Jones (NZL)

The FIFA Referees Committee has announced a number of changes to the list of match officials who will officiate at the FIFA Club World Cup UAE 2018, which takes place from 12-22 December 2018:  - Bamlak Tessema (Ethiopia) has been appointed as a referee representing the CAF region. He replaces Mehdi Abid Charef (Algeria). - Zakhele Siwela (South Africa) and Waleed Ahmed (Sudan) have been appointed as assistant referees for the tournament. They replace Abdelhak Etchiali (Algeria) and Anouar Hmila (Tunisia). All of the selected match officials will arrive in Abu Dhabi on 6 December 2018 to complete their final preparations before the first match kicks off. The FIFA Club World Cup UAE 2018 will be held in Abu Dhabi and Al Ain from 12 to 22 December 2018. The final will be played at the Zayed Sports City Stadium in Abu Dhabi on 22 December. ( Source: FIFA ) AFC Referee: Ryuji Sato (JPN, 1977) Assistant Referee 1: Toru Sagara (JPN, 1976) Assistant Referee 2: Hiroshi Yamauchi (JPN, 1979...

The 133rd Annual Business Meeting of the International Football Association Board took place in Glasgow, Scotland, chaired by Ian Maxwell, Chief Executive of the Scottish FA. The event saw positive feedback received on the changes to the Laws of the Game for 2018/19 and an agreement to recommend additional changes to the Laws of the Game 2019/20 at the AGM in March 2019, including a change to the dropped ball procedure and goalkeepers only being required to have one foot on the goal-line when a penalty kick is taken. The ABM is designed to evaluate proposals related to potential changes of the Laws of the Game and to make recommendations for The IFAB’s consideration at its next Annual General Meeting (AGM). Some of today’s discussions focused on the positive feedback received by The IFAB Advisory Panels that met earlier this month to discuss ongoing experiments in the following areas: •substitutes having to leave the field of play at the nearest boundary line •yellow and red cards for ...

Virgil van Dijk took time to console bereaved referee Ovidiu Hategan following the Netherlands 2-2 draw with Germany on Monday. The Dutch captain scored a 90th-minute equaliser in Gelsenkirchen to ensure his side finished top of Group A1 and sealed their place in the UEFA Nations League Finals. However, instead of immediately celebrating with his team-mates at full-time, Van Dijk went to speak with Romanian official Hategan, who can be seen wiping away tears as the Liverpool defender embraced him and offered words of encouragement following a family bereavement. "The ref had just lost his mother," Van Dijk told Fox Sports after the match. "He broke down with tears in his eyes. I told him to stay strong and that he had refereed well. It's a small thing, but maybe it helps him". The gesture has impressed journalists and fans. “Referee Ovidiu Hategan recently lost his mother. Right after the FT whistle Virgil van Dijk went towards him to comfort him, while crying. ...

CAF have provisionally suspended Zambian referee Janny Sikazwe on suspicion of corruption following the way he handled the CAF Champions League match that Esperance won 4-2 in Rades. It is not yet clear if Sikazwe has filed an appeal with the CAF Appeals Board. “The chairman of the CAF Disciplinary Board decided that there is good ground to hold a hearing regarding allegations of corruption made against Mr. Janny Sikazwe”, reads the ruling of the Disciplinary Board. “Janny Sikazwe is provisionally suspended from all football activities related to CAF pending a hearing before the Disciplinary Board”. Sikazwe, who refereed at the 2018 FIFA World Cup, awarded a controversial penalty kick which led to Esperance’s first goal after adjudging Algerian forward Mohamed Belaili to have been fouled by Agosto defender Jose Macaia. In the second half, Agosto thought they had buried the contest but Bobo Ungenda’s goal was disallowed after Esperance goalkeeper Rami Jridi was ruled to have been pushed...

The third UEFA seminar for VAR is taking place in Istanbul (Turkey), from 20 to 23 November 2018. UEFA selected 12 out of the 24 referees who attended the first two VAR seminars in Netherlands and Spain. VAR Instructors 1. Massimiliano Irrati (ITA) 2. Juan Martinez Munuera (ESP) 3. Jose Sanchez Martinez (ESP) 4. Huseyin Gocek (TUR) Referees 1. Aleksei Kulbakov (BLR) 2. Georgi Kabakov (BUL) 3. Petr Ardeleanu (CZE) 4. Stuart Attwell (ENG) 5. Anthony Taylor (ENG) 6. Orel Grinfeeld (ISR) 7. Andris Treimanis (LVA) 8. Ovidiu Hategan (ROU) 9. Istvan Kovacs (ROU) 10. Robert Madden (SCO) 11. Ivan Kruzliak (SVK) 12. Slavco Vincic (SVN) Assistant Referees 1. Aleh Maslianka (BLR) 2. Dzmitry Zhuk (BLR) 3. Martin Margaritov (BUL) 4. Diyan Valkov (BUL) 5. Gary Beswick (ENG) 6. Adam Nunn (ENG) 7. Roy Hassan (ISR) 8. Idan Yarkoni (ISR) 9. Haralds Gudermanis (LVA) 10. Aleksejs Spasjonnikovs (LVA) 11. Sebastian Gheorghe (ROU) 12. Octavian Sovre (ROU) 13. Ovidiu Artene (ROU) 14. Vasile Marinescu (ROU) 15...

21 November 2018 Spain – Canada Referee: Anastasia Pustovoitova (RUS, photo) Assistant Referee 1: Ekaterina Kurochkina (RUS) Assistant Referee 2: Nicolet Bakker (NED) Fourth Official: Maria Carvajal (CHI) Colombia – Korea Referee: Sandra Braz (POR) Assistant Referee 1: Rocio Puente Pino (ESP) Assistant Referee 2: Oleksandra Ardasheva (UKR) Fourth Official: Lucila Venegas (MEX) Germany – USA Referee: Laura Fortunato (ARG) Assistant Referee 1: Mariana Almeida (ARG) Assistant Referee 2: Nilda Gamarra (PAR) Fourth Official: Maria Carvajal (CHI) Cameroon – Korea DPR Referee: Marie-Soleil Beaudoin (CAN) Assistant Referee 1: Princess Brown (JAM) Assistant Referee 2: Stephanie Yee Sing (JAM) Fourth Official: Lucila Venegas (MEX)

A surprising proposal is expected to be put up for discussion which would mean that penalty kicks are “one shot” – and that there will be no rebounds if the kick is saved or strikes the goal-frame and bounces back into play. If such a change was made it would mean that the ball would be deemed “dead” once the keeper had blocked the penalty and a goal kick would be awarded. It would be the same as in kicks from the penalty mark and would do away with the problem of players encroaching. The change would be controversial and comes under the second category of proposals to be discussed. The IFAB panel comprises the four home associations, which have one vote each, and FIFA, which has four votes. Law changes require at least six votes, but this meeting is only to decide what to take forward to the IFAB’s annual general meeting in March. There appears to be a far greater consensus that the handball law is unsatisfactory. In the Laws of the Game under Law 12, Fouls and Misconduct, it is state...

20 November 2018 South Africa – Brazil Referee: Riem Hussein (GER, photo) Assistant Referee 1: Kylie Cockburn (SCO) Assistant Referee 2: Mihaela Tepusa (ROU) Fourth Official: Ekaterina Koroleva (USA) Japan – Mexico Referee: Salima Mukansanga (RWA) Assistant Referee 1: Fanta Kone (MLI) Assistant Referee 2: Bielignin Some (BFA) Fourth Official: Katalin Kulcsar (HUN) Ghana – New Zealand Referee: Sara Persson (SWE) Assistant Referee 1: Julia Magnusson (SWE) Assistant Referee 2: Lisa Rashid (ENG) Fourth Official: Ekaterina Koroleva (USA) Finland – Uruguay Referee: Casey Reibelt (AUS) Assistant Referee 1: Lee Seul Gi (KOR) Assistant Referee 2: Sarah Jones (NZL) Fourth Official: Katalin Kulcsar (HUN)

16-18 November 2018 Egypt – Tunisia Referee: Victor Gomes (RSA, photo) Assistant Referee 1: Zakhele Siwela (RSA) Assistant Referee 2: Johannes Moshidi (RSA) South Africa – Nigeria Referee: Bakary Gassama (GAM) Assistant Referee 1: Sulayman Sosseh (GAM) Assistant Referee 2: Omar Darboe (GAM) Morocco – Cameroon Referee: Eric Otogo-Castane (GAB) Assistant Referee 1: Moussounda Montel (GAB) Assistant Referee 2: Theophile Vinga (GAB) South Sudan – Burundi Referee: Souleiman Djamal (DJI) Assistant Referee 1: Farhan Salime (DJI) Assistant Referee 2: Salah Abdi (DJI) Comoros – Malawi Referee: Louis Hakizimana (RWA) Assistant Referee 1: Ambroise Hakizimana (RWA) Assistant Referee 2: Zephanie Niyonkuru (RWA) Uganda – Cape Verde Referee: Youssef Essrayri (TUN) Assistant Referee 1: Yamen Malloulchi (TUN) Assistant Referee 2: Jridi Faouzi (TUN) Gabon – Mali Referees: El Fadil Hussein (SDN) Assistant Referee 1: Waleed Ahmed (SDN) Assistant Referee 2: Mohammed Ibrahim (SDN) Namibia – Guinea Bissau R...

Ghana, 17 November – 1 December 2018 Referees 1. Adia Cisse (SEN) 2. Bernadettar Kwimbira (MWI) 3. Bouchra Karboubi (MAR) 4. Diana Chikotesha (ZAM) 5. Fatiha Jermoumi (MAR) 6. Fatou Thioune (SEN) 7. Gladys Lengwe (ZAM, photo) 8. Jonesia Kabakama (TAN) 9. Mireille Mujanayi (COD) 10. Denise Akoua (CIV) 11. Lettitia Viana (EFA) 12. Lidwine Rakotozafinoro (MAD) 13. Lidya Tafesse (ETH) 14. Mary Njoroge (KEN) 15. Mimisen Iyorhe (NGA) 16. Mona Mahmoud (EGY)

18-20 November 2018 League A England – Croatia Referee: Anastasios Sidiropoulos (GRE, photo) Assistant Referee 1: Polychronis Kostaras (GRE) Assistant Referee 2: Lázaros Dimitriadis (GRE) Fourth Official: Damianos Efthymiadis (GRE) Additional AR 1: Anastasios Papapetrou (GRE) Additional AR 2: Ioannis Papadopoulos (GRE) Referee Observer: Herbert Fandel (GER) Switzerland – Belgium Referee: Daniele Orsato (ITA) Assistant Referee 1: Lorenzo Manganelli (ITA) Assistant Referee 2: Fabiano Preti (ITA) Fourth Official: Giorgio Peretti (ITA) Additional AR 1: Paolo Mazzoleni (ITA) Additional AR 2: Piero Giacomelli (ITA) Referee Observer: Miroslav Liba (CZE) Germany – Netherlands Referee: Ovidiu Hațegan (ROU) Assistant Referee 1: Octavian Șovre (ROU) Assistant Referee 2: Sebastian Gheorghe (ROU) Fourth Official: Radu Ghinguleac (ROU) Additional AR 1: Radu Petrescu (ROU) Additional AR 2: Sebastian Colțescu (ROU) Referee Observer: Marcel Vanelshocht (BEL) Portugal – Poland Referee: Sergey Karasev (R...

20 November 2018 Portugal – Poland Referee: Davide Massa (ITA, photo) Assistant Referee 1: Mauro Tonolini (ITA) Assistant Referee 2: Stefano Alassio (ITA) Fourth Official: Fabio Maresca (ITA) Referee Observer: Bertrand Layec (FRA) Austria – Greece Referee: Craig Pawson (ENG) Assistant Referee 1: Lee Betts (ENG) Assistant Referee 2: Ian Hussin (ENG) Fourth Official: Christopher Kavanagh (ENG) Referee Observer: Alexandru Deaconu (ROU)

17 November 2018 Korea – Canada Referee: Maria Carvajal (CHI, photo) Assistant Referee 1: Leslie Vásquez (CHI) Assistant Referee 2: Loreto Toloza (CHI) Fourth Official: Casey Reibelt (AUS) USA – Korea DPR Referee: Katalin Kulcsár (HUN) Assistant Referee 1: Katalin Török (HUN) Assistant Referee 2: Lucie Ratajová (CZE) Fourth Official: Anastasia Pustovoitova (RUS) Colombia – Spain Referee: Yoshimi Yamashita (JPN) Assistant Referee 1: Naomi Teshirogi (JPN) Assistant Referee 2: Makoto Bozono (JPN) Fourth Official: Casey Reibelt (AUS) Germany – Cameroon Referee: Lucila Venegas (MEX) Assistant Referee 1: Mayte Chavez (MEX) Assistant Referee 2: Enedina Caudillo (MEX) Fourth Official: Anastasia Pustovoitova (RUS)

A tumble to the turf, a rush of blood, a lashing out, and a long career unravels in an instant. Tony Chapron speaks calmly now, as he looks back on the "nightmare" moment that essentially cost him his job as a referee in the French top flight. But he still has regrets. It all happened back in January, during a Ligue 1 fixture between Nantes and Paris St-Germain. Kylian Mbappe was breaking clear and everyone was racing back behind him, including Chapron. He and Nantes player Diego Carlos collided. Chapron was inadvertently knocked over. Staggering to his feet, Chapron swung a boot at the defender. Then he sent the defender off. Most likely you will have seen the clip - Chapron says it feels like the whole world saw it. The footage went viral and he was heavily criticised on social media. He was banned for six months by the French Football Federation and then decided to end his career as referee. "I didn't want to kick him", he tells the BBC's World Football P...