2006 FIFA World Cup officials
Encyclopedia
Match officials for the 2006 FIFA World Cup
were nominated by the six confederations to FIFA
, who, after a series of tests in Frankfurt
/Neu-Isenburg
in March 2006, selected 23 referees and a support and development group of a further 5, from a shortlist of 44.
Kyros Vassaras
of Greece and Manuel Mejuto of Spain were selected to be on the panel, but the assistants who were to make up their teams were not deemed to have reached the required standards, and so they were replaced by Roberto Rosetti
and Luis Medina
. Jamaican referee Peter Prendergast
was selected for the tournament panel, but suffered a knee injury and was removed from the list without replacement. Massimo De Santis
of Italy was also on the panel of 23 referees, but after he was implicated in the Serie A
match-fixing allegations, he was withdrawn by the Italian Football Federation and not replaced.
The 21 referees, along with their assistants and the support group, are based in Neu-Isenburg
for the duration of the tournament. FIFA announces the referees selected for each fixture three days in advance of the match.
Horacio Elizondo was chosen to officiate the final match, which took place in Berlin
on July 9.
Most teams (consisting of a referee and two assistants) are drawn from the same nation, and all are made up of officials from the same confederation. In the first round of the tournament, officials other than from UEFA member associations only operate in groups that do not include a representative of their confederation.
Mexico is the only country with 2 referees on the panel.
For the first time at a World Cup, match officials will be equipped with microphones and earpieces so they can communicate better with each other during each game. Furthermore this World Cup sees the introduction of a fifth official who can be called upon to replace an injured assistant referee. The fourth official would replace the referee..
It is notable that the referees remaining had a lower average number of cards given per match (5.21) than the referee pool as a whole (5.82). Nine of the ten referees with the lowest number of cards per match were chosen to stay.
This was met with criticism, however, as the referees could also be politically chosen. FIFA wanted to ensure that at least 1 referee from each continent within the final shortlist.
2006 FIFA World Cup
The 2006 FIFA World Cup was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which won the right to host the event in July 2000. Teams representing 198 national football associations from all six...
were nominated by the six confederations to FIFA
FIFA
The Fédération Internationale de Football Association , commonly known by the acronym FIFA , is the international governing body of :association football, futsal and beach football. Its headquarters are located in Zurich, Switzerland, and its president is Sepp Blatter, who is in his fourth...
, who, after a series of tests in Frankfurt
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
/Neu-Isenburg
Neu-Isenburg
The “Huguenot Town” of Neu-Isenburg with its outlying centres of Gravenbruch and Zeppelinheim is found in the Offenbach district in the Regierungsbezirk of Darmstadt in Hesse, Germany, right near Frankfurt am Main...
in March 2006, selected 23 referees and a support and development group of a further 5, from a shortlist of 44.
Kyros Vassaras
Kyros Vassaras
Kyros Vassaras is a Greek former professional football referee. Outside of refereeing, he works as a travel agent in Thessaloniki, Greece. Vassaras is also a linguist; he is able to speak Greek, German, English and Spanish....
of Greece and Manuel Mejuto of Spain were selected to be on the panel, but the assistants who were to make up their teams were not deemed to have reached the required standards, and so they were replaced by Roberto Rosetti
Roberto Rosetti
Roberto Rosetti is a former Italian football referee. He is fluent in Italian, English and French. He started refereeing in 1983, and took charge of his first match in the Italian Serie A in 1996. He received his FIFA Badge in 2002...
and Luis Medina
Luis Medina Cantalejo
Luis Medina Cantalejo is a retired Spanish football referee.Professionally, Medina Cantalejo is a sports assessor who lives in Tomares, west of Seville. He was one of the few officials allowed to officiate the domestic clashes between Real Madrid and Barcelona...
. Jamaican referee Peter Prendergast
Peter Prendergast (referee)
Peter Prendergast is a football referee from Jamaica. A FIFA referee since January 1, 1994, his first international match was USA against Ireland, on June 9, 1996...
was selected for the tournament panel, but suffered a knee injury and was removed from the list without replacement. Massimo De Santis
Massimo De Santis
Massimo De Santis is an Italian football referee, who was banned until 2011 for match-fixing in the 2006 Serie A scandal. Before the allegations, De Santis was well respected and officiated many high profile Italian Serie A and international games...
of Italy was also on the panel of 23 referees, but after he was implicated in the Serie A
Serie A
Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...
match-fixing allegations, he was withdrawn by the Italian Football Federation and not replaced.
The 21 referees, along with their assistants and the support group, are based in Neu-Isenburg
Neu-Isenburg
The “Huguenot Town” of Neu-Isenburg with its outlying centres of Gravenbruch and Zeppelinheim is found in the Offenbach district in the Regierungsbezirk of Darmstadt in Hesse, Germany, right near Frankfurt am Main...
for the duration of the tournament. FIFA announces the referees selected for each fixture three days in advance of the match.
Horacio Elizondo was chosen to officiate the final match, which took place in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
on July 9.
Refereeing teams
Below are the details of the 21 groups of match officials in the 2006 FIFA World Cup. For assistants, a flag is only shown if his nationality varies from that of the referee with whom he is grouped.Most teams (consisting of a referee and two assistants) are drawn from the same nation, and all are made up of officials from the same confederation. In the first round of the tournament, officials other than from UEFA member associations only operate in groups that do not include a representative of their confederation.
Mexico is the only country with 2 referees on the panel.
For the first time at a World Cup, match officials will be equipped with microphones and earpieces so they can communicate better with each other during each game. Furthermore this World Cup sees the introduction of a fifth official who can be called upon to replace an injured assistant referee. The fourth official would replace the referee..
| Referee | Assistants | Matches |  Red cards |
 Yellow cards |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Essam Abd El FatahEssam Abd El Fatah Essam Abd El Fatah is an Egyptian football referee. Abd El Fatah has been a referee since 2001; his first international game was between Morocco and Sierra Leone in 2003. He was the referee for the match between Australia and Japan in the 2006 FIFA World Cup... |
D. Dante  M. Ndoye  |
Group F: vs. | 0 | 7 |
 Carlos AmarillaCarlos Amarilla Carlos Arecio Amarilla Demarqui is a football referee from Paraguay. Amarilla has been a referee since 1997 and his first international game was between Uruguay and Ecuador... |
A. Andino M. Bernal |
Group E: vs Group G: vs Group H: vs |
1 | 18 |
 Benito ArchundiaBenito Archundia Benito Armando Archundia Téllez is a retired Mexican football referee. He is known in Mexico as Armando Archundia, but appears as Benito Archundia in FIFA records. He has been a professional referee since 1985 and has had his FIFA referee permission since 1993... |
J. Ramirez H. Vergara  |
Group F: vs Group G: vs Group E: vs Round 2: vs Semifinal: vs |
1 | 14 |
 Massimo BusaccaMassimo Busacca Massimo Busacca is a Swiss former football referee. He lives in Monte Carasso, Ticino, near Bellinzona, and is also the proprietor of a business.... |
F. Buragina M. Arnet |
Group H: vs Group B: vs Round 2: vs |
1 | 11 |
 Coffi CodjiaCoffi Codjia Coffi Codjia is a Beninese football referee.An international referee since 1994, Codjia was a referee at the FIFA World Cup in 2002 and 2006, the FIFA Confederations Cup in 1999 and 2003 and the African Cup of Nations in 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008, in which he was the referee for the final, and... |
C. Ntagungira  A. Aderodjou |
Group A: vs Group H: vs |
0 | 10 |
 Frank De BleeckereFrank De Bleeckere Frank De Bleeckere is a Belgian football referee. He has been a referee since 1984, and an international official since 1998... |
P. Hermans W. Vromans |
Group C: vs Group F: vs Round 2: vs Quarterfinal: vs |
0 | 19 |
 Horacio ElizondoHoracio Elizondo Horacio Marcelo Elizondo is a former Argentine international football referee best known for his officiation throughout the 2006 FIFA World Cup... |
D. Garcia R. Otero |
Group A: vs Group E: vs Group G: vs Quarterfinal: vs Final: vs |
3 | 24 |
 Valentin Ivanov |
N. Golubev E. Volnin |
Group G: vs Group A: vs Round 2: vs |
4 | 26 |
 Toru KamikawaToru Kamikawa is a former Japanese football referee, debuting in Japan's professional J. League in 1996.Kamikawa was born in Kagoshima, Kagoshima Prefecture... |
Y. Hiroshima Kim Dae Young  |
Group A: vs Group B: vs Third Place play-off: vs |
0 | 14 |
 Jorge LarriondaJorge Larrionda Jorge Luis Larrionda Pietrafesa is a FIFA football referee from Uruguay who has officiated at international matches since 1998. He is currently one of the world's top referees, having had the highest moment of his career during the 2006 FIFA World Cup, in which he officiated four matches,... |
W. Rial P. Fandino |
Group D: vs Group E: vs Group G: vs Semifinal: vs |
3 | 15 |
 Shamsul MaidinShamsul Maidin Shamsul Maidin is an association football referee from Singapore.A physiotherapist by profession, Shamsul gave up his practice to become a full time member of the Football Association of Singapore in his role as referee's executive... |
P. Permpanich  E. Ghuloum  |
Group B: vs Group D: vs Group A: vs |
2 | 20 |
 Luis Medina CantalejoLuis Medina Cantalejo Luis Medina Cantalejo is a retired Spanish football referee.Professionally, Medina Cantalejo is a sports assessor who lives in Tomares, west of Seville. He was one of the few officials allowed to officiate the domestic clashes between Real Madrid and Barcelona... |
V. Giraldez P. Medina |
Group A: vs Group C: vs Round 2: vs Quarterfinal: vs |
2 | 25 |
 Markus MerkMarkus Merk Dr. Markus Merk is a former top-level German football referee. He is a six-time winner of the German Referee of the Year Award and the record holder in games refereed in the Bundesliga. In 2005, Merk was awarded the German Bundesverdienstkreuz in recognition of his service to football and his... |
C. Schraer J.-H. Salver |
Group C: vs Group F: vs Group E: vs |
0 | 16 |
 Ľuboš MicheľLuboš Michel Ľuboš Micheľ is a former top-level Slovak football referee.Micheľ became a FIFA referee at the age of 25. One big milestone in his career was refereeing the 2003 UEFA Cup Final between Porto and Celtic... |
R. Slysko M. Balko |
Group B: vs Group D: vs Round 2: vs Quarterfinal: vs |
3 | 32 |
 Graham PollGraham Poll Graham Poll is an English former football referee in the Premier League and is considered the best English referee of the last 25 years in a list maintained by the International Federation of Football History and Statistics... |
P. Sharp G. Turner |
Group G: vs Group H: vs Group F: vs |
4 | 20 |
 Eric PoulatEric Poulat Éric Poulat is a French retired football referee and computer scientist, who has been a referee since 1 January 1999. He made his international debut on 28 March 2001 , and was called to officiate matches at the 2006 FIFA World Cup.He retired internationally in 2006.-External links:**... |
L. Dagorne V. Texier |
Group D: vs Group F: vs |
0 | 9 |
| Marco Rodríguez |
J. Camargo L. Leal  |
Group B: vs Group C: vs |
2 | 12 |
 Roberto RosettiRoberto Rosetti Roberto Rosetti is a former Italian football referee. He is fluent in Italian, English and French. He started refereeing in 1983, and took charge of his first match in the Italian Serie A in 1996. He received his FIFA Badge in 2002... |
C. Copelli A. Stagnoli |
Group D: vs Group C: vs Group B: vs Round 2: vs |
1 | 15 |
 Oscar RuizOscar Ruiz Óscar Julián Ruiz Acosta is a Colombian football referee. He is also a lawyer.He has been a referee since 1 January 1995, and his international debut was on 12 July 1995 . He officiated in the 2002, 2006 and 2010 FIFA World Cups.His decision was criticized in the Netherlands vs... |
F. Tamayo  J. Navia |
Group C: vs | 0 | 7 |
 Mark ShieldMark Shield Mark Shield is a former Australian Football referee. He most recently refereed in Australia's A-League. He first played soccer for the Innisfail Tigers at the age of six. Not showing much promise as a player, he began refereeing at age 12, and by 16 was officiating adult matches in Townsville... |
N. Gibson B. Wilson |
Group H: vs Group D: vs |
0 | 10 |
 Carlos SimonCarlos Eugênio Simon Carlos Eugênio Simon is a ex-FIFA football referee from Brazil. He is also a journalist and a former trade unionist. Simon has been an international referee since 1998 and his first international game was between Ecuador and Peru. He was a referee in the 2002 FIFA World Cup, 2006 FIFA World Cup,... |
A. Tavares E. Corona |
Group E: vs Group H: vs Round 2: vs |
1 | 18 |
Support officials
Five teams of officials were named to be on standby in the case of injury to any of the officials nominated for a match. None of them were called upon, however, and from the quarter-finals onwards, referees from among the 12 retained for the latter stages of the tournament were given standby appointments to matches.| Referee | Assistant |
|---|---|
 Khalil Al Ghamdi |
H. Al Kadri  F. Rabati  |
 Carlos ChandiaCarlos Chandía Carlos Chandía Alarcón is an international FIFA referee since 2001. His career as a ref started in 1985 within the confines of amateur football in Chile... |
C. Julio R. Gonzalez |
 Jerome DamonJerome Damon Jerome Damon is a South African football referee.An international referee since 2000, Damon was on stand-by for the 2006 FIFA World Cup and was a referee at the 2004 Africa Cup of Nations, 2006 Africa Cup of Nations, 2008 Africa Cup of Nations and 2010 Africa Cup of Nations.He was preselected as a... |
E. Molefe J. Yeboah  |
 Mohamed GuezzazMohamed Guezzaz Mohamed Guezzaz is a retired football referee from Morocco, best known for supervising match Spain–Slovenia during the 2002 FIFA World Cup.-References:*... |
B. Djezzar  J. Endeng Zogo  |
 Kevin StottKevin Stott Kevin Stott is a soccer referee from the United States of America. He has been a FIFA referee since 1995. Stott was selected as a referee for the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany.... |
C. Strickland G. Barkey |
Final Match Officials
On Wednesday 28th of June, one day after the Second Round matches were completed and two days before the Quarterfinals, the FIFA announced the 12 referees that were retained for the remaining matches. This is the standard process, meant to ensure only the best referees are in charge of the final few games. The twelve are:- Toru KamikawaToru Kamikawais a former Japanese football referee, debuting in Japan's professional J. League in 1996.Kamikawa was born in Kagoshima, Kagoshima Prefecture...
(JapanJapanJapan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
) - Coffi CodjiaCoffi CodjiaCoffi Codjia is a Beninese football referee.An international referee since 1994, Codjia was a referee at the FIFA World Cup in 2002 and 2006, the FIFA Confederations Cup in 1999 and 2003 and the African Cup of Nations in 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008, in which he was the referee for the final, and...
(BeninBeninBenin , officially the Republic of Benin, is a country in West Africa. It borders Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east and Burkina Faso and Niger to the north. Its small southern coastline on the Bight of Benin is where a majority of the population is located...
) - Benito ArchundiaBenito ArchundiaBenito Armando Archundia Téllez is a retired Mexican football referee. He is known in Mexico as Armando Archundia, but appears as Benito Archundia in FIFA records. He has been a professional referee since 1985 and has had his FIFA referee permission since 1993...
(MexicoMexicoThe United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
) - Horacio ElizondoHoracio ElizondoHoracio Marcelo Elizondo is a former Argentine international football referee best known for his officiation throughout the 2006 FIFA World Cup...
(ArgentinaArgentinaArgentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
) - Jorge LarriondaJorge LarriondaJorge Luis Larrionda Pietrafesa is a FIFA football referee from Uruguay who has officiated at international matches since 1998. He is currently one of the world's top referees, having had the highest moment of his career during the 2006 FIFA World Cup, in which he officiated four matches,...
(UruguayUruguayUruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area...
) - Mark ShieldMark ShieldMark Shield is a former Australian Football referee. He most recently refereed in Australia's A-League. He first played soccer for the Innisfail Tigers at the age of six. Not showing much promise as a player, he began refereeing at age 12, and by 16 was officiating adult matches in Townsville...
(AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
) - Massimo BusaccaMassimo BusaccaMassimo Busacca is a Swiss former football referee. He lives in Monte Carasso, Ticino, near Bellinzona, and is also the proprietor of a business....
(SwitzerlandSwitzerlandSwitzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
) - Frank De BleeckereFrank De BleeckereFrank De Bleeckere is a Belgian football referee. He has been a referee since 1984, and an international official since 1998...
(BelgiumBelgiumBelgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
) - Luis Medina CantalejoLuis Medina CantalejoLuis Medina Cantalejo is a retired Spanish football referee.Professionally, Medina Cantalejo is a sports assessor who lives in Tomares, west of Seville. He was one of the few officials allowed to officiate the domestic clashes between Real Madrid and Barcelona...
(SpainSpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
) - Markus MerkMarkus MerkDr. Markus Merk is a former top-level German football referee. He is a six-time winner of the German Referee of the Year Award and the record holder in games refereed in the Bundesliga. In 2005, Merk was awarded the German Bundesverdienstkreuz in recognition of his service to football and his...
(GermanyGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
) - Ľuboš MicheľLuboš MichelĽuboš Micheľ is a former top-level Slovak football referee.Micheľ became a FIFA referee at the age of 25. One big milestone in his career was refereeing the 2003 UEFA Cup Final between Porto and Celtic...
(SlovakiaSlovakiaThe Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
) - Roberto RosettiRoberto RosettiRoberto Rosetti is a former Italian football referee. He is fluent in Italian, English and French. He started refereeing in 1983, and took charge of his first match in the Italian Serie A in 1996. He received his FIFA Badge in 2002...
(ItalyItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
)http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=372815&cc=5901
It is notable that the referees remaining had a lower average number of cards given per match (5.21) than the referee pool as a whole (5.82). Nine of the ten referees with the lowest number of cards per match were chosen to stay.
This was met with criticism, however, as the referees could also be politically chosen. FIFA wanted to ensure that at least 1 referee from each continent within the final shortlist.