FIFA Ref and AR List for 2008

[bluedevils]

Not sure how long the new names have been on fifa.com, but I saw some changes among the U.S. refs and ARs. Surprised nobody posted this yet! In bold are the names of the folks who I believe are new to the list.

MEN
Referee Date of Birth International since
GEIGER Mark 25.08.1974
MARRUFO Jair 19.06.1977
PRUS Arkadiusz 06.02.1964 2004
SALAZAR Ricardo 06.09.1972 2005
STOTT Kevin 09.07.1967 1995
TOLEDO Baldomero 06.02.1970
VAUGHN Terry 01.04.1973 2004

Assistant Referee Date of Birth International since
VASOLI Anthony 20.10.1970
BARKEY Gregory 20.08.1963 1995
GANSNER George 13.10.1971 2002
MORGANTE Charles 24.05.1974
QUISENBERRY Kermit 27.09.1968 2004
ROCKWELL Corey E. 26.02.1974
STRICKLAND Chris 29.11.1966 2002
SUPPLE Thomas 17.12.1965 2004
TOVAR Fabio 03.01.1967
WIENCKOWSKI Adam 02.08.1975


WOMEN
Referee Date of Birth International since
BENNETT Jennifer 04.05.1971 2002
SEITZ Kari 02.11.1970 1999
SERAFINI Sandra 03.11.1968

Assistant Referee Date of Birth International since
DUFFY Marlene 04.08.1979
PEREZ Veronica 31.10.1979
WHEELER Sharon 03.09.1963 2000

Men's List http://www.fifa.com/aboutfifa/developing/refereeing/association=usa/peoplekind=ref.html

Women's List http://www.fifa.com/aboutfifa/developing/refereeing/association=usa/peoplekind=wor.html

[Alberto]

And to think that 8 years ago I worked with him at the Sun Bowl. Nice kid, but honestly, I think the appointment is a tad premature. Mark needs a bit more seasoning.

[Englishref]

And the English list.

Referee Date of Birth International since
TANNER Stephen 21.09.1970
ATKINSON Martin 31.03.1971
CLATTENBURG Mark 13.03.1975
DEAN Michael 02.07.1968 2003
RILEY Michael 17.12.1964 1999
STYLES Robert 21.04.1964 2002
WEBB Howard 14.07.1971 2005

Assistant Referee Date of Birth International since
WEST Richard 25.02.1975
WATTS Adam 29.03.1978
MATADAR Muhammed 26.02.1977
SIMPSON Jeremy 13.05.1975
RICHARDSON David 23.01.1975
CANN Darren 22.01.1969
KIRKUP Peter 22.08.1970
MULLARKEY Michael 03.05.1970
SHARP Philip 05.04.1964 1997
TURNER Glenn 06.11.1964 2002

Steve Tanner gets on, but disappointingly, not Andre Marriner. Worryingly, our next FIFA referee looks to be maybe 3 or 4 years away yet, so by 2010, we may be down to 5 referees! :eek:

Gavin Ward and Roger East are removed because of their promotions to Level 1s, while Jim Devine and Dave Bryan leave due to age, and Mike Tingey because of being out injured for over a year. All are replaced by young ARs, but the same problem remains in that Matadar, Richardson and West are Level 2s who'll be looking to get their Level 1s soon so won't be on the list for long.

[USSF REF]

I have to say that I am THRILLED for Mark Geiger! Good for him - I have worked with him a few times, and considering that he is an NJ guy (my home state) I couldn't be prouder to now have 2 FIFA R's on the list.

Way to go Mark it was well earned, you da man.

Oh yeah... some could argue this appointment too premature, but the fact is - how else are we going to develop a future WC referee except to let him get the experience NOW to prepare him for later.

That's awesome! :D

I think I called this about a year or 2 ago too....

[falcon.7]

I saw Geiger not two weeks ago down in Tampa. He did the final of one of the U19 bracket, and I was told when the lists came out he would be on it. I think people are right about the young/inexperience thing, but maybe this will get him some exposure and help boost the young, up-and-coming pro referees.

[ctreferee]

yeah, its pretty cool to have seen geiger do his last(i assume) game as a national about a week and a half ago.

[Rufusabc]

In a normal progression, what games would Mr. Geiger be assigned to next as a FIFA referee? How does that work?

And to EnglishRef, I guess Mr. Clattenburg's awful Merseyside Derby performance had no bearing on his future? I still havn't gotten over that one yet.

Rog

[Englishref]

And to EnglishRef, I guess Mr. Clattenburg's awful Merseyside Derby performance had no bearing on his future? I still havn't gotten over that one yet.

Rog


Well it was never going to affect his FIFA status. It did, however, affect his SG standing, as he was put in the Football League for a few games and then brought back into the PL in low-profile games.

[bluedevils]

Well it was never going to affect his FIFA status. It did, however, affect his SG standing, as he was put in the Football League for a few games and then brought back into the PL in low-profile games.

I should probably look this up somewhere else, but which divisions does The Football League encompass?

[Rufusabc]

I think the football league encompasses the Championship, and Legue One and Two and maybe the conferences?

English Ref: Why wouldn't his poor performance in a high profile match NOT matter to his FIFA status? I guess, my question then beomes, how do you obtain FIFA status?

[whistleblowerusa]

Geiger is too young yet and not experienced enough either no matter how nice a guy he is (and he is).
What really concerns me is the Women's list. What a joke. Duffy gets hardly any real assignments, is just coming out of her rookie year as a National and gets her FIFA AR badge. Typical progression for the Women FIFA officials. Now how many of those "quick to get on the list" women are still around after 1-2 years? Same with Perez. Nice people but no way prepared or ready for international duty. What games are they going to get here in the states? They haven't even worked the middle of any pro game if I can remember. W-league doesn't count. Why are the standards for selection so different? If you look at the fitness test that was sent out for all Nationals and FIFAs for the upcoming recert camp women FIFA Referees or ARs would not even qualify to work MLS or even USL1 under the required standard for them. So, what real test is there for the worthiness?

[MassachusettsRef]

I absolutely see where you're coming from whistleblower (I went to Youth Nationals two years ago with Marlene--she was a National Candidate and now she's a FIFA?!).

However, I think you just need to look at it and understand/accept that the Men's and Women's list are two entirely different concepts.

Around the world, other federations fill their women's list with officials. And FIFA is using female officials only at FIFA women's tournaments. So should the US stand by and let other countries send their officials?

Yes, we don't have WUSA anymore. And yes, our women aren't tested the same way our men are. But despite the dearth of top professional games, our women surely see better soccer than some of the female FIFAs that get appointed to the panel from many--if not most--other countries around the world. It'd be foolish for the federation to not "reach" and appoint our up-and-coming women quicker than they do with the men.

My gut reaction was similar to yours. How did they "earn" their spot? And why did it come so fast? But it just can't be looked at like that. The FIFA men's and women's lists are two different things internationally and, in turn, there should be two different processes to get on them. We should congratulate those that made it and wish them the best of luck internationally.

[whistleblowerusa]

I absolutely see where you're coming from whistleblower (I went to Youth Nationals two years ago with Marlene--she was a National Candidate and now she's a FIFA?!).

However, I think you just need to look at it and understand/accept that the Men's and Women's list are two entirely different concepts.

Around the world, other federations fill their women's list with officials. And FIFA is using female officials only at FIFA women's tournaments. So should the US stand by and let other countries send their officials?

Yes, we don't have WUSA anymore. And yes, our women aren't tested the same way our men are. But despite the dearth of top professional games, our women surely see better soccer than some of the female FIFAs that get appointed to the panel from many--if not most--other countries around the world. It'd be foolish for the federation to not "reach" and appoint our up-and-coming women quicker than they do with the men.

My gut reaction was similar to yours. How did they "earn" their spot? And why did it come so fast? But it just can't be looked at like that. The FIFA men's and women's lists are two different things internationally and, in turn, there should be two different processes to get on them. We should congratulate those that made it and wish them the best of luck internationally.
MassRef, if you look at where the world is playing good women's soccer and at a pro level (England, Norway, Japan, and I believe France and in South America) the FIFA panel on the women's side is strong. They are working regular matches all season. Our women sit and wait until we have a friendly or work as a 4th somewhere (except Kari who worked 2 or so USL1 matches last season).
Yes the men are looked at differently and asked to perform at a higher level. What I am talking about is the US selection process itself. Fir example, just look at the US Futsal program. Except for Palomino our other two "FIFA" Futsal guys never worked a Futsal match before their appointments. They are treated as some special breed now and recognized at camp for their achievements. What achievements? What qualified them over the guys that have worked games? There is something fishy going on in the selection process and that badge is not always achieved on merit anymore.
They are making it tougher to get and keep the National badge, why not the FIFA badge?

[MassachusettsRef]

Fair enough. I don't disagree with that. Having an issue with the whole system is certainly reasonable. I just hope people don't look at the lists and make it a gender issue, with men saying it's unfair how the women get treated. It's not--it's just different.

[USSF REF]

Sandra Sarifini did a USL 1 game in Rochester this past season. I might add that it was one of the top performances by a Referee at Paetec Park last year. Even the Rhino's hostile fans thought so too.

I'm just pointing this out to say that I think some of our FIFA women referee's are doing a very good job on men's games and perhaps we ought to see a bit more of them on top matches.

[whistleblowerusa]

Sandra Sarifini did a USL 1 game in Rochester this past season. I might add that it was one of the top performances by a Referee at Paetec Park last year. Even the Rhino's hostile fans thought so too.

I'm just pointing this out to say that I think some of our FIFA women referee's are doing a very good job on men's games and perhaps we ought to see a bit more of them on top matches.

Yes, maybe some will shine but I believe that most will fail. Sandra's problem is her size. Makes it difficult to work higher men's divisions. That said, she may not be assigned anything above a W-League match if I read the fitness requirement chart right.

[bluedevils]

Do you folks believe that the new fitness requirements will be enforced, and enforced consistently for everyone, in terms of denying game appointments at a certain level to any officials who do not meet the associated fitness testing standard?

[USSF REF]

Do you folks believe that the new fitness requirements will be enforced, and enforced consistently for everyone, in terms of denying game appointments at a certain level to any officials who do not meet the associated fitness testing standard?

Probably, except for maybe the top 3% of Nationals in the USA... they may get a little "wiggle room"... maybe?

Certainly, FIFA referee's will be required to meet FIFA's standards to get FIFA games, no?

[whistleblowerusa]

Do you folks believe that the new fitness requirements will be enforced, and enforced consistently for everyone, in terms of denying game appointments at a certain level to any officials who do not meet the associated fitness testing standard?

Yes it will be enforced. Look at the split of camp lists. Look at the hugh number of candidates for 2009 already. They can dump you easily.
The list row in the fitness assignment chart does say "pass/fail" -W-League. So those Nationals who do not pass will only be assigned W-League games as officials. My guess is 40% will fail.

[bluedevils]

it will be very interesting, to say the least. I'm fairly well prepared for the test, but it would be nice to know what standard they will be utilizing when they administer the test. The test gets a LOT easier once you drop down below the top FIFA Referee standard...you start getting an extra 5-10 seconds to finish each 150m running segment or each 50m walking recovery segment, or both.

I think you are right that a lot of people will fail the fitness test. I wonder how many of those people realize they are on thin ice? I think not many. My impression is most just hope for the best and assume they will pull it off.

Personally, I find the charts a bit confusing and somewhat inconsistent. Can't give any specifics as I haven't studied them lately, but it is hard to tell at a glance what you gotta do on the test to get which games etc.

This isn't like the 12 minute run where everybody can do his/her best against a single parameter (the running clock). They need to enforce a certain standard per each 150m or 50m zone, and they need to select the standard before the test is run. I'm assuming that only 1 standard will be utilized at each camp, perhaps the same standard at both camps; I don't expect them to give people a choice as to which standard to try.