2019 CWC Referee Appointments

This has been known inside PRO circles for awhile, but another big appointment for Elfath and team (+Kelly).

Referees
AL JASSIM (QAT)
GHORBAL (ALG)
ELFATH (USA)
TOBAR (CHI)
HATEGAN (ROU)

VARs
MING (CHN)
GASSAMA (GAM)
KELLY (IRL)
OSTOJICH VEGA (URU)
MARTINEZ (ESP)
MILLOT (FRA)

FIFA has dispensed with the need to bring in an OFC trio (there is a Tahitian referee as a dedicated 4th official). So 5 referees for 8 matches now. Eflath and team should get at least one good match then--unless they are given the play-in match and then Monterrey advances.

This is another major vote of confidence in Elfath's team. Al Jassim is a lock for the World Cup. At this point, I'd say so are Tobar, Hategan and Ghorbal (though weird things can always happen with CAF). On paper, Elfath is probably the referee in this group with the most uncertainty over a 2022 place (and that's partly because of Marrufo's standing). But being in the group is what matters, because it means he's being seriously considered for the World Cup. So another huge opportunity.

 

That's how it was as U20s. I think it's a question of citizenship.

There's no official protocols or regulations, to my knowledge. I said awhile ago that FIFA one day might need to figure out if there is a "VAR badge," but it seems like we are still several years off from that being deemed necessary and/or logistically feasible. It would, though, begin to solve any problems of different national associations implementing VAR in different ways.

For now, FIFA just wants officials trained in VAR--by FIFA. So it involves attending seminars and clinics and tournaments to get the proper training. On the 2022 candidate list, USSF was the only national association that had VAR candidates who are not active FIFAs--they are Kelly, Stott and Jurisevic (note all are former FIFAs, so that part might matter).

Long way of saying, "yes," you don't need a FIFA badge right now. But it is interesting that the US is the only national association that seems to have successfully availed itself of that avenue. I would tend to believe that Geiger and Webb had a lot of influence there by pointing out MLS has a lot of qualified officials with VAR experience who are not FIFA (indeed, the most active VARs in MLS are ALL non-FIFA except Gantar).

 

Things look good, but I do think you're jumping to a conclusion here.

1/3 of the 2015 CWC referees didn't make it to Russia. So there is room and time for error. Plus, the political pressure to not have two Americans again will be strong inside CONCACAF. So there are hurdles to overcome.

But with Mexico seeming to be struggling to find it's next top international referee and a changing of the guard with Aguilar retiring, there is a giant opening that Elfath is exploiting right now. His performances coupled with his confidence working in a VAR system definitely has him and his ARs on the path to the World Cup right now.

Yeah, I think Kelly is more of a lock at this point. He's a trusted VAR that FIFA can take without being seen as too much of a sop to the United States.

Right now, I genuinely think Marrufo's trio, Elfath's trio, Kelly and Fischer are favored to go to the World Cup. Eflath's trio is probably the riskiest bet, because of the political realities.

You still then have a chance of having an actual American VAR (Villarreal, Stott or Jurisevic) and Barwegan seems like he could sneak his way onto a Central American crew as an AR. It's a weird set of realities and circumstances that lead to MLS having the most officiating candidates for 2022 of any league by far.

 

Assignments thus far...

First Round
Al-Sadd : Hienghene - GHORBAL (ALG)

Second Round
Al-Hilal : Esperance - TOBAR (CHI)
Monterrey : Al-Sadd - HATEGAN (ROU)

For the opener, Elfath was FO, Parker was Reserve AR and Atkins is what FIFA is now calling "Offside AVAR" (which is an AVAR in MLS matches, but there is a separate AVAR in FIFA matches... also, it now looks like FIFA is settling on 3 VARs rather than 4).

For Tobar's match, the same Americans filled the same roles, with Parker and Atkins swapped.

Kelly is VAR for Hategan's match.

There are only five referees here. Five matches remain. Monterrey's match today might dictate everything for Elfath and team. If Monterrey lose, I tend to think Elfath gets the Liverpool semifinal (since Monterrey won't be in the match and Elfath then couldn't have the 5th place match).

If Monterrey win, Elfath might get the 5th place match and thus be available and the top choice for the Final.

It all comes down to whether or not FIFA would put Ghorbal or Al-Jassim on the Final before Elfath. Because if it's CONMEBOL vs. UEFA, those are the only options. Elfath's team's familiarity with VAR has to help.

 

As a referee, yes. I am pretty sure overall, too, but I'm not as sure about that.

The appointment of Zitouni for the 5th place match is actually very noteworthy because he was only there as a "support" referee with no ARs. In the past, OFC referees have been named as full referees and still not gotten whistles. This time here's there solo and he slides in to referee with Romanian ARs.

Makes me think there might be an injury issue with Al-Jassim, who is the only referee we haven't seen yet. Either that, or Al-Jassim was slated for the 5th place match and Final (which is completely logical) but can't do the 5th place match because it is a Qatari team. That's probably the answer.

Unless Liverpool loses, of course. Then I think you see Hategan (otherwise he's on the 3/4 playoff).

 

I don't think @Mikael_Referee is disputing the reality that Elfath has made it to the top echelons. He's gone to two FIFA tournaments in one year and did a Final. The question is whether Elfath's abilities warrant that elevation and the accompanying assignments. Irmatov and Aguilar got top assignments for over a decade; a lot of people in the referee community were baffled by that. It's an open question what sort of subjective category any referee who makes it to this level finds himself in.

If you go way back to Elfath's MLS debut, I was very skeptical. He got pushed extraordinarily fast (I think it's true to say faster than anyone else--insofar as Grade 8 to National Referee--than any referee who has ever officiated in MLS). Certain skills have shown themselves and he has grown as a referee. He's one of the better referees the US has for the international game right now. That said, it's not really a secret that he makes some LOTG mistakes at a pace that could be called "not infrequent." I think that phenomenon stems from the fact that he was a converted player who was much better at managing a match and players from the get-go and mastery of the Laws were a secondary concern in his development. It's not a deal-breaker, but it's going to always be a risk and in tournaments where one mistake can spell doom, it's something to keep an eye on. You have the injury situation in this tournament. You had the restart for simulation at the last tournament. You've had throw-in mistakes in MLS. They are very small technical nits, but when we are talking about the difference between "elite" and "we trust this guy for a WC knockout match," they can be the difference.

Having not seen the match and only focusing on the two potential red card incidents... I'm most shocked that Kelly didn't send Giovinco's "tackle" down. It's VC disguised as a challenge for me. I actually get why Elfath doesn't have it (though share the concern of his positive hand movements that work to dismiss any severity when he couldn't be sure), but if we aren't using VAR for that, I wonder why we have it for SFP/RC. The actual SFP red is great. I think Elfath will win plaudits with FIFA for the way he side stepped the aggression from the dissenting player, yet held firm overall. I know online critics won't like the fact that he didn't give a second red card there, but we've got to believe FIFA doesn't want that second red card and when you're trying to get to 2022, you've got to do what you've got to do.

 

Not as big as it used to, though. And, to that point, the "politics" actually work against him. Qatar is already hosting. AFC is holding the tournament. You don't need to give AFC or Qatar a refereeing "win" unless it's deserved.

CONMEBOL is where you need to lookout. If their teams do not perform well or if Brazil/Argentina appear to be screwed, CONMEBOL desires and applies pressure to get consolation prizes in refereeing terms. See: Cunha, Andres. And for those who backed Faghani, you can also point to Pitana (though that appointment was much more deserved).