General Assignments Discussion

Discussion in 'World Cup 2026 - Refereeing' started by MassachusettsRef, Jun 8, 2026.

Page 36 of 46
  1. MassachusettsRef

    MassachusettsRef Moderator
    Staff Member

    Apr 30, 2001
    Washington, DC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    #876 MassachusettsRef, Jul 12, 2026
    I don’t think it was ever nailed on. There was a difference of opinion within FIFA on if it needed to happen. And her second match gave the opponents the justification they needed to not make it. At least that’s my impression from what I’ve been told.
     
  2. MassachusettsRef

    MassachusettsRef Moderator
    Staff Member

    Apr 30, 2001
    Washington, DC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    #877 MassachusettsRef, Jul 12, 2026
    No?

    I mean Barton is not God. Just like Busacca. Marciniak has shown he can handle the best players in the world in the toughest matches. Hes a former WC Final referee who nailed it. This is his match. Barton has seen plenty of CONCACAF matches go sideways. I love him and want to see him keep developing. But this isn’t for him at age 34.
     
  3. klingbard

    klingbard Member

    Oct 21, 2010
    Club:
    San Jose Earthquakes
    #878 klingbard, Jul 12, 2026
    i know it's sunday, but we are 48 hours from the 1st semifinal. shouldn't we have an assignment by now? all the favorites won their quarterfinals, too.
     
  4. RefIADad

    RefIADad Member+

    United States
    Aug 18, 2017
    Des Moines, IA
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    #879 RefIADad, Jul 12, 2026
    England-Argentina in the World Cup semis might be a more consequential match than the final this year.

    Collina himself was the referee in 2002 when England played Argentina in the group stage. He understands the stakes and the history. He will assign the referee that has pretty much seen it all and will have an appreciation for the magnitude of this match. The ONLY referee that fits that criteria is Marciniak.
     
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  5. weka

    weka Member+

    Dec 9, 2011
    #880 weka, Jul 12, 2026
    Imagine Marciniak pulling some injury and the 4th official having to step in...
     
  6. Twotone Jones

    Twotone Jones Member

    United States
    Apr 12, 2023
    #881 Twotone Jones, Jul 12, 2026
    Damn, an Italian with the whistle in that game didn't create any political controversy with the history of Nazi/Communists fleeing to Argentina as a safe haven after WW2? Italy facilitated those "escapes" as allies of Nazi Germany. So much politics in refereeing....
     
  7. chaoslord08

    chaoslord08 Member

    Dec 24, 2006
    Fayetteville AR
    Club:
    West Bromwich Albion FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    #882 chaoslord08, Jul 12, 2026


    Well well well
     
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  8. RefIADad

    RefIADad Member+

    United States
    Aug 18, 2017
    Des Moines, IA
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    #883 RefIADad, Jul 12, 2026
    Whoa. Didn’t see that one coming at all.

    I mean, I’m the one who said (without sarcasm) that he had every claim to referee the final based strictly on merit. But I didn’t think Collina and Co. would actually put him out there.
     
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  9. RefIADad

    RefIADad Member+

    United States
    Aug 18, 2017
    Des Moines, IA
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    #884 RefIADad, Jul 12, 2026
    Tantashev as the fourth (ducks!!!) :D
     
  10. El Rayo Californiano

    El Rayo Californiano Member+

    Feb 3, 2014
    #885 El Rayo Californiano, Jul 12, 2026
  11. soccerref69420

    soccerref69420 Member+

    President of the Antonio Miguel Mateu Lahoz fan cub
    Mar 14, 2020
    Nat'l Team:
    Korea DPR
    #886 soccerref69420, Jul 12, 2026
    HOLY SHIT IVAN BARTON IS DOING A WORLD CUP SEMIFINAL BETWEEN TWO EUROPEAN POWERHOUSES

    I know Argentina-England would have been funnier but MY DREAM HAS COME TRUE I CANNOT BELIEVE THEY DID IT! THANK YOU COLLINA!
     
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  12. chaoslord08

    chaoslord08 Member

    Dec 24, 2006
    Fayetteville AR
    Club:
    West Bromwich Albion FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    #887 chaoslord08, Jul 12, 2026


    URGENT Remaining Referees in the Tournament:

    Asian Football Confederation
    Ali Reza Faghani
    Adham Mkhadem

    African Football Confederation
    Jalal Jed

    CONCACAF
    Ivan Barton
    Ismail Elfath

    CONMEBOL
    Jesús Valenzuela
    Wilton Sampaio

    UEFA
    Espen Eskas
    Szymon Marciniak
    Maurizio Mariani
    Glenn Nyberg
    João Pinheiro
    Slavko Vinčić
     
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  13. weka

    weka Member+

    Dec 9, 2011
    #888 weka, Jul 12, 2026
    There goes Ramos. Wait they sent Turpin and Oliver home?
     
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  14. Hararea

    Hararea Member+

    Jan 21, 2005
    #889 Hararea, Jul 12, 2026
    A lesson of this World Cup -- and I don't think this is good for the game -- is for a fed to fast-track young referees. Barton (now 35) and Mexico's Katia Garcia (now 33) were already FIFA listed in their mid-20s. For comparison, Elfath didn't even debut in MLS until he was 30.

    Another noteworthy trend is for referees to be highly educated. Elfath did an engineering degree at UT Austin; Penso, a masters at Case Western; Barton (chemistry) and Garcia (poly sci) are both graduates of their respective national universities. As it happens, Garcia also attended a famous public high school in Mexico City: Prepa 6. In addition to strong academics, this school has been known for its students being hippies.
     
  15. chaoslord08

    chaoslord08 Member

    Dec 24, 2006
    Fayetteville AR
    Club:
    West Bromwich Albion FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    #890 chaoslord08, Jul 12, 2026
    I think the old “you go home if your team makes the quarters” is “you go home if your team makes the semis”
     
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  16. balu

    balu Member+

    Oct 18, 2013
    #891 balu, Jul 12, 2026
    What a disappointment it must be for Ramos. R16 in 2018, R16 and SF in 2022, and now just two group-stage matches in his home WC. He'll be 46 by the next WC.
     
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  17. AremRed

    AremRed Member+

    Sep 23, 2013
    #892 AremRed, Jul 12, 2026
    Makhadmeh final incoming!
     
  18. MassachusettsRef

    MassachusettsRef Moderator
    Staff Member

    Apr 30, 2001
    Washington, DC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    #893 MassachusettsRef, Jul 12, 2026
    I’m on an odd time zone for me right now (didn’t even see ARG-SUI) so just seeing all this.

    First, on Barton, good. Great, actually. Merit still matters. I hope he nails it. Because that could be a tough match for a referee who doesn’t know the players and vice versa. Because the players all know each other.

    Second, the question becomes what Ramos did wrong. For him not to have a KO match whatsoever is staggering. At this point, Fischer didn’t steal a match from Penso—he “stole” it from Ramos! I’d really like to know the story there. No tears shed for him, really, based on overall career. But I also don’t see what he did wrong to go from a favorite to nothing. Answering that might he the referee nerd investigation of the tournament.

    Third, Wednesday has to be Marciniak. It already had to be but now it really has to be. If you can jettison Ramos then surely you can do the same to Marciniak if there was an issue. You don’t keep him around to embarrass him. He has that whistle.

    Fourth, who is his 4th? I could make an argument for Mariani for obvious reasons. I could make one for Elfath (if he doesn’t fit anywhere else, then this spot makes sense). Or Eskas. I could also see Valenzuela for confed balance, actually. Also Faghani. Lot of options. In short, I think someone of consequence will be there.

    Because fifth, as always, we have too many names. Either Sampaio or Faghani is out now. I actually suspect they are the duo for the final now that I think about it. Just not sure what order in the pairing.

    Sixth, Omar is gone. Huh. Guess Egyptian FA complaining hurt him. I don’t think Jayed gets the 3/4 playoff but obviously he could. I think that could be Elfath. And I also think if Elfath isn’t the 4th to Marciniak, we will get a round of speculation again for him whistling the final.

    Finally, Makhadmeh is an intriguing name to retain. Maybe just reward. But he could certainly show up if Barton can. I do doubt it, though.

    Pinheiro and Vincic seem the names least likely to work at all, but now that I’ve written it…
     
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  19. Roger Allaway

    Roger Allaway Member+

    Apr 22, 2009
    Warminster, Pa.
    Club:
    Philadelphia Union
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    #894 Roger Allaway, Jul 12, 2026
    I don't think this is a new trend. I know of three American FIFA referees from decades past who had Ph.Ds (Rich Grady-history, Ed Bellion-chemistry and Robert Evans-geology). I'll bet that MassachusettsRef knows of more. And my general impression is that well educated referees have been common in Europe, too.
     
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  20. RefIADad

    RefIADad Member+

    United States
    Aug 18, 2017
    Des Moines, IA
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    #895 RefIADad, Jul 12, 2026
    And we cannot forget about Dr. Joe!!!!! :D
    (Someone had to say it-I clearly know Machnik was never a FIFA.)
     
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  21. balu

    balu Member+

    Oct 18, 2013
    #896 balu, Jul 12, 2026
    As is well-documented, Kathryn Nesbitt completed her Ph.D. at University of Pittsburgh and her postdoctoral research fellowship at Michigan, and became an assistant professor at Towson University, before quitting in 2019 to focus on her refereeing career. Incredibly impressive.

    https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2022/11/14/world-cup-female-referee-kathryn-nesbitt/
     
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  22. jarbitro

    jarbitro Member+

    Mar 13, 2003
    N'Djamena, Tchad
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    #897 jarbitro, Jul 12, 2026
    A dude got kicked in the literal actual face right in front of her, she didn’t call it, and a goal was scored off it.
     
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  23. chaoslord08

    chaoslord08 Member

    Dec 24, 2006
    Fayetteville AR
    Club:
    West Bromwich Albion FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    #898 chaoslord08, Jul 12, 2026
    One more, here are the VARs that are still around, per AI

    Khamis Al Marri
    Joe Dickerson
    Tatiana Guzman
    Guillermo Pacheco
    Armando Villarreal
    Nicolas Gallo
    Leodan Gonzalez
    Juan Lara
    Hernan Mastrangelo
    Juan Soto
    Ivan Bebek
    Jerome Brisard
    Carlos Del Cerro Grande
    Bastian Dankert
    Marco Di Bello
    Jarred Gillett
    Dennis Higler
    Tomasz Kwiatkowski
     
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  24. MassachusettsRef

    MassachusettsRef Moderator
    Staff Member

    Apr 30, 2001
    Washington, DC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    #899 MassachusettsRef, Jul 12, 2026
    Dickerson making it to the end mostly belies the notion that the goal was completely Penso’s undoing.
     
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  25. Pierre Head

    Pierre Head Member+

    Dec 24, 2005
    #900 Pierre Head, Jul 12, 2026
    Some USA FIFA referees in the 1980s, 90s and 2000s had Ph.D. degrees, as does Dr Nesbitt, one of the current ARs at the WC this year!

    PH
     
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