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Referees named for UEFA EURO 2008T
By Mark Chaplin from Nyon
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Tom Henning Ovrebo and Peter Frojdfeldt at a
UEFA course for elite referees in Rome in February (żUEFA)
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UEFA has announced the referees and assistant referees who
will officiate at UEFA EURO 2008T in Austria and Switzerland next summer.
Refereeing teams
UEFA's Referees' Committee has designated 12 referees and 24 assistants
(along with eight fourth officials) to take charge of the 31 matches from
7-29 June 2008. The referee 'trios' comprise referees and assistant referees
from the same country, all of whom have been on constant duty as a team
in European club matches - particularly the UEFA Champions League - over
the past year. UEFA chooses refereeing teams because of the experience
and understanding that the three officials gather together.
'The best in the business'
"It is never easy to select the final list of names to officiate
at a tournament as prestigious as the UEFA European Football Championship,"
said Angel Maria Villar Llona, the chairman of the UEFA Referees' Committee.
"However, these officials are the best in the business at the moment
and deserve their chance. The idea of appointing trios began at UEFA EURO
2004T, as it enables the officials to work closely together in their own
domestic competition and at UEFA level for a longer period of time before
the tournament. We wish them all the very best in their appointments at
UEFA EURO 2008T."
Communication system
The ear-piece communications system between match officials, used in top
European matches, will be authorised for use in the finals. The system,
UEFA said, "should facilitate quick and efficient communication".
Preparatory seminar
The 44 selected match officials will now begin their preparations in earnest.
They will attend a preparatory seminar from 14-17 April at the Movenpick
Hotel in Regensdorf, Switzerland, where they will take part in a physical
test and be given specific instructions for the final tournament. This
hotel will serve from 3 June as the base for the referee teams at UEFA
EURO 2008T. From 26 June, those still involved in the final stages will
move to the Renaissance Penta Hotel in Vienna, Austria.
Injury provisions
During the final tournament, any injured referee will be replaced by the
fourth official at the match, and any injured assistant referee will be
replaced by a fifth official who will come from the list of assistant
referees not officiating at a game on that day. "The officials will
continue to officiate at European club competition matches but will not
be appointed to any international friendlies concerning the 16 teams qualified
for the final tournament," said UEFA. Support for the team of officials
will include a physio, a doctor, and a fitness coach who has devised a
specific programme for the tournament.
| UEFA EURO 2008T match officials |
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Referee |
Assistant referees |
Country |
| 1 |
Konrad Plautz |
Egon Bereuter, Markus Mayr |
Austria |
| 2 |
Frank De Bleeckere |
Peter Hermans, Alex Verstraeten |
Belgium |
| 3 |
Howard Webb |
Darren Cann, Mike Mullarkey |
England |
| 4 |
Herbert Fandel |
Carsten Kadach, Volker Wezel |
Germany |
| 5 |
Kyros Vassaras |
Dimitris Bozatzidis, Dimitris Saraidaris |
Greece |
| 6 |
Roberto Rosetti |
Alessandro Griselli, Paolo Calcagno |
Italy |
| 7 |
Pieter Vink |
Adriaan Inia, Hans ten Hoove |
Netherlands |
| 8 |
Tom Henning Ovrebo |
Geir Age Holen, Erik R?stad |
Norway |
| 9 |
Lubos Michel |
Roman Slysko, Martin Balko |
Slovakia |
| 10 |
Manuel Enrique Mejuto Gonzalez |
Juan Carlos Yuste Jimenez, Jesus Calvo Guadamuro |
Spain |
| 11 |
Peter Frojdfeldt |
Stefan Wittberg, Henrik Andren |
Sweden |
| 12 |
Massimo Busacca |
Matthias Arnet, Stephane Cuhat |
Switzerland |
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UEFA.com,
19 December 2007
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