A trio of Qatari referees will officiate the third-place playoff game between Morocco and Croatia
Croatia and Morocco will face off in a third-place fixture for the bronze medal as a reward for their campaign efforts this Saturday, with Abdulrahman al-Jassim as the head referee.
Qatar’s al-Jassim will be joined by Taleb al-Marri and Saoud Ahmed al-Maqaled, marking the second time the trio has officiated a World Cup game.
The group made history when they refereed the United States and Wales match, which ended in a 1-1 draw in the group stages.
At 35, al-Jassim framed a new narrative for the country as he became the first Qatari referee to officiate a World Cup match.
In 2018, he debuted in Russia’s World Cup as a video match official after years of officiating in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC).
“I am very happy to represent AFC and Qatar and to be one of the referees at Qatar 2022. This appointment will be a responsibility for me to have good performance,” al-Jassim said on his assignment at the 2022 World Cup.
The Qatari referee leads the ranks in referring from the country, as he has
officiated several matches, including the likes of the AFC Champions League 2020 final, FIFA Club World Cup Qatar 2019 final, and the CONCACAF Gold Cup semi-finals.
Thirty-six referees, 69 assistant referees, and 24 video match officials were chosen for the Qatar World Cup.
Both al-Jassim, al-Marri, and al-Maqaled, were selected based on a close examination of football confederations that studied their performances in the past years.
Female-led referees
Notably, for the first time in the history of the FIFA World Cup, the FIFA Referees Committee appointed three female referees and three female assistant referees.
Yoshimi Yamashita of Japan, Stephanie Frappart of France, and Salima Muksanga of Rwanda were the three leading women referees for the tournament, while Nesbitt, Karen Diaz Medina of Mexico, and Neuza Back of Brazil were the assistant referees.
Costa Rica and Germany’s group stage game saw Stephanie Frappart of France become the first woman to referee a men’s World Cup match.
