EURO 2012: The 12 Referees

The Slovenian has in his short career, been known as a strict referee who follows the rules. The referee has no tolerance towards players and coaches who goes against his decisions, and have sent coaches as Joachim Löw off. Skomina is one of the highest rated referees on the world, and this is mainly because of his authority and ability to only hand out cards whenever they are merited. However, Skomina is often criticized by managers, for disrupting the game by awarding fouls.

Carlos Velasco Carballo is a rather unknown referee in international football. However, the Spaniard has had a few Champions League matches to put on his C.V. Carballo is known as a referee who is strict, but at the same time allows the game to flow. He was actually praised for his performance during the 2010-11 Champions League match between Manchester United and Schalke, where he kept the game going, and kept an eye on the players who could cause problems.

Howard Webb is perhaps the most famous of the twelve referees. He is one of the most controversial referees in the world and has been accused of racism as well as being a Manchester United fan. He has also been degraded to the lower divisions after awarding United a penalty that was never there. However, the Englishman is a referee who lets the game flow and allows the players to go to the limit. That is also why he became the first referee ever to officiate both the UEFA Champions League and the World Cup final in 2010.

Cüneyt Çakır is the youngest referee at the EURO 2012 and perhaps the most inexperienced. However, the Turk is used to control of the Turkish clash between Fenerbache, Besiktas and Galatasaray. He was also the referee that sent John Terry of the pitch after he kicked Alexis Sanchez in the Champions League match between Chelsea and Barcelona. Çakır is known as a disciplinarian referee who has a zero-tolerance approach and is not afraid to show a card.

Jonas Eriksson is known as a referee who lets the game flow, and keeps his cards in his pocket. The Swede in not very strict and lets football be football, to the great joy for the fans and the players. However, Eriksson has had some criticism the last couple of years as he had made some faulty decisions, not to award penalty kicks, when needed. Furthermore, the Swede is multimillionaire, as he sold his stake in Swedish media rights business IEC.

The Hungarian referee started his career aged fourteen, as he passed his refereeing exams. Four years later he was leading matches in the Hungarian fourth tier, and he has not looked back since. In 2010, he was chosen as an official for the World Cup where he took charge of the semifinal between Spain and Germany. Furthermore, he was in charge of the Champions League final between Manchester United and Barcelona at Wembley.  Kassai is known as a referee who lets the game flow, and refuses to hand out cards unless it is really needed.

The Dutch is most known for awarding Barcelona a penalty after Allesandro Nesta had pulled Sergio Bsquets’ shirt in the lead up to a corner kick, in this year’s Champions League.  Kuipers is a strict and well-respected referee and has been promoted to the highest level in UEFA. However, the Dutch has had some controversies. An example is the match between Ajax and PSV in 2010. Here, Luis Suarez bit an opponent in front of the referee, but somehow he missed seeing it.

Pedro Proença is one of those referees who are not afraid of sending a player off the pitch. The referee is known to be very strict and doesn’t like his authority to be questioned. However, the Portuguese has had some solid displays the last couple of years and oversaw this year’s Champions League final.  Outside the pitch, Proença has experienced the backside of being a referee as he was headbutted by a Benfica fan in 2010 and broke two teethes.

The Italian is known for being card-happy, but also a referee who can talk calmly with the players. In no time, he has become one of the most respected UEFA referees and has been taking charge of some prominent matches in the Europa League and Champions League. Rizzoli has been criticized for letting the players put pressure on him. However, UEFA sees him as one of the best European referees right now.

Wolfgang Stark has gone from being the best referee in the German Bundesliga, in 2010, to be the worst in the first half of the 2011 season, according to the players. The German has had a rather controversial career and is not afraid of sending both players and coaches of the pitch and into the stands. However, Stark displays command of his matches and is perhaps one of the best German officials ever.