Out of the 30 referees selected to officiate at the World Cup only three are referees! Yes, the World Cup refereeing cast has only three professionals — Howard Webb (England), Yuichi Nishimura (Japan) and ‘Henry handball’ Martin Hansson (Sweden). For the remaining 27, refereeing is only a part-time job.
The men in black in charge of law and order on the pitch are an eclectic mix of salesman, teacher, insurance professional, electrical engineer, banker, finance inspector lawyer, economist, professor, sociologist, auditor and naval officer. Brazilian Carlos Simon belongs the tribe that is most vocal in its criticism of referees: journalists. No wonder Simon is already under the scanner for his “poor performance” in a Brazilian league match just before the World Cup.
When you see an official deal with errant players in the style of a teacher admonishing a primary school student don’t be surprised: teaching is the predominant profession among World Cup referees. There are as many as seven representatives from the noble vocation. Webb, who officiated the Champions League final between Inter and Bayern Munich last month, can also be intimidating in the middle. The Englishman who resembles the iconic Italian, Pierluigi Collina, with his shiny pate was a policeman before he took up whistling as his full-time job.
Don’t expect quick decisions from Carlos Batres. The 42-year-old from Guatemala is a scientist, so his deliberation will be deeper than his colleauges’.
The World Cup is a theatre of dreams for a person like Batres because his country, Guatemala, can only dream about playing in the mega event.
Players have to be careful in selection of words when they have a quarrel with Switzerland’s Massimo Busacca, who is widely expected to take charge of the final in South Africa. An abuse like “You are good for nothing” will not go down well with the multilingual Swiss because he owns a company back home.
And, Roberto Rosetti, will find it easier to identify players who fake injuries. Reason: the Italian is a hospital manager. Mexico’s Marco Rodriguez will be hoping to get key assignments in South Africa with divine help. Reading the Bible is a hobby for the 36-year-old physical education teacher.
Family tradition is a thread that unites World Cup referees. Eight referees have inherited their love for refereeing from their fathers. On the other hand, Joel Aguilar of El Salvador became a referee only by accident. He used to lead a church team for children and whenever referees failed to turn up he would step into their shoes to keep the children happy, and playing. The lure of the whistle proved irresistible later on. Now, Aguilar is one among the chosen few.
Quite a few have taken up refereeing after unfulfilled playing careers. Japan’s Nishimurua, on the other hand, opted for the roving role on the pitch after seeing a number of matches wrecked by poor referees in his younger days. Justice is his watchword. So you can trust Nishi to be on his guard on the grandest stage in football.