FIFA International Referees List

FIFA member countries are invited annually to nominate male and female officials for association football, futsal and beach soccer. Each country's Referee's Committee selects the referees to be nominated to FIFA.[1][2]

FIFA maintains five lists in total: men's and women's association football referees,[3][4] men's and women's futsal referees,[5][6] and a single list of beach soccer referees.[7] Officials in the association football lists are nominated as either referees or assistant referees.[8] Futsal and beach soccer at international level are usually controlled by two on-field referees and there is no equivalent of the assistant referee.[1]

Referees nominated to the list must pass fitness tests consisting of a series of 40 meter sprints and an interval test consisting of 75 meter sprints and 2x 12,5 meter recovery walks. Assistant referees nominated to the list must pass fitness tests consisting of a CODA-drill, series of 30 meter sprints and an interval test consisting of 75 meter sprints and 2x 12,5 meter recovery walks. [1][9][10]

On being selected to the list, referees receive a badge from FIFA. The badge indicates the category of official in which they have been listed – referee, assistant referee, Futsal referee or Beach soccer referee. While officiating matches in the category they have been nominated, the referee is expected to wear the badge. Where a referee is controlling a match outside of their category (e.g. an assistant referee acting as a central referee or a Futsal referee controlling an outdoor match) the badge is not worn. Members of the women's list are only allowed to work men's international matches if they have completed the men's fitness tests. Being listed for the first time is often referred to as receiving a FIFA badge.[1]

FIFA badge insignia since 2019

A referee must be at least 25 years old on 1 January to be eligible for International Referee listing nomination on that calendar year. An assistant referee is eligible at the age of 23 years.

Prior to 2016, a referee had to be no older than 45 years old to be eligible for being listed. Not previously listed referees had to be no older than 38.

In 2014, FIFA announced that they would remove the maximum age requirement. This was confirmed[11] in 2015.

FIFA reserves the right to require referees over the age of 45 to undergo additional technical assessments as well as specific medical examinations and fitness testing on a case by case basis.[12] Sarkis Demirdjian was the longest serving FIFA-listed referee by 20 years and 10 months, from September 1962 until July 1983.[13]

As of 2016, a total of 3,378 referees from 201 associations worldwide have FIFA international status.[14]

As of 13 April 2018

Association	Number of Referees/Assistant Referees						Reference
	Men	Women	Men's Futsal	Women's Futsal	Beach Soccer	Total
Afghanistan	3	1	1	–	1	6	[15]
Albania	9	2	1	–	–	12	[16]
Algeria	14	4	–	–	–	18	[17]
American Samoa	–	–	–	–	–	0	[18]
Andorra	3	–	1	–	–	4	[19]
Angola	13	5	3	–	–	21	[20]
Anguilla	–	–	–	–	–	0	[21]
Antigua and Barbuda	1	1	–	–	–	2	[22]
Argentina	20	6	4	2	4	36	[23]
Armenia	6	5	–	–	–	11	[24]
Aruba	3	–	–	–	–	3	[25]
Australia	12	6	4	–	–	22	[26]
Austria	17	5	2	–	–	24	[27]
Azerbaijan	9	6	4	–	3	22	[28]
Bahamas	1	–	–	–	–	1	[29]
Bahrain	14	–	3	–	2	19	[30]
Bangladesh	12	–	–	–	–	12	[31]
Barbados	1	3	–	–	–	4	[32]
Belarus	9	4	2	–	1	16	[33]
Belize	2	–	–	–	–	2	[34]
Benin	13	8	–	–	–	21	[35]
Bermuda	1	–	–	–	–	1	[36]
Belgium	17	7	4	–	2	30	[37]
Bhutan	6	2	1	–	–	9	[38]
Bolivia	11	7	4	–	4	26	[39]
Bosnia and Herzegovina	9	5	3	–	–	17	[40]
Botswana	11	5	–	–	–	16	[41]
Brazil	20	8	4	4	4	40	[42]
British Virgin Islands	–	–	–	–	–	0	[43]
Brunei	5	–	1	–	–	6	[44]
Bulgaria	16	7	4	–	2	29	[45]
Burkina Faso	10	5	–	–	–	15	[46]
Burundi	11	5	–	–	–	16	[47]
Cambodia	8	–	1	–	–	9	[48]
Cameroon	14	8	2	–	–	24	[49]
Canada	9	7	1	–	–	17	[50]
Cape Verde Islands	9	1	–	–	–	10	[51]
Cayman Islands	2	2	–	–	–	4	[52]
Central African Republic	9	3	–	–	–	12	[53]
Chad	9	4	–	–	–	13	[54]
China	16	8	4	2	2	32	[55]
Chinese Taipei	8	3	2	–	–	13	[56]
Chile	14	7	4	2	2	29	[57]
Colombia	13	9	4	–	2	28	[58]
Comoros	9	–	–	–	–	9	[59]
Congo	11	4	–	–	–	15	[60]
Congo DR	13	7	–	–	–	20	[61]
Cook Islands	1	1	–	–	–	2	[62]
Costa Rica	10	4	4	1	3	22	[63]
Croatia	16	8	4	–	–	28	[64]
Cuba	6	5	3	2	2	18	[65]
Curaçao	1	–	–	–	–	1	[66]
Cyprus	12	4	4	–	–	20	[67]
Czech Republic	15	8	4	–	2	29	[68]
Denmark	17	5	1	–	–	23	[69]
Djibouti	8	–	–	–	–	8	[70]
Dominica	3	–	–	–	–	3	[71]
Dominican Republic	5	1	1	–	2	9	[72]
Ecuador	14	8	4	4	4	34	[73]
Egypt	14	6	4	–	4	28	[74]
El Salvador	11	8	2	–	3	24	[75]
England	17	7	2	–	–	26	[76]
Equatorial Guinea	9	1	2	–	–	12	[77]
Eritrea	11	3	–	–	–	14	[78]
Estonia	9	5	1	–	2	17	[79]
Ethiopia	14	8	–	–	–	22	[80]
Faroe Islands	5	–	–	–	–	5	[81]
Fiji	2	1	1	–	–	4	[82]
Finland	13	7	4	–	–	24	[83]
France	20	8	4	–	3	35	[84]
Gabon	10	3	–	–	–	13	[85]
Gambia	12	4	–	–	–	16	[86]
Georgia	9	2	2	–	2	15	[87]
Germany	20	8	4	–	2	34	[88]
Ghana	14	8	–	–	–	22	[89]
Gibraltar	3	–	1	–	–	4	[90]
Greece	17	7	2	–	–	26	[91]
Grenada	3	–	–	–	–	3	[92]
Guam	2	–	–	–	–	2	[93]
Guatemala	12	6	4	–	1	23	[94]
Guinea	12	4	–	–	–	16	[95]
Guinea-Bissau	8	–	–	–	–	8	[96]
Guyana	7	1	–	–	–	8	[97]
Haiti	8	6	–	–	–	14	[98]
Honduras	11	4	2	–	–	17	[99]
Hong Kong	13	2	1	–	–	16	[100]
India	13	3	–	–	–	16	[101]
Indonesia	12	2	2	–	–	16	[102]
Iran	16	6	4	3	4	33	[103]
Ivory Coast	14	5	2	2	2	25	[104]
Laos	8	–	1	–	–	9	[105]
Malaysia	14	2	3	–	2	21	[106]
Macedonia	9	5	2	–	–	16	[107]
Nepal	10	2	–	–	–	12	[108]
New Caledonia	2	–	1	–	–	3	[109]
New Zealand	7	3	2	–	–	12	[110]
Norway	17	7	2	–	–	26	[111]
Papua New Guinea	2	1	–	–	–	3	[112]
Paraguay	14	8	4	2	4	32	[113]
Peru	14	8	4	1	3	30	[114]
Poland	17	10	4	1	2	34	[115]
Romania	17	8	5		3	33	[116]
Russia	19	8	4	2	4	37	[117]
Samoa	–	1	–	–	–	1	[118]
Scotland	17	5	1	–	–	23	[119]
Serbia	15	7	4	–	–	26	[120]
Singapore	12	2	–	–	–	14	[121]
Solomon Islands	6	–	3	–	1	10	[122]
Sweden	17	10	4	–	-	31	[123]
Tahiti	4	–	–	–	1	5	[124]
Thailand	14	3	4	–	2	23	[125]
Tonga	3	2	–	–	–	5	[126]
Turkey	17	8	4	1	4	34	[127]
United States	15	9	1	–	–	25	[128]
Uruguay	14	8	4	1	4	31	[129]
Vanuatu	5	–	–	–	–	5	[130]
Venezuela	14	8	4	3	1	30	[131]
Vietnam	9	6	3	–	1	19	[132]
Wales	9	3	2	-	-	14

• "List of Referees". FIFA.