As VAR’s influence on games around the world grows, referees are coming under increased scrutiny.
The worst referees in history have been ranked after David Coote was suspended.
Famous officials like Byron Moreno and Urs Meier were on the list because of their contentious calls and subpar performances.
Referees are expected to maintain objectivity and impartiality. The world’s top players should speak for themselves by making incredible last-ditch tackles and scoring spectacular goals, but occasionally the people in the midst unintentionally join in the mayhem.
Due of their ongoing influence on the game, referees have begun to be despised by spectators worldwide. Since the introduction of Video Assistant Referee (VAR) in the world’s largest championships, officials have increasingly been’re-referring’ games as they strive for perfection.
We have chosen to list the 12 worst referees in football history, some of whom have had a greater influence than others, in light of David Coote’s suspension by the PGMOL after a video surfaced showing the official seemingly criticising Liverpool and their former manager, Jurgen Klopp. Keep in mind that only well-known referees were taken into consideration for this list. Poor referees will always exist, particularly in lower echelons of the global pyramid, but they hardly ever made the news. Like any contentious referee judgement, there is always subjection involved.
Ranking Elements
Time spent officiating: Whether or not they have a lengthy tenure officiating important games.
Moments of controversy: The referees who make the news for all the wrong reasons are usually the worst.
Level of competition: Despite their errors, certain referees are nonetheless trusted to oversee important competitions.
The Worst Football Referees in History
Rank
Name
Country of origin
Career
1.
Moreno Byron
Ecuador
From 1996 to 2003
2.
Meier Urs
Switzerland
1989–2004
3.
Coote, David
England
2022:
4.
Kettle, Trevor
England
2003–2022
5.
Sikazwe, Janny
Zambia
2007–2022
6.
Nasser, Ali Ben
Tunisia
1986
7.
Ovrebo, Tom Henning
Norway
1992–2010
8.
Norway’s Christina Pedersen
1997
9.
Ahlenfelder, Wolf-Dieter
Germany
1974–1988
10.
Frankowski, Bartosz
Poland
2008
11.
Daami Mourad
Tunisia
1993
12.
Al-Ghandour, Gamal
Egypt
From 1981 to 2002
12Gamal Al-Ghandour
Sandor Puhl (EEUU, 1994)
Gamal Al-Ghandour (Corea y Japón, 2002)
Katalin Kulcsar (Francia, 2019)#ESPUSA #FIFAWWC #JugarLucharYGanar pic.twitter.com/NzFcDU2Dkw— Manuel Galán (@SoyManuelGalan) June 24, 2019
Gamal Al-Ghandour’s record is outstanding. In addition to officiating in three African Nations Cups and two World Cups, he was the first Egyptian referee to officiate in the J.League and the first non-European referee to preside in a European championship event. A contest that was the final nail in his professional coffin.
The Egyptian was convicted in Korea in 2002 of several egregiously egregious mistakes that helped the host country defeat Spain. Twenty years later, nevertheless, the Egyptian defended himself, claiming that he had done nothing wrong. We believe that La Roja players and supporters will never agree with these statements.
11Mourad Daami
Despite being a legendary figure in Tunisian officiating, Mourad Daami has been involved in numerous scandals throughout his career. One example, perhaps one of the most significant, is the penalty kick that was handed to Victor Ikpeba during the penalty shootout in the 2000 African Cup of Nations final, which resulted in Cameroon defeating Nigeria.
A one-year ban from the Confederation of African Football for attempting to sway South African referee Robbie Williams during his time with the Esperance de Tunis delegation also marked his career. That’s a lot.
10Bartosz Frankowski
First off, even though his name may not be familiar, Bartosz Frankowski has been recognised as a FIFA referee since 2014. He is on this list, nonetheless, because he is prohibited until June 2025. Before Rangers’ Champions League qualifying match against Dynamo Kyiv on August 6, 2024, Frankowski and Tomasz Musial were dismissed as VAR officials due to allegations of “improper behaviour.”
Frankowski later confirmed facts of the incident in an interview. They were allegedly drinking when they were detained by police in the early hours of the morning with another man after they had moved a traffic sign. As a result, they were banned by UEFA for breaking the “basic rules of decent conduct” and tarnishing the sport’s reputation. UEFA never has a typical day.
9Wolf-Dieter Ahlenfelder
A walk down Memory Lane reveals that Wolf-Dieter Ahlenfelder officiated in Germany’s top two divisions, but despite his obvious belief that he had “made it” to the pinnacle of the sport, he is recognised for one of the most chaotic and embarrassing incidents in the history of an official.
After only thirty-two minutes of play in a 1975 match between Werder Bremen and Hannover, he sounded the whistle for intermission. He only made it to 43 minutes 30 seconds before deciding to head in for a rest, despite the linesman’s intervention. Before the game, he later acknowledged that he had consumed beer and Schnapps, stating, “We are men, we don’t drink Fanta.” Alright.
8Christina Pedersen
The sole female referee on this list, Christina Pedersen, continues to officiate games at a lower level, but regrettably, she blew her big chance at international competitions. The Canucks were ahead 3-2 in the 2012 Olympic semi-final between the USA and Canada, but with just over ten minutes remaining, a string of odd calls appeared to work against them.
USA scored a late equaliser and won the match in extra time thanks to a contentious indirect free-kick and a contentious penalty. It should come as no surprise that Pedersen soon came under fire, especially from Canadian player Christine Sinclair. Pedersen never again oversaw a big competition.
7Tom Henning Ovrebo
Tom Henning Ovrebo, who oversaw one of the most contentious moments in Champions League history, was bound to be on this list. He disregarded four different penalty appeals against the Spanish team in the second leg of Chelsea vs. Barcelona in the 2009 semi-final.
The Norwegian referee was previously well-respected, but his performance in West London damaged that reputation. Chelsea supporters were incensed when Andres Iniesta’s late goal eliminated them, yet ten years later, he acknowledged that he had erred. “Really, it wasn’t my best day,” he admitted to Marca. There are days when you don’t perform at your best. That performance is not something I can be proud of.
6Ali Ben Nasser
The ‘Hand of God’ goal that Diego Maradona scored against England during the 1986 World Cup is among the most contentious moments in the tournament’s history. England was incensed at the renowned Argentine magician and the referee, Ali Bin Nasser, as they fled in celebration.
Compared to most on this list, the Tunisian’s career was modest, and since then, English fans have never shown him any affection. Because they share decision-making authority, he blamed his assistant referee for missing the glaringly obvious handball, assuming his eyes were tricking him.
5Janny Sikazwe
There are always going to be contentious, and occasionally amusing, moments at the African Cup of Nations. That was precisely the situation in the tournament’s 2021 edition, when Zambian referee Janny Sikazwe made headlines for all the wrong reasons.
Before the clock hit ninety minutes, he made the decision to blow his whistle twice for the last time. Even though there was still stoppage time to play, players went back to the dressing room for the second time after the 85th and 89th minutes were called for full-time. Tunisia refused to leave the dressing room after players were told to return to finish the game. However, the outcome remained the same. Even though he was supposedly dehydrated and suffering from heatstroke, it was nonetheless a humiliating incident.
4Trevor Kettle
Any supporter of an EFL football team in the 2010s will tell you the same thing: they hated Trevor Kettle. Perhaps it’s unfortunate that one person receives such widespread criticism from fans, but it’s understandable when considering his career after retiring in 2022.
He received seven red cards in ten games during his first season in the Conference League, and after being promoted to the EFL, he maintained his reputation for being overly controlling of games and a card-heavy player. His most notorious call was in March 2016, when he controversially used a mistimed whistle blow to deny Accrington Stanley victory against Wimbledon.
Billy Kee was ready to give Accrington the lead with a goal that was chalked off when Kettle blew for halftime, leaving the score tied at 0-0 after forty-five minutes. Following the final whistle, Accrington manager John Coleman remarked, “In my 46 years of playing and managing, I’ve never seen anything like it happen.”
“As the ball was heading into the net, he blew. That is impossible to account for. Everybody on the ground is shocked. Because they are only human, referees make mistakes, which is what makes football so unique because there are disputes and talking points.
3David Coote
David Coote’s career is on the line because of the leaked video in which he attacked Klopp and his old team, Liverpool. He is on this list only because he is too dumb to make a movie like that, and most people feel that he has no chance of returning to the Premier League.
Since joining the Premier League as a referee in 2018, Coote has frequently fought with one of the greatest managers in history. His choice to call the Reds “s***” before calling then-manager Klopp a “c***” doesn’t seem to be related to their past interactions. The 42-year-old most famously chose not to dismiss Jordan Pickford for his horrific tackle on Virgil van Dijk in 2020.
2Urs Meier
Urs Meier, meantime, experienced his share of scandal despite never being a part of any leaked videos. He gained prominence at Euro 2004 and is most frequently used as a referee in Switzerland. His terrible performance during a qualifying match between Romania and Denmark prompted a petition to FIFA for his removal. Romania, who lost, said he ought to have stopped the match over a minute earlier.
In the tournament itself, Meier put on a terrible performance as manager of England’s quarterfinal matchup with Portugal, reportedly making a lot of calls in the hosts’ favour. Following their victory over the Three Lions on penalties, Meier received over 16,000 hateful emails and his personal information was leaked by British tabloids.
1Byron Moreno
Lastly, it has been determined that Byron Moreno is the worst well-known referee in football history. After Ecuador was eliminated from the 2002 World Cup by joint-hosts South Korea due to a number of contentious judgements, Ecuadorian official Moreno became Italy’s number one public nemesis.
He sent off Francesco Totti for diving when he should have had a penalty, disallowed Damiano Tommasi’s would-be golden goal in extra time for offside, gave South Korea a soft penalty, gave Hwang Sun-hong a yellow card for a challenge that he later acknowledged deserved a red, and missed an elbow in the face of Alessandro Del Piero inside the box and a boot on Paolo Maldini’s head. It’s safe to assume that Moreno didn’t have the best career because he was also suspended for 20 games back in Ecuador for timekeeping mistakes.
