By Al-Shorfa

By Mohammed al-Jayousi

In a first for an Arabic-speaking country, Bahrain will send a trio of referees to officiate in the upcoming International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) World Cup in Brazil.

Bahrain has sent referees to the World Cup in the past, the first of whom was the World Cup in Spain in 1982, but this will be the first time that a country from the region will send an integrated three-man officiating crew, according to sports experts.

Nawaf Shukrallah will serve as referee, with Yaser Tulefat and Ibrahim Saleh serving as assistant referees.

The Bahraini trio was chosen by a panel of FIFA judges after they officiated at several matches during continental and international championships, said Bahrain Football Federation judges’ panel chairman Jassim Mahmoud.

Shukrallah participated in the World Youth Cup in 2011 and also took part in the AFC Champions League. He carries the title of second best Arab referee for 2013 in the annual poll for the Golden Whistle award conducted by Lebanon’s al-Hadath magazine.

“The Bahraini referee crew taking part in the Brazil World Cup has successfully passed all the Asian and international tests and is now more than qualified to work in several first round matches,” Mahmoud said.

The Bahraini referees join three other teams from Asia, nine from Europe, five from South America, three from Africa and three from the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF), in addition to one from Oceania, he said.

“The ball is in the court of the Bahraini referees to prove to everyone that they deserve to participate in the World Cup in the primaries and during advanced stages,” Mahmoud said.

The Bahraini trio travelled to Brazil on May 31st and will attend a workshop as part of the final step in their qualification process before the start of the World Cup on June 12th.

‘Huge accomplishment for Bahrain’

“Choosing the Bahraini referee trio for the World Cup is a huge accomplishment for Bahrain and for local sports, especially since their selection was done over several rounds of competitions with a large pool of referees at an international level,” sports journalist Ahmed Ridha told Al-Shorfa.

The trio were selected due to their strong performance during the semi-finals of the World Youth Cup in Turkey, Ridha said.

Bahraini national football team captain Mohammed Salmin said he is overjoyed at the participation of Bahraini referees in the World Cup and considered it to be “a source of pride for all Bahrainis and football fans”.

Salmin said he has high hopes for the Bahraini trio to get to the final round of the World Cup, because of their high level of fitness and their years of collective experience.

“The Bahraini trio all attending the World Cup at the same time will encourage training more local referee crews to represent the kingdom during local, regional and international sporting events,” he said.

Al-Shorfa