CSA Names Its 2010 FIFA Referees

14 Canadian officials have been named to the 2010 FIFA List of Referees and Assistant Referees. The list features seven referees (four male and three female) and seven assistant referees (five male and two female).

The seven Canadian referees were retained from the 2009 FIFA List are Steve Depiero, Mauricio Navarro, Silviu Petrescu, Paul Ward, Carol-Ann Chénard, Darci Kruse and Michelle Pye.

Amongst the seven Canadian assistant referees on the 2010 FIFA List, there is one new appointee: Philippe Brière of Montréal, QC. Brière was included on the international list along with returning officials Daniel Belleau, Darren Clark, Joe Fletcher, Hector Vergara, Shauna Poirier and Suzanne Morisset. Brière is the 91st Canadian appointed to the FIFA List of Referees and Assistant Referees since 1955.

Winnepeg’s, Hector Vergara, is the longest-serving Canadian official on the FIFA List, having first been appointed in 1994. Vergara holds the Canadian record for most years on the FIFA List: 17 including this coming season, which is two more than former referees Tony Evangelista and Harry Sadler. This past year, Vergara’s appointments included the FIFA Confederations Cup South Africa 2009 and the FIFA Club World Cup UAE 2009.

The Canadian Soccer Association’s Referees Committee also announced its National List of Match Officials for 2010. New to the Referee List are David Barrie (Ontario), Carrie Beleyea (Alberta) and Alain Ruch (British Columbia). New to the Assistant Referees List are Marco Arruda (British Columbia), Marie-Josée Charbonneau (Québec), Oscar Mitchell-Carvalho (Québec) and Christian Palavencino (Manitoba).

The National List of Officials will be verified subject to the successful completion of the requisite fitness test by the officials. That fitness test will take place at the pre-season meeting of national officials in early 2010.

Canadian officials on the International and National lists operate in professional soccer on a regular basis throughout the year.