"The World Cup referee in Japan is excellent." When FIFA compliments are pouring out... "0 people." Korea doesn't even have a name "What are you doing as long as you're an athlete?"

*This content was translated by AI.

What's the point of being a 'World Class' player. Twenty-five Asian referees were assigned to the 2026 FIFA 2026 FIFA North and Central America World Cup, the most ever, but none of the South Korean referees were named. It hasn't been for 16 years.

FIFA announced on its official website on the 11th that "25 referees from Asian Football Confederation (AFC) member countries have been allocated to the 2026 2026 FIFA North and Central America World Cup." It is the largest number ever, up six from the 2022 Qatar World Cup.

However, there was no place for the Korean referee. South Korea has failed to produce as many as four World Cup referees and 16 World Cup referees since the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. If limited to referees, referee Kim Young-joo of the 2002 Korea-Japan World Cup last lost his reputation for 24 years.

In contrast to the fact that neighboring countries Japan and China are also sending referees to this tournament, the relative deprivation is growing.

The Asian judges consisted of eight referees, 12 assistant referees, and five VAR judges. FIFA said, "It is a monumental achievement of AFC's efforts to foster elite referees. In particular, Abdullah Al-Shehri (Saudi Arabia), a former AFC referee academy, was selected as the first VAR referee in history.

In the North-China World Cup, five Asian referees will make their debuts. Veteran Alireza Pagani of Australia and Abdulrahman Al-Jasim of Qatar will play in the fourth and third World Cups, respectively. Manning (China), who was on the waiting list in six games in 2022, will mark his second World Cup.

Al Jasim, one of Asia's top referees, played in the 2025 AFC Champions League Elite (ACLE) final and the 2019 and 2023 Asian Cup. After making his VAR referee debut in 2018, he was responsible for two matches, including Croatia vs Morocco's third-place match at the 2022 Qatar tournament.

Pagani, a regular on the world stage, served as a referee for the 2018 Russia and 2022 Qatar World Cups after serving as a supporting referee in 2014. He played in three consecutive Asian Cups, the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup final, and the 2016 Rio Olympics final.

Manning, who is the referee of this tournament, was the first Chinese to be the final referee of the 2024 Asian Cup and also played in the FIFA Club World Cup.

Of the five debutants, Khalid al-Tourais of Saudi Arabia will play in his second FIFA tournament after the 2025 Chile Under-20 World Cup after going through the 2023 Asian Cup, ACLE, and ACL2. Yusuke Araki (Japan) managed the 2019 Asian Cup, AFC Cup, and national team matches by age and was selected as the J-League's referee of the year last year.

While Korean referees have been pushed out of the international arena to the periphery, Asian neighbors such as Japan and China are constantly exposing their referees to major competitions.

Uzweiz Tantashev of Uzbekistan joined the World Cup based on his performance on the Asian stage and experience as a referee in four games at the 2024 Paris Olympics. The United Nations (UAE) played in the quarterfinals of the 2023 Indonesia U-17 World Cup against Spain. Adham Makadme (Jordan) joined the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, Asian Cup, ACLE, World Cup Asia Qualifiers, and ASEAN Championships.

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*This content was translated by AI.