Although India is traditionally a cricket-loving country, a fast-swelling band of football lovers sprouts with famous faces like MS Dhoni joining the Indian football-loving bandwagon.
Of course, there is a lot for Indians to love about football. Aside from the thrill of watching their favorite teams play, football also presents earning opportunities. Some Indian punters make a profit by staking on football fixtures on top betting apps like the Fairplay app, which can be downloaded on www.telecomasia.net.
Indeed, while it is common to celebrate legendary players like Ronaldo, Messi, and Maradona, referees also have a massive role in keeping football matches fair, exciting, and orderly.
But who are the greatest referees football has ever seen?
Mark Geiger
This former high school mathematics teacher, Mark Geiger, has risen to become one of the top referees you can list in football. Having first started refereeing in 1998, Mark Geiger juggled his job as a high school mathematics teacher with refereeing.
But in 2002, he started breaking through to important referee roles in the United States.
Geiger first became a referee in the local American League, A-League, which lasted from 2002 to 2004. He later refereed two more local leagues from 2011 to 2019. But within those years, he got the position as a referee in the FIFA games.
For Gieger’s accomplishments, he stands as one of the best referees, and his outstanding performance did not go unrewarded. Geiger is a two-time MLS Referee of the Year (2011 and 2014) and is honored with the Morgan J. Hellebuyck North American Officials Award (2006).
Now Geiger is retired from refereeing, has taken up a position with the PRO, and acts as its director of senior match officials.
Cüneyt Çakır
Cüneyt Çakır is one of the best-recognized football referees from Turkey. He has solid international exposure across Europe and Turkey, too. This former insurance agent skipped his finance-related career for a position on the football field.
Çakır started in important Turkey leagues, like the Süper Lig, in 2001, which continued until 2022. But in 2006, he made his debut in international matches. He was listed in the FIFA games and also the UEFA elite matches.
Throughout Çakır’s career as a referee, he has refereed more than 250 matches and is known to be controversial and accurate. The International Federation of Football History and Statistics rates Çakır as the second-best referee in the world using 2010 to 2020 data.
Howard Webb
Filling in his father’s shoes and juggling between being a South Yorkshire Police officer, Howard Webb has risen to be one of the best referees of all time. This former English professional football referee started in an assistant referee role in less popular football leagues in England, Northern Counties East, in 1993.
Webb’s professional career as a referee rose to prominence quickly after taking many assisting roles. In 1998, he entered the famous English Premier League and landed a spot in the FIFA games in 2005.
Webb’s refereeing approach has always been viewed as authoritative and respectable. Tons of pundits, players, managers, and football bodies have praised his outstanding performance, including the International Federation of Football History and Statistics.
In 2014, Webb left the football pitch to pursue a career as a technical director of the Professional Game Match Officials Board and other roles in other football bodies.
Pierluigi Collina
Another best Italian referee on the list is Pierluigi Collina. Like many people, Collina studied Economics at the University of Bologna, but football just turned out to be a more pressing matter for him. In his teenage age, he was invested in playing football but was later convinced to take a referee’s course.
Collina started his refereeing career in 1998 in the Italy leagues, where he refereed up until 1995 when he got listed for the FIFA games.
Throughout his career as a referee, Collins has won tons of honors, including the Honorary degree: Doctor of Science (2004), awarded by Hull University “for his contribution to the world of sport.”
Collins is also very popular for being regarded as the world’s best referee by the International Federation of Football History & Statistics (IFFHS) for six years in a row (1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002 & 2003). He was also inducted into the Italian Football Hall of Fame in 2011.
Collins holds several other exceptional honors and important positions in football bodies across the globe.
Martin Atkinson
One of the best English referees still running on the football field is Martin Atkinson. Atkinson started his refereeing career at the early age of 16. Of course, it turned out well for him as he has garnered much knowledge, exposure, experience, and respect in the refereeing space.
In 1998, Atkinson started his referring career officially. He began as an assistant referee for the English Football League and later got a spot as an assistant referee in 2000 for the English Premier League. Atkinson held assistant referee positions for about five years before gaining the spot of a referee in the National League Football Conference in 2002.
Having refereed in many local leagues and FIFA games, Atkinson has risen to be one of the best and most respected football referees of all time.
Anthony Taylor
This outstanding English referee, Anthony Taylor, is one of the most respected football referees ever.
He started his career in the Northern Premier League in 2002, which lasted until 2004. He moved to the famous English football association league, the Football Conference, in 2004. And also to the Football League in 2006.
Now Taylor has remained prominent in the Premier League since 2010. He also has taken a spot in the FIFA games since 2013. Unlike some referees on this list, Taylor has not held the position of an assistant referee. He is always at the forefront.
Along with being one of the finest and preferred for most important matches, Taylor is also known to be the first man that has refereed a second FA Cup final right after Arthur Kingscott in 1901.
