Six African referees selected for 2018 World Cup finals
In addition, 10 assistant referees from Africa have also been chosen for the tournament, which gets underway in Moscow on 14 June.
FIFA has selected six African officials for this summer's World Cup finals, the international governing body of football confirmed on Thursday. In addition to this, ten assistant referees from Africa have also been chosen for the tournament.
The 16 African officials make up a total of 99 referees representing 46 different countries selected by Fifa. In the Russia tournament, the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) will be used for the first time at a World Cup.
African referees
The African officials selected for the 2018 World Cup are: Abid Medhi (Algeria), Diedhiou Malang (Senegal), Gassama Bakary (Guinea), Grisha Ghead (Egypt), Sikawe Janny (Zambia) and Tessema Bamlak (Ethiopia).
While the assistant referees are: Achik Redouane (Morocco), Ahmed Waleed (Sudan), Birumushahu Claude (Burundi), Camera Djibril (Senegal), Dos Santos Jerson Emiliano (Angola), Etchiali Abdelhak (Algeria), Hmila Anouar (Tunisia), Range Marwa (Kenya), Samba Malick (Senegal) and Siwela Zakhele Thusi (South Africa).
With 10 officials, Europe is providing the most number of referees.
However, for the first time, there won’t be an English referee at the World Cup.
The officials chosen for the World Cup will attend a two week seminar at the Italian Football Association’s headquarter in Coverciano next month.