Undoubtedly the biggest match – Atletico Madrid v. Juventus – goes to Dr. Dreamy himself – Dr. Felix Brych of Germany (above). Not only is the good doctor quite easy on the eyes, he’s a damn good referee, having officiated the last Europa League final and at the World Cup. My only hesitation is that Brych is not the paciest
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Here are some thoughts I had watching a few of today’s Premier League referees in action. These are just my general impressions; they’re not scientific, and I don’t try and nitpick every single decision. But, as always, if you saw something I didn’t, let us know in comments below. Mark Clattenburg, Arsenal v. Manchester City Clatts was in rare form
Read moreI wanted to talk a minute about a situation that is making it very hard to bring this blog to you: The difficulty in obtaining video. Look, I’m not a big journalist. I don’t get paid to do this. I’m just a blogger; a fan with another perspective on a sport we all love. I like to think that my
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Yes. He did see himself on the big screen and then fix his hair. … What? The guy’s gotta look good…
Read moreThis is why I had to stop taking comments on the Argentina v. Iran penalty post. Also, hopefully this will put to bed the debate that I’m not a Real Girl.
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L’Arbitre is back! I love this guy. He’s researching and writing deeply informative stuff like this, while I’m sourcing shirtless photos of referees. Today, he addresses the additional assistant referees (like the ones used in Italy’s Serie A) and why they’re missing from the World Cup. By L’Arbitre During this World Cup, there are only three officials instead of five. The
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Needless to say, this isn’t how FIFA wanted the World Cup to start. People have a lot of concerns about several of Nishimura’s decisions. I, personally, thought Neymar’s elbow to Luka Modric’s face was deliberate. (He checked to see where Modric was, then swung his arm not once, but twice in quick succession.) And I thought the disallowed goal was
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We’re getting closer and closer to World Cup 2014, and so naturally I’ve got my eye on the men who will be in the middle in Brazil. Undoubtedly the most recognizable man is England’s Howard Webb. Webb is best known for refereeing the final match of the 2010 tournament. He’s back as England’s refereeing representative, along with his assistants, Darren Cann
Read moreIt’s been quite a week here on Play the Advantage. I went about trying to prove that the Champions League referee screwed up, and woke up the next morning to find myself Bjorn Kuipers’ greatest defender. (I got your back, Bjorn.) I’m all for open dialogue and chewing the fat, as we say in America, but I do have a
Read moreI get a report every day that tells me what people are searching for when they land on Play the Advantage. Between that report and my inbox, I have a pretty good idea of the burning questions people are dying to get answered. In the spirit of service that permeates everything I do, I’m starting a new feature to answer said burning questions. So,
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