FIFA World Cup Appointment For PSL Referee
Prominent PSL referee, Jelly Chavani, has been selected by FIFA to officiate at the upcoming FIFA U-17 World Cup.
On Thursday, the FIFA Referees Committee announced the officials chosen to oversee matches at this year’s FIFA U-17 World Cup. The tournament will be held in Qatar from 3 to 27 November and will be the first edition to feature 48 teams.
A total of 81 match officials—27 referees and 54 assistant referees from 35 FIFA member associations—are set to officiate at the event.
South Africa’s national U-17 team, the Amajimbos, will also be competing, having reached the quarterfinals of the CAF U-17 African Cup of Nations earlier this year.
“This year’s FIFA U-17 World Cup is a landmark competition that will feature the stars of tomorrow and will equally offer talented match officials a thrilling opportunity to further develop their careers in a very competitive setting,” said Pierluigi Collina, chairman of the FIFA Referees Committee.
“The tournament will also give us another chance to test Football Video Support, thus enhancing our previous findings.”
This appointment also puts Chavani in contention to officiate at the FIFA World Cup in the United States, Mexico, and Canada next year.
Chavani, who made his PSL debut in 2017, has refereed two major PSL cup finals. In the 2019/20 season, he officiated the Nedbank Cup final where Mamelodi Sundowns defeated Bloemfontein Celtic at Orlando Stadium, and the Telkom Knockout final where Sundowns beat Maritzburg United at the Moses Mabhida Stadium.
“We have selected a group of match officials who will benefit from this new experience and have the potential to officiate at FIFA competitions in the future,” commented Massimo Busacca, FIFA Director of Refereeing.
“This is in line with our objective of developing a new generation of highly qualified referees.” Busacca famously sent off Itumeleng Khune during the 2010 FIFA World Cup match between South Africa and Uruguay at Loftus Stadium.
Football Video Support (FVS) was successfully trialled last year at the FIFA Women’s U-20 World Cup in Colombia and the FIFA Women’s U-17 World Cup in the Dominican Republic.
This year, its use has been confirmed for the FIFA U-20 World Cup in Chile (which South Africa will also participate in), the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup in Morocco, and the U-17 tournament in Qatar.
