18 Days until takeoff! Updates on Elite group and referee assignments.

Wow! It seems like just last week that I found out that I was accepted to go referee the Iber Cup, when in reality, that was last July! I still remember jumping up with excitement when I read the email, and the number of times I had to read it to believe the opportunity I would have. Almost a year later, here we are in June, ready to begin the experience of a lifetime.

The Iber Cup, being Tournaments Abroad's flagship tournament, has always been a showcase for international referees, and they are constantly seeking to extend its reach and bring it to an even more international level. This year, as a pilot project, they have created an "Elite Group". This 15 referee group will be headed by Mr. Joao Capela, a fifa referee who regularly referees the Portuguese first division (pictured right). The selection process began with a test on the Laws of the Game. The questions were quite challenging, and required a thorough knowledge of the intricacies of soccer. My response to the test ended up being 10 pages long, and I remember rushing to finish while at a friends ski chalet for the weekend. The results were so invariably well crafted that Mr. Capela and Daniel Curcio (president of Tournaments abroad) decided that they required more information, so they asked for a personal statement on our motives and background as a referee. I wrote about my humble beginnings as a referee, and passions for the game that we all love, and to my delight, I was selected to be a part of this elite group.

This elite group is comprised of 15 referees selected out of the 140 attending the tournament, and to quote directly from the letter they sent me:

The elite group will be a very intensive development and training program with daily sessions that will spam over the entire day. At the beginning of the tournament you will be asked to attend an introductory meeting and also undertake a battery of fitness tests at the University of Lisbon while the rest of the week will be organized as follows: in the morning, general warm up with all referees and indications on personalized warm-up to be done before each game; in the afternoon recovery practice sessions and technical practice; in the evening meetings with assessors and coaches to analyze the day’s performances as well as referee patterns and time motion.

It sounds like a phenomenal experience and I am thrilled to get to participate in this, and willdefinitely keep you posted as to what the group entails when I find out more.





because it's the cup

The Iber Cup will be taking place over the first week of July, and prior to refereeing there, I will be officiating the Madrid Sur Cup in Getafe, Spain. This is quickly approaching, and I have learned a lot of details regarding what will be occurring. The tournament is not nearly as international as the Iber Cup, with approximately 40 international refs, and primarily Spanish and Portuguese teams. Considering that these are two of the best football nations in the world, one cannot complain. During the tournament, we will be staying in Bungalows, and refereeing games nightly. They will also be treating us to luxurious local meals such as Paella, and Squid "a la Andalusa. The Madrid portion of my trip will be a great chance to meet the referees, get accustomed to the fast paced and skilled European soccer, and enjoy the beautiful area. Better keep practicing my Spanish.

On a final note, we received our tentative assignments for the first two days of the Iber Cup today, and I am very excited to be a part of some very high class matches, including the likes of Sevilla FC, and Southampton FC, and teams from India, Croatia, England, Norway, Spain, and of course, Portugal. My match schedule is as follows, keep in mind that this is subject to change.

July 1

• 15:30 U15 Fourth Official, Southampton FC (Eng) vs. AD Barroselas (Por)
• 16:45 U15 Assistant Referee 1, Kenkre FC (Ind) vs Almada AC (Por)

July 2

• 9:00 U13 Fourth Official, Pro Touch SA (Eng) vs. CAC Pontinha (Por)
• 12:45 U13 Referee, NK Hypo-Limac (Cro) vs. GD Fabril (Por)
• 18:15 U16 Assistant Referee 1, Sevilla FC (Spa) vs. IL Stalkameratene (Nor)
• 19:30 U17g Assistant Referee 1, Real Betis Balompie (Spa) vs. Baerums Verk IF (Nor)

Sounds like I will be a part of some fantastic matches, hopefully I am able to perform well enough to earn some high level middle games, and most importantly earn playoff and especially final assignments, that would be a dream.

I will be blogging , much more frequently as the tournament approaches, giving updates as they come, and keeping everyone informed as to my assignments, and also all of my game reports when I reach the tournaments. Thanks for taking the time to read through this, and I always appreciate feedback either by commenting on this blog or emailing me kevintupper@live.com

Read more on the tournaments at http://www.ibercup.com/home/en and http://www.madridsurcup.com/Pages/Default.aspx. Find out more about Tournaments abroad here: http://www.tournamentsabroad.com/home.html