Quote:The referee for the opening game of the World Cup was from Japan. A country with a growing football interest but not deeply rooted, and a league that is definitely not big time. The USA v Belgium game tonight is being officiated by a referee from Algeria I believe. These referees are better referees then I will ever be, but they're now making decisions on the biggest stage with millions watching. A long way away from their normal matches with a few thousand people in the stands

The ref in the opening match has been in a World Cup before without many complaints. He led the Brazil-Netherlands match in the quarters in 2010. These have spent plenty of time heading big matches and FIFA watches them very carefully. Of course it's still a lot like NFL scouting; until you get them on the big stage you don't really know how good they are.

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