Allen Chapman and Brian Dunn named top MLS officials
Allen Chapman has been named as the 2019 MLS Referee of the Year, and Brian Dunn is the 2019 MLS Assistant Referee of the Year. For Chapman, this is his second MLS Referee of the Year honor, while Dunn is awarded his first Assistant Referee of the Year accolade.
“I’m delighted that the consistently high levels of performance produced by both Allen Chapman and Brian Dunn throughout the season have been recognized in this way. Both are extremely talented and dedicated officials, and they are very deserving of their respective Referee and Assistant Referee of the Year honors,” PRO General Manager Howard Webb said.
“The outstanding work of Allen and Brian throughout 2019 is a reflection of the increasingly high standards we set each year at the Professional Referee Organization, as our talented pool of match officials continues to get stronger.”
Chapman, who has refereed MLS matches since 2012, has been named the top MLS referee for the second time in three seasons after earning 2017 MLS Referee of the Year and also serving as the lead referee for the 2017 MLS Cup. Chapman becomes the fifth person to win multiple MLS Referee of the Year honors. Factoring in all PRO metrics – general performance, Key Match Incidents accuracy and Video Assistant Referee grading – Chapman’s collective rank is No. 1 among all MLS referees in 2019.
Outside of MLS action this year, the 45-year-old Utah resident was the center referee during the 2019 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final, won by Atlanta United. Chapman was assigned 27 matches this season (tying for the most among PRO referees) and he now has 162 MLS games in his career. Among previous assignments and accomplishments, Chapman was the lead referee at the 2017 MLS All-Star Game featuring MLS and Real Madrid, and he was the fourth official during the 2016 MLS Cup won by Seattle Sounders FC.
Dunn this year was named an assistant referee for the 2019 MLS All-Star Game presented by Target in Orlando, featuring the MLS All-Stars and Atlético Madrid. Dunn’s performance evaluation figures during the 2019 MLS season ranked among the top Assistant Referees as deemed by PRO.
The 44-year-old Long Island resident also was part of the officiating crew at the 2019 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final. Dunn was assigned to 26 games during the 2019 MLS season and has now worked 135 MLS games in his career. Among other assignments, Dunn, who has been assigned MLS matches since 2012, previously served as an assistant referee during the 2015 MLS All-Star Game featuring Tottenham Hotspur.
Nominated by U.S. Soccer, the Canadian Soccer Association and the MLS Competition Committee, candidates for MLS Referee of the Year and Assistant Referee of the Year were voted on by MLS club management, media and MLS players. Below is the voting breakdown for these two awards:
Referee of the Year
Allen Chapman (41.18%)
Rubiel Vazquez (32.09%)
Jair Marrufo (26.73%)
Assistant Referee of the Year
Brian Dunn (45.21%)
Logan Brown (32.54%)
Brian Poeschel (22.25%)
Please click here for a list of previous winners
