Three PRO officials make their FIFA international panel debut in 2021
Tori Penso, Allen Chapman, and Tim Ford have been selected to join the FIFA international panel of match officials for the first time, while Jair Marrufo and Corey Rockwell will embark on international duties for a 15th consecutive year, as the total number of PRO match officials working on the global stage reaches 36 with the recent announcement of the list for 2021.
Penso joins the panel of officials eligible for international games and tournaments after a successful 2020 season, which included regular NWSL and USL assignments and her first as a center referee in MLS.
The panel has expanded in 2021 to include a specific group of video match officials following the worldwide implementation of video review. The new panel includes seven PRO officials, with Chapman and Ford both receiving their first FIFA badges.
Meanwhile, 2020 MLS Cup Final referee, Jair Marrufo, and assistant referee Corey Rockwell are the longest-serving PRO officials on the panel. Both have extended their FIFA duties for a 15th season. Assistant referee Frank Anderson is set to embark on his 10th campaign since his first inclusion in 2012.
After featuring on the FIFA panel for eight years as a referee between 2010 and 2017, Edvin Jurisevic has returned to the international stage as a video match official, as has Chris Penso, who was on the referee panel between 2013 and 2015.
Armando Villarreal, Drew Fischer, and Dave Gantar have all been selected as part of the video match official list too, in addition to their role on the referee panel.
Canada Soccer Association referee Pierre-Luc Lauziere and assistant referee Lyes Arfa both officiated in MLS last season and are also new faces in this year’s FIFA panel.
Congratulations to all the officials who have been selected.
The full list of PRO officials on the FIFA panel, with the year in which they joined the panel stated in parentheses:
Referees
Karen Abt (2016) 🇺🇸
Danielle Chesky (2010) 🇺🇸
Ismail Elfath (2016) 🇺🇸
Drew Fischer (2015) 🇨🇦
Dave Gantar (2011) 🇨🇦
Katja Koroleva (2014) 🇺🇸
Jair Marrufo (2007) 🇺🇸
Tori Penso (2021) 🇺🇸
Nima Saghafi (2020) 🇺🇸
Ted Unkel (2016) 🇺🇸
Rubiel Vazquez (2020) 🇺🇸
Armando Villarreal (2015) 🇺🇸
Assistant Referees
Frank Anderson (2012) 🇺🇸
Ian Anderson (2017) 🇺🇸
Kyle Atkins (2018) 🇺🇸
Micheal Barwegen (2018) 🇨🇦
Cameron Blanchard (2019) 🇺🇸
Philippe Briere (2010) 🇨🇦
Logan Brown (2020) 🇺🇸
Jennifer Garner (2018) 🇺🇸
Apolinar Mariscal (2017) 🇺🇸
Eduardo Mariscal (2017) 🇺🇸
Felisha Mariscal (2014) 🇺🇸
Brooke Mayo (2018) 🇺🇸
Alicia Messer (2018) 🇺🇸
Oscar Mitchell-Carvalho (2017) 🇨🇦
Kathryn Nesbitt (2016) 🇺🇸
Corey Parker (2015) 🇺🇸
Deleana Quan (2016) 🇺🇸
Corey Rockwell (2007) 🇺🇸
Nick Uranga (2020) 🇺🇸
Chris Wattam (2018) 🇨🇦
Video Match Officials
Allen Chapman (2021) 🇺🇸
Drew Fischer (2021) 🇨🇦
Tim Ford (2021) 🇺🇸
Dave Gantar (2021) 🇨🇦
Edvin Jurisevic (2021) 🇺🇸
Chris Penso (2021) 🇺🇸
Armando Villarreal (2021) 🇺🇸