In a soccer scoreboards feature, we look at the top soccer referees in the game of soccer. Baseball is the ultimate American pass time. If we had to state what the world’s (as a whole) ultimate pass time game is soccer. Soccer is the most played sport in the world, which is why sport apparel companies earn huge revenues from soccer player jersey sales. I wonder, how many jerseys with a referees name and number have these companies sold or even made? The answer of-course is none. This shows that the fans of the game, unless they are heavily criticizing them, tend to overlook one of the most important participants in the game: the referees.

The outcome of any sporting game greatly depends on the efforts and skills of the team going head to head, individually as well as collectively. However, a game’s outcome can be changed drastically by an erroneous decision by one of the referees. This is a high pressure job, and here are the referees from past and present who can do it best.

1. Pierluigi Collina – he is considered to be the best soccer referee and on field official in the world of soccer. Although, he started his career as a young football player for a local team, he quickly recognized his potential for refereeing. The soccer scoreboards showed that the Olympic games of 1996 was his first major tournament, in which he also refereed the tournament final between Argentina and Nigeria.

2. Phil Sharp Arnaldo – he is considered to be the best assistant referee in the world of soccer. He made the list of Fifa referees in 1999 after his potential was recognized while refereeing the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Scheme and the Premiership. His career kicked off when he was picked for the 2000 European Championship.

3. Arthur Edward Ellis – he launched his career as an assistant referee in 1950. Later, he went on to gain fame when he refereed the 1954 world cup game between Hungary and Brazil.

4. Said Belqola – he carries the great honor of becoming the first African to referee a final match of the World Cup. A customs officer by profession, he refereed his first game in 1993 and then went on to referee the 1998 world cup final between France and Brazil. Sadly, he also died in the same year.

5. Gottfried Dienst – a very successful former referee with the 1966 World Cup final between Germany and England, European Champions Cup of 1961 and 1965 and a European Football Championship of 1968 under his belt.

6. William Ling – a former English referee with just one tournament under his belt: the 1954 World Cup final between Hungary and West Germany. He is known for his controversial decision for following the lineman’s flag and calling Puskas offside.

For more information, go to: en.wikipedia.org