Canada Soccer National Officials Day essay winners announced

Victor Ogbechi (ON) and Etienne Bossé (QC) as the winners of the National Officials Day essay contest.

After receiving over 150 submissions, Canada Soccer’s Referee Department is proud to announce Victor Ogbechi (ON) and Etienne Bossé (QC) as the winners of the National Officials Day essay contest.

The theme of the contest was What Motivates Me to Officiate, outlining the reasons why individuals became a referee and what motivates them to continue refereeing. Essays were received from officials in seven Provinces, with youth, district, regional, provincial and national referees all submitting entries.

“We received many creative submissions, with each essay providing honest and heartfelt insight into an official’s motivation for refereeing”, said Tiger Liu, Head of Refereeing, Canadian Soccer Association. “Although every essay was different, we saw recurrent themes of camaraderie, commitment to the game and a desire to give back to the soccer community. It is evident that we have a very passionate group of officials in our country.”

Read the winning essays:

Victor Ogbechi
Etienne Bossé

Victor and Etienne will each receive an Umbro Refereeing Prize Pack, valued at $400.

The National Officials Day essay contest was launched on 17 April to celebrate National Officials Day, an initiative started by Sports Officials Canada to increase the awareness of officiating in sport and promote respect of officials.