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Drew Fischer, Lyes Arfa, and Micheal Barwegan selected as match officials for this Summer’s Olympic Men’s Football Tournament.
Canada Soccer referees Drew Fischer, Lyes Arfa, and Micheal Barwegan were selected as match officials for this Summer’s Olympic Football Tournament. The trio has been appointed to the men’s tournament which is scheduled to take place from 2 July to the 9 August.
“These Canadian officials have consistently performed at a very high standard and are deserving of the recognition that this appointment signals. We are confident they will represent Canadian match officials with outstanding performances in Paris,” said Isaac Raymond, Canada Soccer’s Referee Manager.
This marks the first time Drew Fischer (referee), Lyes Arfa (assistant referee), and Micheal Barwegan (assistant referee) will officiate at the Olympic Games, and the first Canadian trio since Carol Anne Chenard, Suzanne Morisset and Marie-Josée officiated the Women’s Gold medal game in 2016 (Rio). Chantal Boudreau is the last Canadian match official to officiate an Olympics (Tokyo 2020).
Fischer has served on the Canada Soccer List of Referees and Assistant Referees since 2007 and the FIFA List of Referees and Assistant Referees since 2015. He has officiated tournaments such as the 2015 Concacaf Men’s Under-17 Championship, the 2015 Men’s Olympic Qualifying Tournament, the 2017 Concacaf Gold Cup, Major League Soccer matches since 2012 and Canadian Premier League matches since 2019. He was also appointed as a Video Assistant Referee for three consecutive FIFA World Cup tournaments (France 2019, Qatar 2022, Australia & New Zealand 2023).
Barwegan has served on the Canada Soccer List since 2012 and the FIFA List since 2018. He has officiated tournaments such as the 2018 Concacaf Men’s Under-20 Championship, the 2019 Concacaf Men’s Under-17 Championship, the 2019 Concacaf Gold Cup, the FIFA U-17 World Cup Brazil 2019 and both the 2019 and 2021 editions of the Concacaf Gold Cup. As well as officiated matches in leagues including the Canadian Premier League and Major League Soccer
Arfa has served on the Canada Soccer List since 2011 and the FIFA List since 2021. He has officiated Canadian Premier League matches since 2019 and Major League Soccer matches since 2020.
The trio’s most recent major appointment was the final of the CONCACAF Nationals League on March 24th with USA beating Mexico 2-0 in Dallas, TX. In the next few months, they will continue to be appointed to matches and tournaments before heading to the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
About the Canada Soccer Refereeing Department
Canada Soccer is responsible for the development and training of match officials for amateur and professional competitions in Canada. In partnership with our Provincial and Territorial Associations and sanctioned professional leagues, Canada Soccer provides development and training opportunities to advance to the national list of referees and nominations to the FIFA list.
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