Brazilian referee Raphael Claus to officiate during match between England, Iran. See who is he

The game promises to be exciting as whenever England takes to the field thousands of noisy fans cheer for it. Brazilian referee Raphael Claus will run the show during the group league match between England and Iran on Monday.

More on Raphael Claus

The 43-year-old referee comes from Santa Barbara, Brazil. Raphael has been part of a select FIFA panel of international referees since 2015. Raphael comes from the Brazilian Serie A league, where he managed over 40 games last year.

Besides domestic matches in Brazil, Raphael has officiated in many international tournaments like the COPA America-2021 and the FIFA Under-20 World Cup 2019.


He had the opportunity to blow his all-powerful whistle in crucial matches like the U-20 World Cup semi-final between Ukraine and Italy and the third-place decider between Colombia and Peru in the last COPA America.



It remains to be seen whether Raphael makes it to the knock-out stage, which depends on his first-phase performance.

FAQs:

1. How many referees will officiate in the FIFA World Cup in Qatar?
   According to a FIFA announcement, there will be 36 referees and 69 assistants managing the matches of the 2022 FIFA World Cup. In addition, there are 24 video officials. In a departure from the earlier practice, three women referees are on the list for the first time in the World Cup.
2. How are referees selected?
   An expert panel of 17 members under FIFA's chief referee finalize the list from an initial shortlist. The entire process takes about three years. In addition, candidates must be between 25 to 45 years old.