Elite World Cup referees for India friendlies | Goa News
Kolkata: The All India Football Federation (AIFF) has enlisted officials from Uzbekistan for India’s friendlies against Brazil and Uruguay, with three of the four referees having officiated at the FIFA World Cup 2026.One of the officials, Ilgiz Tantashev, is among Asia’s most renowned referee, having officiated at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, FIFA Club World Cup, two AFC Asian Cups, three AFC U-23 Asian Cups, AFC Champions League Elite since 2015, and six iterations of the AFC Cup.The Uzbek referee, however, was in the eye of a storm after his handling of the fierce contest between France and Paraguay at the recent World Cup. Officiating his third group-stage match, Tantashev failed to book a single Paraguay player in their fiery defeat, promoting France to say their players were lucky to escape without any serious injuries after being targeted with aggressive challenges throughout the game.“We asked Uzbekistan to send their referees because they officiated at the World Cup,” said a senior official. “They are experienced, good enough to handle teams of Brazil and Uruguay’s stature.”Given his experience at the highest level, Tantashev is expected to take charge of the friendly against Brazil, while Rustam Lutfulin will be the fourth official. The roles will be reversed for the clash against Uruguay three days later.Andrey Tsapenko and Timur Gaynullin, both of whom were also at the World Cup, will be the assistant referees.India’s Arunava Bhattacharya has been appointed as the match commissioner. The senior official has overseen conduct of over 50 international matches as Asian Football Confederation (AFC) match commissioner since 2019 and FIFA since 2023.
