The tournament witnesses the application of video assistant system technology in football
Hani Taleb Ballan, Vice Chairman of the FIFA Referees Committee and Chairman of the Referees Committee of the Asian and Qatari Football Confederations, participated in the opening of the U-17 World Cup Referees Course – Qatar 2025, this morning, Wednesday 10/29/2025, at Aspire Academy, in the presence of Massimo Busacca, Director of the FIFA Refereeing Department, and all 81 referees participating in managing the tournament matches (27 field referees and 54 referees). Assistants) from 35 national federations will manage the historic championship matches, and the list of referees participating in managing the championship matches includes 3 Qatari referees, namely Mohammed Ahmed Al-Shammari, a referee, and Khaled Khalaf and Faisal Eid Al-Shammari, two assistant referees.
Pierluigi Collina, Chairman of the FIFA Referees Committee, was also keen to participate in the opening via video, and the opening ceremony of the tournament was held in a distinguished organizational atmosphere, where the referees chosen to manage the World Cup matches, who represent various continents, were welcomed, in a step that confirms FIFA’s commitment to the diversity of competencies and the development of the global arbitration system.
In his opening speech, Hani Ballan welcomed the participating referees to their second country, Qatar, stressing that an ideal environment was provided for the technical, physical and psychological preparation of the tournament referees, which is considered an important stage in the referees’ journey to prove and refine their refereeing abilities. Massimo Busacca also made sure to deliver a motivational speech to the referees, during which he stressed the importance of focusing throughout the tournament and preparing well to provide the best level of refereeing. After that, the course activities were launched, and its program includes practical and technical training, video analytical lectures of refereeing positions from previous tournaments, practical field exercises using (VAR) techniques, tests on physical fitness and mental readiness, and workshops on match management and psychological pressures.
The tournament will witness the application of the “Football video support” system, which was implemented last year during the U-20 Women’s World Cup in Colombia and the U-17 Women’s World Cup in the Dominican Republic. It was also applied again this year in the U-20 World Cup in Chile, and is being applied in the U-17 Women’s World Cup in Morocco, in addition to the U-17 World Cup in Qatar.
This course comes as part of FIFA’s preparations to ensure the highest levels of refereeing competence in the U-17 World Cup matches, which Qatar is hosting for the first time, in light of aspirations to produce a distinguished version at all levels. The opening of the junior World Cup referees course in Qatar reflects the high professionalism in preparing for the tournament, and confirms the International Federation’s commitment to raising the level of refereeing in a tournament that constitutes an important station in the career of referees, just as it is for the players as well.