The Asian Football Confederation organized the penultimate advanced training course for the fourth batch of the Continental Confederation’s Referees Academy, in the Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur. The five-day course witnessed the participation of 39 referees from various national federations that are members of the Asian Football Confederation, including our referee Mohamed Ahmed. More The course included intensive training sessions aimed at enhancing participants’ decision-making abilities, in addition to physical fitness training.
The opening day of the course focused mainly on theoretical topics, seeking to gauge participants’ understanding of the changing nature of football, which included in-depth discussions on the duties expected of referees on the field, as well as the speed of the modern game and its impact on refereeing.
The following days witnessed the referees conducting a variety of practical sessions, in addition to many other physical activities aimed at refining the levels of speed, agility and endurance. The referees also participated in matches, in order to improve their movement and positioning on the field.
The program also included several lectures that allowed participants to receive valuable insights on key topics, such as how to maintain a neutral mindset when refereeing, the four pillars of refereeing, and understanding intentional and unintentional handball.
Among the most prominent activities of the course were a series of sessions designed to test the participants’ benefit from the lectures they participated in, through in-depth analyzes of match situations in the AFC U-23 Cup Qatar 2024, and the group stage matches in the AFC Women’s Champions League 2024/2025.
Other topics discussed in this session included ways to prevent injuries, in order to ensure the longevity of a referee’s career, and hone their ability to raise their position during critical moments of the match.
The Asian Football Confederation Referees Academy also organized a course for the fifth batch, starting from October 14 to 18, with participation from Qatar: Abdul Rahman Ali Al Marri, Youssef Al Sharshani, and Khaled Abdullah Al Nabit.
The Asian Football Confederation is the first continental federation to launch a dedicated academy for referees, and since its launch in 2017, up to 201 male and female referees have graduated from 39 national federations.
