With all the attention on the FIFA bribery allegations and subsequent suspension of high-ranking officials, two Barbadians – Trevor “Muslim” Taylor and Adrian Goddard – have received major match appointments to officiate in the prestigious CONCACAF Gold Cup.
The Gold Cup kicks off tonight with a double-header at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas, United States, and two days later, referee Taylor and referee’s assistant Goddard will have their first assignments when Panama play Guadeloupe in Detroit on Tuesday at 6 p.m.
Goddard will also run the lines in Saturday’s match between Canada and Guadeloupe at Tampa in Florida with Taylor serving as fourth official.
In addition, Goddard will be the fifth official (reserve referee’s assistant) for the back-to-back matches on June 14 in Kansas City between Canada and Panama, and Guadeloupe and the United States.
Prior to their selection, they successfully completed the CONCACAF Elite Referee Course in Dallas which featured 48 officials from 15 of the Confederation’s member countries.
The four-day course, which was directed by FIFA/CONCACAF referee instructors Esse Baharmast (United States), Carlos Batres (Guatemala), Peter Prendergast (Jamaica) and Rodolfo Sibrian (El Salvador), focused on fitness, leadership, professionalism, management of game/player communication, match analysis and overall preparation.
The course also served as preparation for other CONCACAF-related competitions such as this year’s Champions League and FIFA World Cup qualifying.
“This is an excellent course with a mixture of veteran and rookie referees, with very experienced instructors,” said Roberto Moreno, a referee from Panama. “The materials and lectures that we have received will help us improve our performances in both CONCACAF and FIFA tournaments.”
The Gold Cup culminates on June 25 with the championship match at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California.
