A football game would not be possible without the referees; they are an indispensable staff. To ensure the fairest competition possible, a league or tournament looks throughout the world for the best referees to use in its games. Which football referees have the highest salaries worldwide, do you know?
One of the most difficult but important positions in sports is that of a referee. There’s no shortage of criticism aimed at these high ranking officials. Every choice made by players, managers, and supporters is examined and assessed.
The top 10 highest-paid soccer referees in the world for 2021 were revealed, along with their respective national salaries, in a recent survey. As a result, an elite panel of referees has been developed by some of the most powerful regulatory bodies in football history. They choose the best players from all over the world and put them in the Champions competition, the most renowned competition in the world. UEFA classifies the pay of football referees and other match officials.
1. Mark Clattenburg – $650,000 (per season)
Mark Clattenburg is the highest-paid football referee, even though Damir Skomina has the highest wage of any Champions League official. Mark Clattenburg has inked a deal with the Saudi Arabian Football Federation, according Sporting Free. As per the terms of the contract, Mark Clattenburg gets paid $650,000 every season. He is now the world’s highest-paid referee as a result. Clattenburg played football for Durham County Football Association and was a former player for the Premier League. He has officiated a number of well-known games, including as the 2016 UEFA Euro Final and the 2016 UEFA Champions League Final. Supporters consider Clattenburg to be among the greatest European referees of all time.
2. Damir Skomina – $10,000
At the moment, Damir Skomina is the highest-paid referee in the Champions League. He receives a base wage of $10,000 per match and is a member of the UEFA elite panel. Since 2008, he has officiated a number of important games. He also served as the 2008 Summer Olympics’ fourth referee in the football competition.
He supervised the historic quarterfinal match between Barcelona and Bayern Munich in the 2019–2020 UEFA Champions League. The match took place in the Estádio da Luz in Lisbon, and with Bayern scoring 8-2, Barcelona suffered their biggest loss in 69 years.
3. Cüneyt Çakır – $10,000
Is Cüneyt one of the world’s highest paid football referees? He is a Turkish soccer official who has been a member of the UEFA Elite since 2010 and a FIFA listed member since 2006. His salary as a member of the UEFA elite panel is $10,000 every game. Based on his statistics from 2010 to 2020, the International Federation of Football History and Statistics recently ranked the referee as the second-best football official in the world. Over 250 games have been officiated by him, including 12 Super Lig derbies, five of which were Fenerbahçe vs. Galatasaray’s Intercontinental Derby. He was also considered to officiate at the 2009 UEFA European Under-21 Championship finals in Sweden.
4. Björn Kuipers – $10,000
The Netherlands’ Björn Kuipers is the fifth-highest paid referee. He has been registered in FIFA since 2006 and has been paid a total of $10,000 each match as a UEFA Elite group referee since 2009. During games, two of his countrymen, Erwin Zeinstra and Sander van Roekel, provide him with support. Kuipers has worked as an official at three European Championships and two World Cups.
On July 29, 2021, Kuipers declared his retirement from the game. His farewell match is set for August 7, 2021, when he will officiate Ajax vs. PSV in the Dutch Super Cup.
5. Dr Felix Brych – $10,000
On the list, this football referee comes in sixth place. Felix, who was born on August 3, 1975, is employed by SV Am Heart München of the Bavarian Football Association. He is paid roughly $10,000 each match and is a FIFA listed official as well as a member of the UEFA elite group.
Aside from football, he holds a doctorate in law. This is Brych’s second FIFA World Cup; FIFA selected him to be one of the officials for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. He officiated just one match throughout the tournament, Switzerland’s 2-1 victory against Serbia. FIFA, however, made the contentious decision that Brych would not officiate any more games after he denied Serbia a penalty.
6. Clèment Turpin – $10,000
He is a French football official. He started working as a FIFA listed official in 2010 and moved up to the UEFA Elite group in 2012, where he earned about $10,000 every match as a referee. Clèment Turpin was named the finest French referee by the French Football Federation in May 2016. In 2014 and 2018, he officiated World Cup qualifiers. The UEFA Europa League final 2021 between Villarreal and Manchester United on May 26, 2021, was his most recent march.
7. Antonio Mateu Lahoz – $8000
Because Spain offers its employees the highest base wage in the world, Antonio Mateu Lahoz is one of the top-paid football officials. Antonio Mateu Lahoz is one of the highest-paid referees in the world as a result. In addition, he was paid $50,000 as a World Cup referee. He officiated at the 2014, 2018 and 2021 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, the 2018 FIFA World Cup, and the May 29, 2021, UEFA Champions League Final between Manchester City and Chelsea.
8. Danny Makkelie – $8,000
The Netherlands-born Makkelie is a professional football referee who joined FIFA in 2011. As a member of UEFA’s elite group, he receives $8,000 every game. He officiated the 2012 UEFA European Under-19 Football Championship final as a UEFA Elite official. Furthermore, on August 18, 2020, UEFA selected Makkelie to officiate the 2020 UEFA Europa League Final between Sevilla and Inter Milan.
He managed the match between the UANL of Mexico and the Palmeiras of Brazil in Qatar during the 2020 FIFA Club World Cup semifinal. Makkelie served as the referee at the UEFA Euro 2020 competition. He called two group stage matches: England vs. Germany in the R16 and England vs. Denmark in the Wembley semifinal.
9. Daniel Orsato – $8000
On November 23, 1975, Daniele Orsato was born in Italy. Orsato started officiating FIFA in 2010. He officiated in 2014 World Cup qualifying matches as well as 2012 Euros. He also oversaw a number of other matches, such as the Paris Saint-Germain vs. Bayern Munich UEFA Champions League Final in 2020 and Chelsea vs. Real Madrid in the 2021 UEFA Champions League semifinal second leg. In 2020, IFFHS recognized Orsato the most outstanding football judge of the year.
10. Gianluca Rocchi – $8000
Italian referee Rocchi began his career in 1990 and has overseen 38 games in three seasons in Serie C since 2000. Eventually, on May 16, 2004, he made his American debut in the Lecce-Reggina Calcio after being promoted to the higher series.
Following the division of the National Referee Committees for Series A and Series B in 2010, he was appointed to the Serie A National Referee Committee. He debuted for his country on May 26, 2008, during a friendly game between the United States and the United Kingdom. At the age of 46, Rocchi declared his retirement from officiating, and on August 1, 2020, Juventus and Roma played their final match under his watch. In football, the referee’s role is crucial.
