FIFA have recently announced that Hyundai A-League referee Chris Beath along with Assistant Referees Ashley Beecham & Anton Shchetinin have been appointed as match officials for FIFA U-17 World Cup Brazil which will be held in Brazil from 26 October to 17 November 2019.
Beath, Beecham and Shchetinin are one of 20 trios of match officials, five Support Referees and 17 Video Assistant Referees (VARs), representing all six confederations who have been appointed for the tournament by the FIFA Referees Committee (see attachment).
FFA Head of Leagues, Greg O’Rourke, commended Chris, Ashley and Anton on their prestigious appointments.
“On behalf of the Australian Football community we would like to officially congratulate this trio on their appointment as match officials for the FIFA U-17 World Cup,” said O’Rourke.
“These appointments once again highlight the world-class match officials that we have within the Hyundai A-League ranks,” concluded O’Rourke.
Football Federation Australia (FFA) Director of Referees, Ben Wilson also complimented the match officials following news of their appointments.
“These are important appointments for our match officials because this tournament is the start of the journey towards the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar,” said Wilson.
“Chris in particular has had an outstanding year having been appointed to the AFC Asian Cup 2019 in the UAE and as a Video Assistant Referee at the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup.
“We wish Chris, Ashley and Anton all the best for the upcoming FIFA U-17 World Cup in Brazil and I am sure that they will perform with distinction,” concluded Wilson.
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Following official confirmation of his appointment, Chris was honoured to lead the Australian trio.
"It’s great to be able to represent Australia and the AFC along with Ashley and Anton at a significant FIFA tournament,” said Beath.
“Ashley, Anton and I have worked together for some time now, both domestically and internationally, and we're very humbled and proud of this appointment. We're really looking forward to Brazil and we know that the hard work continues,” concluded Beath.
Beath, Beecham and Shchetinin are due to fly out this weekend to Saudi Arabia where they will officiate the AFC Champions League Quarter Final 1st leg match between Al Ittihad and Al Hilal at the King Abdullah Sports City in Jeddah on Tuesday 27 August.
The FIFA U-17 World Cup Brazil 2019 will take place in Brasilia (Gama), Goiania and Vitoria (Cariacica) between 26 October and 17 November 2019. The final will be played at the Estadio Bezerrao in Brasilia on 17 November.
HEAD HERE for the full FIFA U-17 World Cup match schedule.
CLICK HERE to view the full list of match officials for the tournament.
