Abu Dhabi: Lt General Shaikh Saif Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior, yesterday received Lieutenant Colonel Ali Hamad Madhad Al Badwawi, a Dubai Police official who has been chosen as a referee for the Fifa World Cup 2014 in Brazil.
Al Badwawi, 39, will be one of 52 referees who will officiate at the football extravaganza in just over two years' time.
The police officer will be the second UAE referee to represent the country at the World Cup after Ali Bu Jsaim, who officiated at the 1994, 1998 and 2002 tournaments.
Triumvirate of officials
He is also part of an exclusive triumvirate of officials from the Middle East to be given the honour of refereeing at the 2014 event, along with Abdul Rahman Mohammad from Qatar and Bahrain's Nawaf Shukrallah.
At a meeting attended by top UAE government officials, Shaikh Saif congratulated Al Badwawi and expressed his delight that a leading police official would be representing the UAE on the global stage.
In turn, Al Badwawi said he was thrilled to meet Shaikh Saif and said his directives would serve as a "beacon to guide him in carrying out his duties as an international referee".
Al Badwawi has been a Fifa referee since 2005 and refereed at the Under-17 World Cup in Mexico last year. He first refereed an international match in 2006, when Egypt played South Africa.
UAE Collina
Nicknamed the ‘UAE Collina' due to his likeness to the legendary alopecia-suffering Italian official Pierluigi Collina, he also officiated at the AFC Asian Cup in 2007 and at the semi-final stages of the AFC Champions League for four consecutive years from 2008.
The UAE assistant referees who will accompany Al Badwawi to the World Cup will be named soon.
— With inputs from WAM
