Referees enjoying finals experience

The UEFA European Under-17 Championship is not just a stage for the continent's brightest young footballers to get a taste of international competition. The game's next generation of elite referees are also being put through their paces in Germany.

'Prestigious'
All the referees at the finals were called up to the FIFA list at the beginning of the year, and the experience of working at a tournament such as the U17 is a thrilling one. Russian official Vladislav Bezborodov, whose father was also a referee, took it up in 2002 after he finished his playing career. "I am really enjoying the tournament," he told uefa.com. "It's a very prestigious thing to be doing in my first year as a FIFA list referee. It's the first step."

Shared knowledge
For 31-year-old Tom Harald Hagen of Norway, the opportunity to meet referees from different nations has been one of the highlights of the tournament. "It's exciting to meet colleagues from other parts of Europe and gain new ideas," he said, "but it's important that we show consistency and uniformity in our decision-making." Bezborodov, 36, feels the atmosphere among the six referees and eight assistants who began the tournament helped the officials settle into their biggest appointment to date. "We have a great camaraderie here," he said. "We referees are on the same wavelength and have exchanged a lot of thoughts."

Professional environment
The referees and their assistants are based at their own training ground – Sportschule Leipzig – and both Hagen and Bezborodov agree that the environment has aided their preparation for games and experience at the finals. "The members of the committee, for example Vlado Sajn, Jaap Uilenberg and Jozef Marko, have created such a good atmosphere," Bezborodov said, while Hagen added: "It's very professional here – they do their best for us, from a physical and mental side, so we can do our best for them." The referee observers met the teams before the tournament to explain what the match officials would be looking out for – a big help, Hagen said. "I also think the observers handing information round to the teams helps them know what we expect of them."

Career goals
Their time in Germany has been an educational one too. "I will take away a lot," said Hagen, whose first international appointment was at the U17 Elite round in Hungary last month. "Some situations are not black and white and you can use your common sense and manage a game." And how do they think the experience will help their careers? "I've moved up the leagues steadily in Russia," explained Bezborodov. "Every game has been enjoyable and will help me achieve the goals I have set." His Norwegian colleague added: "It's been challenging but we've enjoyed it and overall we've had good feedback. I expect a lot of myself – I always try to get to a new level quickly but you have to take it one step at a time; once you feel comfortable at that level, you can then move up."

For more details on the referee observers' pre-tournament meetings with the teams, please click here.