Russia 2018: 80 year World Cup streak comes to an end

FIFA has chosen 36 officials for the World Cup tournament in Russia and none of them are from Great Britain. This is the first time that no referee is chosen from either England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland in 80 years. The most obvious omission is Mark Clattenburg who was part of the list last summer. He, however, left his job with the Premier League and forfeited his place. The Football Association did ask to replace Clattenburg with another official but this request has been rejected. It is also worth mentioning that there also no British officials among the 63 assistant referees selected. What a shame it is for a country that boast about having talent and skills in all aspects of their game. This comes as no surprise to a few with managers like Arsene Wenger criticizing the referees who seem not to be working enough. Some have been culpable of committing fundamental errors and these have resulted in their omission from the final list. On the other hand, six African referees have been chosen instead and they represent Algeria, Senegal, Gambia, Egypt, Zambia and Ethiopia. Be careful England, Africa is on the rise.