Massimo Busacca

Massimo Busacca
Born (1969-02-06) 6 February 1969 (age 57)
Bellinzona, Switzerland
Other occupation
 Head of Refereeing Development with FIFA
Domestic
Years League Role
1996–2011 Swiss Super League Referee
International
Years League Role
1999–2011 FIFA listed Referee

Massimo Busacca (born 6 February 1969) is a Swiss former football referee, who is FIFA Director of Refereeing, overseeing the protection of football's core values and the continuous improvement of the game through the development of match officials and referee coaches. He lives in Monte Carasso, Ticino, Switzerland, near Bellinzona.

Early life

Busacca was born in Bellinzona, Switzerland, to Italian parents from Sicily. Busacca used to play football in a lower division in Ticino. After a successful career as a top referee he became Head of FIFA Refereeing in July 2011.

Career

Club

Busacca was a Swiss Super League Referee from 1996 to 2011 and a FIFA referee from 1999 to 2011.

In 2006, Busacca refereed the Swiss championship-deciding match at St. Jakob-Park, between FC Basel and FC Zurich that resulted in the 2006 Basel Hooligan Incident.

Busacca took charge of the 2007 UEFA Cup Final at Hampden Park on 16 May, one of the biggest appointments for a UEFA referee. In the 68th minute Busacca sent off RCD Espanyol midfielder Moisés Hurtado for a second bookable offence during the match. Sevilla won the match 3–1 on penalties following a 2–2 draw.

Busacca was selected to referee the UEFA Champions League Final at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome on 27 May 2009 between FC Barcelona and Manchester United; Barcelona won the match 2–0.

On 19 September 2009, Busacca was the referee in a Swiss Cup match between FC Baden and BSC Young Boys. After crowd trouble disrupted the game after home side Baden took an unlikely lead, Busacca raised his middle finger to the crowd. Busacca had initially denied making the obscene gesture but was handed a three-match ban by the Swiss Football Association and was forced to issue an apology.

Busacca was appointed as the referee for the 2010 UEFA Super Cup final in Monaco on 27 August; Atlético Madrid defeated Inter Milan 2–0.

On 8 March 2011, Busacca was the referee in a UEFA Champions League 2010–11 Round of 16 match between Arsenal F.C. and FC Barcelona, controversially sending Robin Van Persie off for kicking the ball after the whistle.

International

2006 FIFA World Cup

Busacca in 2011

Busacca was chosen to be a referee at the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany.

He refereed three games throughout the tournament:

UEFA Euro 2008

Busacca was selected to referee at the UEFA Euro 2008 tournament in Austria and Switzerland.

At the tournament, Busacca was the referee for the Group C game between Netherlands and Romania, the Group D game between Greece and Sweden and the semi-final match between Germany and Turkey.

2009 FIFA Confederations Cup

Busacca was chosen as a referee for the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup, refereeing the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup semi-final game between hosts South Africa and eventual champions Brazil on 25 June 2009 in Johannesburg; Brazil went on to win the match 1–0.

2010 FIFA World Cup

He was selected as a referee for the 2010 FIFA World Cup and refereed the Group A match between hosts South Africa and Uruguay.

He awarded a penalty and showed a red card to the South African goalkeeper, Itumeleng Khune, in the 77th minute, for tripping the Uruguay striker, Luis Suárez. South Africa went on to lose the game 3–0, and Khune became just the second goalkeeper to be sent off in World Cup history.

Refereeing statistics

Notable matches refereed

Date Match Tournament Venue Result Ref
16 May 2007 Sevilla vs. Espanyol Barcelona 2007 UEFA Cup final Hampden Park, Glasgow 2–2 (3–1 on penalties)
27 May 2009 Barcelona vs. Manchester United 2009 UEFA Champions League final Stadio Olimpico, Rome 2–0
27 August 2010 Inter Milan vs. Atlético Madrid 2010 UEFA Super Cup final Stade Louis II, Monaco 0–2

Honours and achievements

Retirement and subsequent ventures

It was announced on 14 July 2011 that Busacca had taken up the position of Head of Refereeing Development with FIFA, retiring from active refereeing duties in the process. Busacca has overseen refereeing matters at the 2014, 2018 and 2022 editions of the FIFA World Cup, as well as at the 2015, 2019 and 2023 versions of the Women's World Cup. He currently serves as FIFA Director Refereeing and as such, he has promoted the development of refereeing on a worldwide basis, including the use of technology and the promotion of female referees who now officiate at the highest level of the game.

Personal life

Busacca is a devout Catholic and was crowned Switzerland's non-smoker of the year in 2006.

References

  1. ↑ "Türkyilmaz difende Busacca: "Lui il siciliano, io il turco"". 22 September 2009.
  2. 1 2 3 www.worldreferee.com, WorldReferee -. "WorldReferee.com - referee - Massimo Busacca - dyk". worldreferee.com.[dead link]
  3. 1 2 "History: Espanyol 2-2 Sevilla | Match info | UEFA Europa League 2006/07 Final". UEFA.com. 16 May 2007. Retrieved 24 August 2026.
  4. 1 2 "History: Barcelona 2-0 Man Utd | Match info: UEFA Champions League 2008/09 Final". UEFA.com. Retrieved 24 August 2026.
  5. ↑ Wilson, Steve (22 September 2009). "Swiss referee Massimo Busacca banned for giving fans the 'finger'". The Telegraph. London. Retrieved 9 March 2011.
  6. ↑ "Swiss ref banned over fan insult". BBC News. 21 September 2009. Retrieved 9 March 2011.
  7. 1 2 "Inter vs Atleti | Match info | UEFA Super Cup 2010 Final". UEFA.com. Retrieved 24 August 2026.
  8. ↑ Referees named for EURO 2008 Archived 2008-05-14 at the Wayback Machine, uefa.com, 19 December 2007
  9. ↑ Referee Rosetti gets Euro 2008 final Archived 2008-06-28 at the Wayback Machine, Agence France-Presse, June 24, 2008
  10. ↑ "Khune second goalkeeper to be sent off at World Cup finals (Extra)". 16 June 2010. Retrieved 21 June 2024.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  11. ↑ "Former Results". IFFHS.de. Retrieved 3 December 2017.
  12. ↑ "Massimo Busacca retires, moves into FIFA position". Archived from the original on 25 April 2012.