FIFA Referee Committee President Pierluigi Collina appeared on stage on the last day of Türkiye Innovation Week held in Istanbul. The Italian football player, one of the most well-known referees in the world, shared both his professional experiences and his perspective on football.
“TURKISH TEAMS NEVER LOST WITH ME”
Saying that he loves Istanbul very much, Collina shared an interesting statistic about Türkiye and Turkish football: “I refereed 11 matches involving Turkish teams, and they never lost a match with me. It’s been 20 years since I retired, but people still love me very much.”
“YOU HAVE TO DECIDE IN ONE SECOND”
Collina emphasized that refereeing is carried out not only with football knowledge but also with mental toughness: “You are under pressure in the matches of top-level teams. You need to make a decision, but you do not have time. The decision you make in a second is very important for both the players and the countries. All of this depends on a single whistle. That is why you have to be ready for the difficult task. You cannot rely on luck, you have to work hard. Don’t be lazy.”
“MY HAIR LOST, BUT NO ONE CARED”
Talking about the difficulties he faced in his life, the legendary referee explained the physical change he experienced at the age of 24 with the following words: “One day, my body decided to change. Within ten days, all my hair fell out. It was 1984, everyone was looking at me. I shaved my head, they kept me aside for months. They waited for my hair to grow, but when I was appointed as a referee in a match, no one cared about my physical condition. Everyone looked at my decisions.”
“TECHNOLOGY DOES NOT STEAL THE SOUL OF THE MATCH”
Addressing the allegations that technological innovations such as VAR harm football, Collina put forward a clear stance on this issue: “Technology is a tool, it allows you to make more accurate decisions. We make mistakes, we are human. If a technology prevents this, it is a great thing. Technology does not steal the soul of the match, it helps the referee.”
“I STARTED REFEREEING BY ACCIDENT”
Describing how he got into refereeing, Collina said that this journey actually started with a coincidence: “While I was playing football in Bologna at the age of 17, a friend of mine said, ‘I signed up for a referee course’, so I signed up with him. I just wanted to try something different. Then someone told me that I was doing this job well, and I continued because I loved challenges. Years later, I still have a job that I do with passion.”