The shake-up Florentino wanted in the refereeing leadership

BarcelonaLuis Medina Cantalejo and his senior management are no longer part of the Technical Committee of Referees (CTA). Although it was a public secret, it was this Thursday when Rafael Louzán, president of the Spanish Football Federation, dismissed the biggest names in the refereeing establishment with the aim of rekindling the spirit and starting a new era. Other dismissals include Carlos Clos Gómez (head of VAR), Antonio Rubinos Pérez (deputy president), Bernardino González Vázquez, Vicente Lizondo Cortés, and José Luis Lesma López (vice presidents).

The other side of the coin are directors Alberto Undiano Mallenco and Juan Carlos Yuste, who will be part of the RFEF's new refereeing project, and Yolanda Parga, head of women's refereeing. The wife of Real Madrid's current delegate, Carlos Megía Dávila, has been on the ropes in recent months due to pressure from Liga F clubs, but for now she will remain in her position with the commitment to be open to changes to improve the level of the referees.

These changes at the top of the CTA were widely applauded by Florentino Pérez. The Real Madrid president had intensified the pressure in recent months to get Medina Cantalejo and his inner circle to leave the position. In fact, he had acknowledged a conversation with the president of the RFEF, Rafael Louzán, to discuss the issue. At the time, Louzán asked for time, claiming he had only just taken office, but a few months later he succumbed to the wishes of the Merengue leader.

Medina Cantalejo's term: a basket of controversy in four and a half years

Luis Medina Cantalejo has been one of the most relevant figures in Spanish refereeing since taking office in December 2021. His impeccable international career and previous experience at the Andalusian Committee were sufficient endorsement to replace Carlos Velasco Carballo. But as soon as he took command of the ship, problems have been piling up on his table.

The most notorious was the Negreira Case. Although he bore no responsibility for the former vice president's malpractice, he was unable to offer the transparency necessary to demonstrate that the referees were free of sin. As an example, he promised to specify the number of referees who had hired the services of coaching that Javi Enríquez offered, but ultimately, his words were carried away by the wind.

Another internal dispute concerned the referees on the VAR team. Due to a contractual error, their term in the VAR room was limited to two years. VARmanos They were dismissed before the end of the league season. Thus, the final matchday was played with rookie referees acting as VARs.

Another public dispute was the one he had with Xavier Estrada Fernández. The Lleida native reported the CTA (Spanish Association of Technical Directors) and, in retaliation, had to officiate a match with a VAR installed in a van. Later, the newspaper ARA uncovered the existence of the Operations Room, an area attached to the VAR that maintained direct contact with the VOR Room.

In recent months, and with the intention of keeping his position, Luis Medina went all out. Following Madrid's statement, after his visit to Espanyol's ground, he appeared on a television program to boast about the sanctions imposed on referees. A betrayal that the group has not forgiven and that was the seed for creating an association to defend their interests.

VAR will change ownership after accumulating controversy due to its misuse

Carlos Clos Gómez, head of VAR in Spain, is the other victim of Rafael Louzán's role. The former referee from Aragon had led this area since its introduction in the 2019/20 season. Despite the initial positive reception, the use of VAR has suffered a difficult-to-explain decline that has negatively impacted the competition.

The criteria for intervention have become blurred, and in many matches, the lack of a quorum between the on-field referee and his colleague in the VAR room has been evident. Tchouameni's handball in the last Clásico played at Montjuïc, which was not called a penalty, is a good example.

VAR audio recordings are another issue that has led the CTA to struggle. Clos Gómez didn't want any media interference, but the Federation forced him to publish the referees' conversations so fans could understand the decision-making process. The most controversial episode, however, occurred in a Barça-Girona match, where the dialogue between the on-field referee and the VAR was crudely edited. A practice that ran counter to the transparency they were trying to convey.