Three Indians join list of FIFA Referees
Three more Indians, including a woman, have been added to the list of FIFA Referees by the world football governing body, the national federation said on Wednesday. Rachana Kamani from Gujarat has been added to the FIFA list of women referees for 2026, while Ashwin Kumar (Puducherry) and Aditya Purkayastha (Delhi) figured among men.
Kumar and Purkayastha have completed their AFC Referee Academy course in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, while Rachana is currently undergoing the same course, the All India Football Federation said. Two Indians — Muralitharan Pandurangan (Puducherry) and Peter Christopher (Maharashtra) — have been inducted as FIFA Assistant Referees. As many as 19 match officials from India are a part of the FIFA list of match officials for 2026. Indians in FIFA International List of Match Officials 2026:
Referees: Venkatesh R, Harish Kundu, Senthil Nathan Sekaran, Crystal John, Ashwin Kumar, Aditya Purkayastha, Ranjita Devi Tekcham, Rachana Hasmukhbhai Kamani.
Assistant Referees: Vairamuthu Parasuraman, Sumanta Dutta, Arun Sasidharan Pillai, Ujjal Halder, Muralitharan Pandurangan, Dipesh Manohar Sawant, Sourav Sarkar, Christopher Peter, Riiohlang Dhar, Elangbam Debala Devi.
