The supposed World Cup referee from the Kingdom, Fahad Al Mirdasi, has been banned from football for life in Saudi Arabia. The news comes only weeks before his flight to Russia to preside at the 2018 World Cup. 

Fahad Al Mirdashi has been listed with FIFA since 2011 and was selectively chosen as one of 36 other people to officiate at this year’s World Cup. However, when the Saudi Arabia Football Federation (SAFF) announced Mirdasi’s agreement to a bribe- this put a stop in his football career (probably forever, well in Saudi at least).  

The story

SAFF accused Mirdasi of contemplating and planning the outcome of a football match in exchange for money, an action which has now forever banned him from football in the Kingdom. Reports say that during invetsigations, they found out that the 32-year-old referee asked an Al-Ittihad official for some cash prior to a match against Al- Faisaly. 

Al- Mirdasi’s response, via an interrogation, was…

Fahad Al Mirdasi, during an interrogation, admitted to “soliciting the corrupt payment.” The bribery was evident in WhatsApp conversations, which were sent to Hamad Al-Senaie (Al-Ittihad’s chief) who passed it over to SAFF officials. Finally, the matter was sent to the Kingdom’s highest authority for sports, The General Authority for Sports. 

#نجدد_البيعة
لسيدي الملك سلمان

لك نبايع ياعسى عمرك طويل
تحت راية هيبتك حب وْ ولا !
،
سيّدي ياللي تعدّل كل ميل
إما حكمٍ مثل حكمك او فلا !

ٰ pic.twitter.com/q0iY56OWl5

— فهد المرداسي (@almirdasi) December 25, 2017