The Impossible Job is a new book by William Ralston. It has Lots of great insights in top level refereeing, as the author speaks with Anthony Taylor, Szymon Marciniak, Marco Guida, Daniel Siebert, Slavko Vinčić and Glenn Nyberg. Just to name a few. He attends training camps, visits them at their home, and with one referee even goes to Berghain. Just to name a few. In the interview I did with him he talks about the pressure on top referees and their ability to get the respect from players. Below a long interview with the author. You can buy the book yourself via Penguin.

James Mainwaring, assistant referee at the 2026 World Cup, shares his favourite fitness exercise and fitness experiences during the World Cup. It was a fantastic experience for him and now he prepares for the new season.  The fitness exercise he shares with us is intense. “I know that if I can get through this one, I can do anything.”

Delaying the restart of play to show a card is not seen often. It can happen when an attacking team takes a quick free kick. But is a card still needed then? In which cases it is needed?  That’s what you’ll learn in this case study.

Scottish ex-FIFA referee Bobby Madden shares his go-to fitness exercise. He ran it every fortnight and even now he sometimes does it. “This exercise builds aerobic capacity and speed endurance, which increases your V02 Max”, says Madden. Your body will thus be better in recovering from and adapting to physical stress and exercise volume. “Fitness is more important for referees as it’s ever been”. PS: did you know Bobby Madden recently started a referee podcast? Read more about So Near and Yet So VAR.