ANDColombian referee Wílmar Roldán is in charge of the match that opens the seventh round of the qualifiers, between Bolivia and Venezuela, at the Municipal Stadium in El Alto. And with this work, he is breaking a record that had been in place for 15 years.
According to the criteria of
With this designation, Roldán, 44, becomes the referee with the most matches officiated in the history of the South American qualifiers. This is their 20th meeting.
The trademark was valid since September 5, 2009 and was held by a fellow countryman, Oscar Julian Ruiz, who had refereed 19 matches since his debut in the qualifiers in 1996.
Oscar Julian Ruiz (center).
Photo:
Roldán took charge of a qualifying match for the first time on April 1, 2009, when Ecuador and Paraguay drew 1-1 in Quito, on the road to the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.
He refereed three matches on the road to Brazil 2014, six towards Russia 2018, another six towards Qatar 2022 and in the current qualifiers he completed four.
This is not the only record that Roldán has, as he is also the referee with the most games officiated in the history of the Copa Libertadores (he reached 124 and counting). In the Sudamericana he is third, with 32, behind the Bolivian Gery Vargas (40) and the Peruvian Victor Carrillo, already retired (35).
In Colombian football, he is also the referee with the most matches officiated in short tournaments, with 433 matches since his debut on February 16, 2003, in the game Millonarios 0, Once Caldas 1.
The referees with the most matches officiated in the qualifiers
1. Wilmar Roldan (Colombia) 20
2. Oscar Julian Ruiz (Colombia) 19
3. Hector Baldassi (Argentina) 18
4. Marcio Rezende (Brazil) 17
5. Horacio Elizondo (Argentina) 15
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With information from Carlos Forero and José Orlando Ascencio
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