Ali Sabbagh

Ali Sabbagh (Arabic: عَلِيّ صَبَّاغ; born 30 June 1979) is a Lebanese former football referee. He was a full international referee for FIFA between 2008 and 2013,^[1] before being banned for life from refereeing due to fixing a match in return for sexual favours.

Ali Sabbagh

Full name	Ali Sabbagh
Born	(1979-06-30) 30 June 1979 (age 45) Aramoun, Lebanon
Other occupation	Teacher
International
Years	League	Role
2008–2013	FIFA	Referee
2008–2013	AFC	Referee

Career

Sabbagh refereed in the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers,^[2] beginning with the match between Nepal and Timor-Leste.^[3]

On 10 June 2013, the referee was sentenced to six months in jail by a Singapore court, after pleading guilty to influencing two linesmen to help fix an AFC Cup match which took place on 3 April 2013.^[4] He and the two linesmen "corruptly receiving gratification in the form of free sexual service", arranged by Singaporean businessman Eric Ding Si Yang.^[4] The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has also banned Sabbagh from refereeing and attending stadiums.^[5]

Honours

• Lebanese Premier League Best Referee: 2009–10^[6]

References

1. FIFA. "Lebanon: Referees". Retrieved on 24 April 2013.
2. Ali Sabbagh (Lebanon). Worldreferee.com (2012-07-21). Retrieved on 2013-04-04.
3. FIFA. "Match Report - Nepal - Timor-Leste 2:1 (1:0)". 29 June 2011. Retrieved on 24 April 2013.
4. "Lebanese ref jailed six months for corruption". Today Online. 11 June 2013.
5. "FIFA gives lifetime ban to ref who fixed game for sexual favors". Sports Illustrated. 28 January 2014. Archived from the original on 3 February 2014.
6. حسن معتوق أفضل لاعب في مهرجان المنار. al-akhbar (in Arabic). 22 May 2010. Retrieved 14 May 2019.

External links

• Ali Sabbagh at WorldReferee.com
• Ali Sabbagh referee profile at Soccerway