Reuters
Fahad Al Mirdasi issues a red card during an international match.
- The entire Saudi Arabian refereeing team has been banned from officiating at the 2018 World Cup.
- This is because one referee, Fahad Al-Mirdasi, has been slapped with a life ban from soccer as he tried to fix a match in his own country.
- Al-Mirdasi reportedly "asked for money to help a team win a cup final" in Saudi Arabia.
- The scandal has cost Al-Mirdasi his place at the premier sports event of the summer.
Saudi Arabian referee Fahad Al-Mirdasi has issued a lot of red cards during his time as a match official, but now he has been given marching orders of his own.
FIFA, the world's governing body for soccer and the official organiser of the World Cup, has removed Al-Mirdasi and the entire Saudi Arabian refereeing team from the 2018 tournament.
This is because Al-Mirdasi was recently banned from soccer for life in Saudia Arabia because of his role in match fixing. The disgraced referee allegedly "asked for money to help a team win a cup final," according to an Associated Press report.
FIFA enlisted 36 referees and 63 assistant referees to work at this summer's tournament but the delegation from Saudi Arabia is no longer welcome as Al-Mirdasi does not satisfy the conditions required to be selected for duty at the World Cup.
The team will be replaced by two assistant referees from Japan and United Arab Emirates, according to AP.
The tournament begins on June 14 and ends on July 15.