Empty basket for Bulgarian referees: UEFA excludes them from club tournaments again

The Bulgarian international referee group is once again facing a serious challenge. For the third consecutive round, UEFA has not included a single native Bulgarian referee in the lists of officials for the upcoming club matches in Europe.

This trend intensifies concerns regarding the future of our current international referees. Earlier, the Bulgarian Football Union (BFU) signaled possible changes within the group after the five international referees failed to secure leading positions in the European organization's new rankings.

Currently, the hopes of Bulgarian referees for participation in European tournaments are limited to potential appointments for the second qualifying round return matches. It is also notable that Bulgaria has no representative even in the first qualifying stage of the Women's Champions League.

Paradoxically, while refereeing personnel are sidelined, Bulgarian officials continue to receive appointments from UEFA in administrative roles. Ichko Lozev has been chosen as a referee observer for the Fenerbahçe – Górnik match, Desislava Ralkova will be a delegate for the Sabah – KuPS match, Hristo Zapryanov will observe the Ararat-Armenia – Shamrock Rovers match, and Andrey Medintsev will serve as a delegate for the Egnatia – Cele match.