Sergio Gonella

Sergio Gonella

Born	May 23, 1933 Asti, Italy
Other occupation	Bank manager
Domestic
Years	League	Role
1964-1978	Serie A	Referee
International
Years	League	Role
1972-1978	FIFA-listed	Referee

Sergio Gonella (Italian pronunciation: [ˈsɛrdʒo ɡoˈnɛlla]; born 23 May 1933, in Asti, Italy) is an Italian businessman (Bank Manager) and a noted football referee. He was the first Italian appointed to referee the FIFA World Cup final, which occurred when he took charge of the 1978 final between hosts Argentina and the Netherlands.^[1] He is one of only two persons (the other being the Swiss Gottfried Dienst) to have refereed both the European Championship final and the World Cup Final. In 2013, he was inducted into the Italian Football Hall of Fame.^[2]

Referee career

Gonella's professional career began in 1965 when he debuted in the Italian Serie A. In 1972 he was promoted to the UEFA. In 1975 he refereed the Super Cup final match. At international level, he refereed in the 1976 European Championship. He also later refereed in the 1978 FIFA World Cup, after which he retired, having refereed 175 matches in Serie A.^[3]

Gonella garnered media attention when he delayed the start of the 1978 World Cup final. This occurred when the Argentinians protested an arm bandage worn by Dutch defender René van de Kerkhof. The Dutch team argued that the bandage was passed by FIFA and had already been worn by Van de Kerkhof during earlier matches in the tournament, and they threatened to walk off the field. Finally an extra layer of padding was applied to the bandage as a solution, and the match was started.^[4]

References

1. "Nicola Rizzoli to referee Final". FIFA.com. 11 July 2014. Retrieved 16 December 2015.
2. "Hall of fame, 10 new entry: con Vialli e Mancini anche Facchetti e Ronaldo" [Hall of fame, 10 new entries: with Vialli and Mancini also Facchetti and Ronaldo] (in Italian). La Gazzetta dello Sport. 27 October 2015. Retrieved 27 October 2015.
3. Sergio Gonella page at World Referee website
4. World Cup Football coverage at The Guardian website