At 8:00 am (Hong Kong time) on June 21, in the second round of Group E at the World Cup, Ecuador faced Curaçao. Three Chinese referees – Ma Ning, Zhou Fei, and Fu Ming – made their appearance together in this World Cup. Ma Ning served as the match referee, Zhou Fei as an assistant referee, and Fu Ming as the video assistant referee (VAR) for the match.
This was the first time in his career that the 47-year-old Ma Ning has served as a referee in a World Cup match, and it also marks the first time in 24 years that a Chinese referee has taken charge of a World Cup game.
Additionally, according to the official FIFA World Cup Weibo account, Chinese referee Ma Ning will also serve as the fourth official for the World Cup group match between England and Ghana, with Zhou Fei as the reserve assistant referee. The England vs. Ghana match will kick off at 4:00 am (Beijing time) on June 24.
According to records, Ma Ning previously served as a fourth official in six matches at the 2022 Qatar World Cup, making him the first Chinese referee to officiate in two consecutive World Cups. The last time a Chinese referee took charge of a World Cup match was in 2002, when referee Lu Jun officiated two group-stage matches at the Korea-Japan World Cup.
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