It was a huge Champions League game: Barcelona at home to Bayern Munich. Lionel Messi went down in the penalty area. No penalty was awarded. The game continued. “In hindsight it probably was a penalty – we probably did get it wrong – but we called it honestly,” says Darren Cann, the former assistant referee who ran the line that night alongside Howard Webb. That call, he insists, proves a simple truth: referees do not favour star players or predetermined outcomes.
Cann, who officiated at two World Cups (2010 and 2014) as part of Webb’s team, is speaking out against what he calls the “nonsense” of conspiracy theories swirling around this year’s tournament. With Argentina set to face Spain in Sunday’s final, a persistent rumour has gained traction: that Fifa wants Lionel Messi to lift the trophy – and that officials are complicit. “According to many fans, social media timelines and corners of the internet, Fifa wants Argentina and Lionel Messi to win the World Cup – and the officials are all in on it,” Cann tells BBC Sport. “It is nonsense. I can’t stress this strongly enough.”
“Former assistant referee Darren Cann rejects conspiracy theories that FIFA wants Argentina to win the World Cup.”
The theory even has a specific narrative: a passing of the baton between Messi and teenage Spain star Lamine Yamal, illustrated by a photograph of Messi with a baby Yamal. Cann admits he had no idea the photo existed until recently, and suspects the same is true for most referees at this World Cup. “We don’t see any of the suits at all,” he says, referring to Fifa’s executive committee. “There aren’t any clandestine meetings … you are basically working every day – physical training, watching clips, debriefing the matches from the previous day. They are full-on days.”
Referees, Cann stresses, are independent. They come from different football associations and confederations; Fifa merely borrows their services for six weeks. They live and train in a separate camp. Decisions are made on the pitch, without regard for a player’s name. “We are not being directed to create a pre-determined outcome,” he adds. “Nor do we referee by the name on a player’s back.”
Mistakes happen, Cann concedes. “As referees we might make mistakes. This is human nature,” he says. But that is a far cry from systemic corruption. “I’m sorry to disappoint any conspiracy theorists,” he concludes, “but I can promise you there aren’t any clandestine meetings between Fifa’s executive committee and the referees.”