Kevin Ortega
| Full name | Kevin Ortega Pimentel | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Born |
26 March 1992 Callao, Peru | ||
| Domestic | |||
| Years | League | Role | |
| 2015– | Peruvian Primera División | Referee | |
| International | |||
| Years | League | Role | |
| 2019– | FIFA | Referee | |
| CONMEBOL | Referee | ||
Kevin Ortega Pimentel (born 26 March 1992) is a Peruvian football referee who is a listed international referee for FIFA since 2019. He has also been officiating matches in the Peruvian Primera División since 2015. Ortega is one of the youngest referees in the Peruvian Football Federation.[1]
In 2021, he officiated three games, including the semi-final, at the Tokyo Summer Olympics, and in 2022, he was appointed to the 36-referee squad for the FIFA World Cup in Qatar, accompanied by assistants Michael Orué and Jesús Sánchez.
During the 2022 Copa Libertadores game between Club Always Ready and Boca Juniors, Ortega was involved in controversy over a disputed penalty and the subsequent seizure of Boca Juniors shirts from the referee booth. Ortega faced further criticism in the 2024 Copa America match between the United States and Uruguay for contentious calls, including a unique advantage play while issuing a yellow card.
Refereeing career[edit]
He worked in SUNAT from 2014 to 2015.[2] On 12 May 2015, Ortega made his debut in the Primera División, the highest Peruvian division, at the age of 23. During the game between Unión Comercio and Alianza Atlético (5–2), he drew the yellow card twice.[3] Ortega has also been regularly used in the South American club competitions, the Copa Libertadores and the Copa Sudamericana.
International[edit]
Ortega became an international referee on the FIFA list in 2019.[4] He made his international debut in March 2019 in a match at the 2019 South American U-17 Championship between Argentina and Colombia. He was summoned to officiate a match in November of that year in a friendly between Ecuador and Trinidad and Tobago.
In 2021, FIFA nominated Ortega for the 2020 Summer Olympics Football Tournament in Tokyo, where he featured in three games including the semi-final.[5] In May 2022, Ortega was appointed in the 36 referee squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.[6][7] He was accompanied by his assistants Michael Orué and Jesús Sánchez.[6]
Controversies[edit]
At the Copa Libertadores game between Club Always Ready from Bolivia and Boca Juniors from Argentina in May 2022, he was at the center of a controversy. Boca Juniors won the game 1–0 on a controversial penalty, after which the Bolivian police searched the referee's booth and seized several Boca Junior shirts that had been given to the referee team before the game. Always Ready representatives accused Ortega of taking advantage, while Boca Juniors stated that the gifts were a standard gesture.[8]
Ortega received additional criticism during the 2024 Copa America match between the United States and Uruguay.[9] The match was Ortega's first at the tournament as a center referee. Ortega made several contentious calls, including allowing a fast free kick to be taken by Uruguay while he had begun issuing a yellow card to Chris Richards.[10][11][12] Tyler Adams noted it was the first time he had ever seen such a situation where play was allowed to continue during the issuance of a yellow card, which typically halts the game.[13] U.S. team captain Christian Pulisic voiced his frustration with Ortega's decisions, stating that he witnessed several inexplicable calls during the match and criticizing Ortega for providing no explanations for his decisions.[13][14] Post-game, additional criticism was drawn as Ortega appeared to intentionally snub the US team captain Pulisic's handshake, while his assistant participated. [15][16][17]
References[edit]
- ^ "Kevin Ortega: "Un buen arbitraje sería pasar desapercibido y ver un clásico dinámico"". GOLPERU (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 18 November 2022. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
- ^ "Unete Sunat - Unete a la Sunat". unete.sunat.gob.pe (in Spanish). Retrieved 17 November 2020.[failed verification]
- ^ Wedstrijdgegevens Unión Comercio – Alianza Atlético bij Voetbal.com
- ^ 2022 Refereeing International Lists FIFA
- ^ "List of the match officials for the Olympic Football Tournaments Tokyo 2020" (PDF). FIFA.com. 23 April 2021. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
- ^ a b List of appointed FIFA Match Officials FIFA
- ^ "Kevin Ortega, el árbitro peruano preseleccionado para dirigir el Mundial Catar 2022". andina.pe (in Spanish). Retrieved 25 June 2022.
- ^ López, Eduardo; Allen, William (1 July 2024). "Who is Kevin Ortega, the referee for USMNT - Uruguay at the Copa América today?". Diario AS. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
- ^ Tenorio, Paul; O'Keeffe, Greg; Rueter, Jeff. "USMNT 0-1 Uruguay: Takeaways from the U.S. Copa America failure". The New York Times. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
- ^ "Who is Kevin Ortega? Controversial referee takes center stage during USMNT's Copa America clash with Uruguay | Sporting News". www.sportingnews.com. 2 July 2024. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
- ^ "USA soccer vs. Uruguay score, standings: USMNT eliminated in Copa America group stage after loss". CBSSports.com. 2 July 2024. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
- ^ Salao, Renzo Pocholo (2 July 2024). "Christian Pulisic had contentious moment with referee after USMNT-Uruguay match". Larry Brown Sports. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
- ^ a b "Copa América: USA captain Pulisic 'can't accept' ref's calls". ABC News. Retrieved 3 July 2024.
- ^ "Christian Pulisic blows his top at Kevin Ortega as USMNT star 'can't accept' referee calls that went against Gregg Berhalter's side in controversial Copa America loss to Uruguay". MSN.
- ^ "Head referee for USA-Uruguay snubs handshake from Christian Pulisic". FOX Sports. Retrieved 7 July 2024.
- ^ "Referee Snubbed Handshake With USMNT's Christian Pulisic After USA Loss to Uruguay". SI. 2 July 2024. Retrieved 7 July 2024.
- ^ "Christian Pulisic handshake rejected by referee after USA soccer crash out of Copa America against Uruguay". CBSSports.com. 2 July 2024. Retrieved 7 July 2024.