Sergio Gonella
Encyclopedia
Sergio Gonella 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 Argentina
and the Netherlands. 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.
Gonella garnered media attention when he delayed the start of the 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 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.
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
businessman (Bank Manager) and a noted football
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
referee. He was the first Italian appointed to referee the FIFA World Cup
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often simply the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association , the sport's global governing body...
final, which occurred when he took charge of the 1978 final between Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
and the Netherlands. He is one of only two persons (the other being the Swiss Gottfried Dienst
Gottfried Dienst
Gottfried Dienst was a Swiss football referee who was born in Basle. He is possibly best known for being the referee in the 1966 FIFA World Cup Final, in which he awarded a controversial goal to England after consulting his Soviet linesman Tofik Bakhramov.At the time he was considered the best...
) to have refereed both the European Championship final and the World Cup Final.
Referee career
Gonella's professional career began in 1965 when he debuted in the Serie A. In 1972 he was promoted to the UEFA. In 1975 he refereed the SuperCup final match. He refereed the 1976 European Championship match. He refereed the 1978 FIFA World Cup, after which he retired, having refereed 175 matches in Serie A.Gonella garnered media attention when he delayed the start of the World Cup final. This occurred when the Argentinians protested an arm bandage worn by Dutch defender René van de Kerkhof
René van de Kerkhof
Reinier "René" Lambertus van de Kerkhof is a former Dutch football player, who played for FC Twente and PSV Eindhoven....
. The Dutch team argued that the bandage was passed by FIFA
FIFA
The Fédération Internationale de Football Association , commonly known by the acronym FIFA , is the international governing body of :association football, futsal and beach football. Its headquarters are located in Zurich, Switzerland, and its president is Sepp Blatter, who is in his fourth...
and had already been worn by 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.