Héctor Vergara (born December 15, 1966) is a Canadian

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

referee A referee is an official, in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection. The official tasked with this job may be known by a variety of other title ...

. Although born in

San Javier, Chile San Javier () is a Chilean city and Communes of Chile, commune located in the Linares Province, Province of Linares, Maule Region. The city lies in the geographical center of the country, some south of Santiago, Chile, Santiago, to the northwest ...

, Vergara grew up in

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. It is centred on the confluence of the Red River of the North, Red and Assiniboine River, Assiniboine rivers. , Winnipeg h ...

Manitoba Manitoba is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population ...

, Canada. He attended

John Taylor Collegiate John Taylor Collegiate is a public 9-12 high school in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. It is part of the St. James-Assiniboia School Division and is located at 470 Hamilton Avenue, in the Crestview area of Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital ...

, and earned a Bachelor of Recreation Studies (Sports Administration) and a Bachelor of Arts in Advanced Psychology from the

University of Manitoba The University of Manitoba (U of M, UManitoba, or UM) is a public research university in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Founded in 1877, it is the first university of Western Canada. Both by total student enrolment and campus area, the University of ...

. Vergara played soccer competitively for 10 years and recreationally for 30 years. He began working as a referee in 1983 and now has 28 years of experience as a referee. In 1993, he officiated matches in the

Canadian National Soccer League The National Soccer League was a soccer league in Canada that existed from 1926 to 1997. Teams were primarily based in the provinces of Ontario and Quebec. The league was renamed to Canadian National Soccer League in 1993 following the folding ...

. As executive director of the Manitoba Soccer Association, Vergara oversees the MSA's many member leagues, clubs and associations, not to mention the countless players, coaches, volunteers, and referees throughout Manitoba. Since he was hired, the MSA's core staff has grown from two or three employees to seven, mirroring soccer's rise in popularity in the province and the world. Vergara has become one of the most prolific – and well-respected – referees in Canada. Vergara retired as a FIFA Assistant Referee effective November 12, 2011, the day after his last FIFA international appointment. He was part of the full Canadian crew alongside Mauricio Navarro (Referee), Daniel Belleau (AR2) and David Gantar (4th) that took take charge of the FIFA World Cup Qualifying match between the US Virgin Islands and Curaçao on November 11, 2011 in Frederiksted, US Virgin Islands. Vergara spent 19 years on the FIFA list and was involved in 11 FIFA competitions. Three of those competitions were FIFA World Cups (2002, 2006 and 2010). Vergara claimed the record for most World Cup games as a referee/assistant referee at 14 when he took the field July 10, 2010 in the third-place play-off match between Uruguay and Germany at Port Elizabeth Stadium. His amazing World Cup appointments included two 3rd placed matches (2002 & 2010) as well as the Germany - Italy Semi-Final in 2006. In total, Vergara officiated nearly 150 international matches involving Clubs and Nationals Teams playing at the highest competitions in the world. His list of accomplishments include Six CONCACAF Gold Cups (three Finals), the 2004 Olympic Games (Semi-Final), the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup (Fifth official on final), two FIFA Club World Cups (finals in 2005 & 2009) as well as two FIFA U-20 World Youth Championship (ARG-FRA QF) and two FIFA U17 World Championships (BRA-ARG semi in 1995, 3rd place match in 1993). In 2012, Vergara was appointed by FIFA to its Referees' Committee as a Development Member. He was selected as a member of the

Canadian Soccer Hall of Fame The Canada Soccer Hall of Fame honours people and institutions for their contributions to Canadian soccer. It was founded in 1997 by the Ontario Soccer Association and was originally located in Vaughan, Ontario. As of 2024, the Canada Soccer Ha ...

in 2014.

Career statistics

International tournaments and competitions refereed

2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup The 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup was the 11th edition of the CONCACAF Gold Cup competition, and the 21st CONCACAF regional championship overall in CONCACAF's 50 years of existence. The United States was the host nation. The competition started on Jun ...

* 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa * 2010 FIFA World Cup Qualification Matches *2010 CONCACAF Champions League *2010 Interliga *2010 UAE Games *2009 FIFA Club World Cup *2009 FIFA Confederations Cup *

2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup The 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup was the tenth edition of the CONCACAF Gold Cup competition, and the twentieth soccer championship of North America, Central America and the Caribbean (CONCACAF). It was played from July 3 to 26, 2009 in the United Stat ...

*2007 U20 FIFA World Youth Championship *

2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup The 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup was the ninth edition of the Gold Cup, the soccer championship of North America, Central America and the Caribbean (CONCACAF), and was won by the United States over Mexico. It was contested in the United States from J ...

* 2006 FIFA World Cup Germany *2006 FIFA World Cup Qualification Matches *2005 FIFA Club World Cup Japan 2005 *

2005 CONCACAF Gold Cup The 2005 CONCACAF Gold Cup was the eighth edition of the Gold Cup, the soccer championship of North America, Central America and the Caribbean (CONCACAF). It was contested in the United States in July 2005. The United States emerged victorious i ...

*2004 FIFA Athens Olympic Games *2004 FIFA Athens Olympic Qualifying Tournament - Mexico *2004 FIFA Toyota U-23 International Tournament - Qatar *

2003 CONCACAF Gold Cup The 2003 CONCACAF Gold Cup was the seventh edition of the Gold Cup, the soccer championship of North America, Central America and the Caribbean (CONCACAF). For the first time since 1993, the tournament was held in more than one country, with ga ...

- Mexico * 2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan *2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan Qualification Matches *

2002 CONCACAF Gold Cup The 2002 CONCACAF Gold Cup was the sixth edition of the Gold Cup, the soccer championship of North America, Central America and the Caribbean (CONCACAF). The tournament was once again held in the United States, in Miami and Pasadena. The forma ...

*2001 FIFA U-20 World Youth Championship *2000 Olympic CONCACAF Qualifying Tournament *1999 CONCACAF Club Championship *1999 US Cup *1999 Canada Cup *1998 FIFA World Cup France Qualification Matches *1998 CONCACAF U-20 World Championship Qualification Tournament *1998 CONCACAF Caribbean Shell Cup *1997 US Cup *

1995 FIFA U-17 World Championship The 1995 FIFA U-17 World Championship was the sixth edition of the FIFA U-17 World Championship which was held in the cities of Guayaquil, Portoviejo, Quito, Ibarra, Cuenca, and Riobamba in Ecuador from 3 to 20 August 1995. Players born after ...

*1995 Canada Cup *

1993 FIFA U-17 World Championship The 1993 FIFA U-17 World Championship, the fifth edition of the FIFA U-17 World Cup, tournament, was held in the cities of Tokyo, Hiroshima, Kyoto, Kobe, Nagoya, and Gifu, Gifu, Gifu City in Japan from 21 August to 4 September 1993. Players born ...

Other information

*2010 Sport Manitoba Official of the Year *2006 Sport Manitoba Official of the Year *2005 Sport Manitoba Official of the Year *2004 Sport Manitoba Official of the Year *2004 Included in the book of "Who is Who in Canadian Sport" *2003 John Meachin Memorial Soccer Award *2002 Sport Manitoba Official of the Year *2002 CSA International Achievement Award *2002 MSA Frank Major Award of Merit *1997 MSRA Outstanding Contribution Award *1996 Ray Morgan Memorial Award *1995 WYSA Recognition Award

References

External links

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Canada Soccer Hall of Fame The Canada Soccer Hall of Fame honours people and institutions for their contributions to Canadian soccer. It was founded in 1997 by the Ontario Soccer Association and was originally located in Vaughan, Ontario. As of 2024, the Canada Soccer Ha ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vergara, Hector 1966 births Living people People from Linares Province Chilean emigrants to Canada Naturalized citizens of Canada Canadian soccer referees Canada Soccer Hall of Fame inductees University of Manitoba alumni 2002 FIFA World Cup referees 2006 FIFA World Cup referees 2010 FIFA World Cup referees