Mark William Geiger (born August 25, 1974) is an American sports administrator and former

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 ...

. He is the senior director of match officials at the

Professional Referee Organization Professional Referee Organization (PRO) is the organization responsible for managing the referee and assistant referee program in professional soccer leagues in the United States and Canada, working alongside the United States Soccer Federatio ...

(PRO), which oversees domestic referees in

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional Association football, soccer league in North America and the highest level of the United States soccer league system. It comprises 30 teams, with 27 in the United States and 3 in Canada, and is sanc ...

(MLS). Geiger previously officiated in MLS and was on the

FIFA International Referees List The FIFA International Referees List is an annual publication of the global list of FIFA international referees in the football-variants controlled by FIFA association football (outdoor football), futsal and beach soccer Beach soccer, also k ...

from 2008 to 2019. At the international level, Geiger refereed the 2012 Olympics, the

2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...

2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...

, and 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cups, and the

2014 The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...

and

2018 FIFA World Cup The 2018 FIFA World Cup was the 21st FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for national association football, football teams organized by FIFA. It took place in Russia from 14 June to 15 July 2018, after the country was awarded t ...

s. At the 2014 World Cup, he became the first referee from the United States to officiate a knockout match at a World Cup tournament. Before becoming a full-time referee, Geiger was a high school

mathematics Mathematics is a field of study that discovers and organizes methods, Mathematical theory, theories and theorems that are developed and Mathematical proof, proved for the needs of empirical sciences and mathematics itself. There are many ar ...

teacher.

Refereeing career

Geiger first took up refereeing in 1988. In 2003, he was named Referee of the Year by the New Jersey Soccer Association. He became a

United States Soccer Federation The United States Soccer Federation (USSF), commonly referred to as U.S. Soccer, is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and the official governing body of soccer in the United States. It is a full member of FIFA and governs American soccer ...

National Referee in 2003 and officiated in

from 2004 to 2018. He has officiated in

CONCACAF The Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football, abbreviated as CONCACAF ( ; typeset for branding purposes since 2018 as Concacaf), is one of FIFA's six continental governing bodies for association football. Its 4 ...

tournaments since becoming a

FIFA The Fédération Internationale de Football Association (), more commonly known by its acronym FIFA ( ), is the international self-regulatory governing body of association football, beach soccer, and futsal. It was founded on 21 May 1904 to o ...

referee in 2008, and has officiated Gold Cup and other international tournaments and fixtures. Geiger was selected for the CONCACAF U-20 Championship in 2011, where he refereed the final. Geiger officiated at the 2011 FIFA U-20 World Cup in

Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...

. He officiated the

Group E Group E may refer to: * E-Group: E-Groups are unique architectural complexes found among a number of ancient Maya settlements * Group E (vase painting), a group of Attic vase painters of the black-figure style, active between 560 and 540 BC. * On ...

game between eventual tournament champions

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

and

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

Estadio Metropolitano Roberto Meléndez Estadio Metropolitano Roberto Meléndez, commonly known as Estadio Metropolitano, or colloquially, El Metro, is a multi-use All-seater stadium, all-seater association football, football stadium in Barranquilla, Colombia. It is the home stadium o ...

in Barranquilla. He then took charge of the

Group B Group B was a set of regulations for Grand tourer, grand touring (GT) cars used in sports car racing and rallying introduced in 1982 by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). Although permitted to enter a GT class of the World S ...

game between

Uruguay Uruguay, officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast, while bordering the Río de la Plata to the south and the A ...

and

Cameroon Cameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon, is a country in Central Africa. It shares boundaries with Nigeria to the west and north, Chad to the northeast, the Central African Republic to the east, and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the R ...

at Estadio El Campín in

Bogotá Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish Imperial period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city, capital and largest city ...

. He was appointed to the

Round of 16 A single-elimination knockout, or sudden-death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of a match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final match-up, w ...

match between

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

and

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

Estadio Palogrande Estadio Palogrande is a multi-purpose stadium in Manizales, Colombia with a capacity of 31,611. It is currently used mostly for football (soccer) matches as home venue of the Once Caldas, winners of the 2004 Copa Libertadores. History The firs ...

in Manizales. Finally, he refereed the

Final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final examination or finals, a test given at the end of a course of study or training *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which d ...

with American Assistant Referee Sean Hurd and Canadian Assistant Referee Joe Fletcher, between

and

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

at Estadio El Campín in Bogotá. This was the first time a referee from the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

has ever officiated a major men's tournament final. Referee Mark Geiger advantage

Geiger was selected as the Major League Soccer referee of the year for the 2011 season, and then again in 2014. In 2012, Geiger was selected as one of 16 referees to officiate at the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

in London. Geiger took charge of the Group D match between Spain vs. Japan and the quarterfinal between Japan vs. Egypt. In 2013, Geiger was an official at the

2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup The 2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup was the 12th CONCACAF Gold Cup competition and the 22nd CONCACAF regional championship overall in CONCACAF's fifty years of existence. The United States was the host nation. The competition began on July 7, 2013, at the ...

. Geiger was selected as CONCACAF's representative referee for the 2013 Club World Cup.

2014 FIFA World Cup

Geiger was one of 25 referees appointed for the

2014 FIFA World Cup The 2014 FIFA World Cup was the 20th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for list of men's national association football teams, men's national Association football, football teams organised by FIFA. It took place in Brazil fr ...

in Brazil. Geiger described the assignment to the World Cup as "an immensely proud moment". Geiger officiated the 2014 World Cup

Group C Group C was a category of sports car racing introduced by the FIA in 1982 and continuing until 1993, with ''Group A'' for Touring car racing, touring cars and ''Group B'' for Grand tourer, GTs. It was designed to replace both Group 5 (motorspor ...

match between

and

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

at the Estadio Mineirão in Belo Horizonte; the 2014 World Cup

match between

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

and

at the

Maracanã Stadium Maracanã Stadium (, ; named after the Maracanã River), officially known as Jornalista Mário Filho Stadium (, ; , named after Mário Filho), is an association football stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Located in the Maracanã neighbor ...

in Rio de Janeiro; and the 2014 World Cup

match between

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

and

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

at the

Estádio Nacional The Estádio Nacional ', also known as Jamor National Sports Centre (), is a football stadium. It is located in the civil parish of Algés, Linda-a-Velha e Cruz Quebrada-Dafundo, in the municipality of Oeiras, in the southwestern part of Lisb ...

in Brasilia, the first American to referee in the knockout round of a FIFA World Cup.

2017 FIFA Confederations Cup

Geiger was selected to officiate the

2017 FIFA Confederations Cup The 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup was the tenth and final edition of the FIFA Confederations Cup, a quadrennial international men's Association football, football tournament organised by FIFA. It was held in Russia, from 17 June to 2 July 2017, ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

. In the Group Stage, Geiger officiated the

match between

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

and

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

Sochi Sochi ( rus, Сочи, p=ˈsotɕɪ, a=Ru-Сочи.ogg, from – ''seaside'') is the largest Resort town, resort city in Russia. The city is situated on the Sochi (river), Sochi River, along the Black Sea in the North Caucasus of Souther ...

as well as the

Group A Group A is a set of motorsport regulations administered by the FIA covering production derived touring cars for competition, usually in touring car racing and rallying. In contrast to the short-lived Group B and Group C, Group A vehicles wer ...

match between

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

and

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

2018 FIFA World Cup

Geiger was one of 36 referees selected for the

, working with a North American crew of Joe Fletcher from Canada and Frank Anderson from the United States. Geiger served as referee on three matches at the tournament and was VAR in five matches. Geiger's first assignment was the second group stage match of Group B between Portugal and Morocco. Geiger worked as the VAR In the match between Denmark and Australia. During the match he advised the referee, Antonio Mateu Lahoz, to review a possible handball in the penalty area. After review, Lahoz awarded a penalty kick that allowed the Socceroos to score and secure a 1–1 draw. He subsequently worked as VAR for the Group D match between Argentina and Iceland, the Group G match featuring Belgium and Tunisia and the Round of 16 contest between Uruguay and Portugal before his final assignment in the tournament's Third Place match. Geiger then officiated the Group F third match between South Korea and Germany. South Korea defeated Germany 2–0, but neither team advanced since Sweden defeated Mexico. He then officiated at the Round of 16 game between Colombia and England. England advanced on penalties after a 1–1 draw. Geiger was selected as one of the final 12 referees on the shortlist to officiate the final or third place play-off match, and was ultimately selected to be VAR on the 3rd place match between Belgium and England.

Controversies

Geiger has been criticized for making controversial calls, such as the 2015 Gold Cup semi final between

Panama Panama, officially the Republic of Panama, is a country in Latin America at the southern end of Central America, bordering South America. It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, and ...

and

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

, when he called a controversial penalty for Mexico with Panama up 1–0 in the 90th minute. He admitted to making mistakes in that match as well.

Panamanian Football Federation The Panamanian Football Federation (), known as FEPAFUT, is the official governing body of football in Panama and is in charge of the Panama national football team. FEPAFUT was a founding member of CONCACAF in 1961. Association staff See a ...

president Pedro Chaluja said the match was "fixed", and he also wanted FIFA and CONCACAF to investigate.

Retirement

On January 9, 2019, Geiger announced that he would retire from refereeing and take up a position within PRO as its director of senior match officials.

FIFA World Cup record

FWC 2018 - Round of 16 - COL v ENG - Photo 088

Personal life

Geiger was born on August 25, 1974, and grew up in Beachwood, New Jersey. After studying teaching at

Trenton State College The College of New Jersey (TCNJ) is a public university in Ewing Township, New Jersey. It is part of New Jersey's public system of higher education. Established in 1855 as the New Jersey State Normal School, TCNJ was the first normal school, ...

, he became a mathematics teacher at Lacey Township High School in Lanoka Harbor, New Jersey, a role that he gave up to become a full-time referee. While at Lacey Township High School, Geiger was among 103 recipients of the Presidential Award for Excellence in Math and Science Teaching in 2010.

Honors

* New Jersey Soccer Association Referee of the Year: 2003 * Morgan J. Hellebuyck North American Officials Award 2006 * MLS Referee of the Year:

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

References

External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Geiger, Mark 1974 births Living people Schoolteachers from New Jersey American soccer referees Major League Soccer referees American mathematics educators North American Soccer League (2011–2017) referees People from Beachwood, New Jersey Olympic football referees Football referees at the 2012 Summer Olympics CONCACAF Champions Cup referees CONCACAF Gold Cup referees 2014 FIFA World Cup referees 2018 FIFA World Cup referees Sportspeople from New Jersey Sportspeople from Ocean County, New Jersey Copa América Centenario referees