Fernando Guerrero Ramírez (born 14 September 1981) is a Mexican professional football referee. He has been a full international for FIFA since 2014.[2] He refereed matches in the FIFA U-20 World Cup, FIFA World Cup qualifiers and the 2022 FIFA World Cup. He's widely known in Mexico for his nickname, 'Cantante' (singer in Spanish) for his outside hobby.
| Full name | Fernando Guerrero Ramírez | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Born | 14 September 1981[1] Mexico City, Mexico[1] | ||
| Domestic | |||
| Years | League | Role | |
| 2007–2010 | Liga de Ascenso | Referee | |
| 2011–present | Liga MX | Referee | |
| International | |||
| Years | League | Role | |
| 2014–present | FIFA listed | Referee | |
Refereeing career
Domestic career
Refereeing since 2004, Santander made his official debut on 26 August 2007 in a match between Salamanca and Tapatío.[1] Three years later Guerrero would make his First division debut in a 0–0 draw between Guadalajara and Puebla at Estadio Jalisco, Guadalajara's last home game at the stadium.[3] Guerrero would officiate his first playoff match until the Apertura 2011 season, a match between Querétaro and Guadalajara at Estadio Corregidora.[4] On 5 November 2013, Guerrero would officiate the Apertura 2013 Copa MX final between Morelia and Atlas at Estadio Morelos, this was the first time he officiated a final in his career.[5] On 9 July 2014 Guerrero was the referee for the second leg of the 2014 Supercopa MX between Tigres UANL and Morelia at Estadio Universitario.[6]
Guerrero would officiate his first Liga MX final on 13 December 2015, the second leg of the Apertura 2015 final between UNAM and Tigres UANL.[7] Guerrero officiated the second leg of the Clausura 2016 final between Monterrey and Pachuca at Estadio BBVA Bancomer, his second straight final.[8] Guerrero has gone on to officiate five more Liga MX finals, as well as one Copa MX final and a Campeón de Campeones.
International career
Guerrero has been a FIFA international referee since 2014.[2] Guerrero officiated his first international game on 29 March 2015, a 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifier between Dominica and the British Virgin Islands at Windsor Park in Roseau.[9] Guerrero has officiated in various international tournaments such as the 2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Poland, the 2017 Copa Centroamericana in Panama, and various other CONCACAF tournaments such as the Gold Cup, Champions League and FIFA World Cup qualifiers.[2] Although domestically Guerrero has been known for his on-field presence, internationally he has been known for his role as a Video assistant referee.[2]
Guerrero was selected as a Video assistant referee for the 2021 FIFA Arab Cup in Qatar, he officiated six matches, including the semi-final.[10] Guerrero was selected as a Video assistant referee for the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon, he was in charge of VAR for five matches and also officiated the match between Gambia and Tunisia.[11] On 19 May 2022, FIFA announced Guerrero would be a video assistant referee at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.[12] The first match he officiated was a Group D match between Denmark and Tunisia at Education City Stadium.[13] Guerrero would be part of the officiating crew for a total of ten matches, both as a Video assistant referee and an assistant video assistant referee (AVAR).[14] Guerrero served as support video assistant referee for the Final, making him the first Mexican-born referee to be part of an officiating crew at a FIFA World Cup final.[15]