The Albanian Football Federation has officially introduced Bernardino González Vázquez as the new Director of the Refereeing Department. The ceremony was held with the participation of the Vice President of the Albanian Football Federation, Geri Çipi, and the President of the Albanian Football Referees Union, Tahir Kastrati.

The appointment of González Vázquez marks a new step towards the strengthening and further development of Albanian refereeing, bringing to the structures of the Albanian Football Association a long experience at the highest levels of Spanish and European refereeing.

Introducing the new director, the Vice President of the Albanian Football Association, Geri Çipi, emphasized the importance of refereeing for the quality and development of Albanian football.

"Referring is one of the most important pillars of football. A quality championship requires not only good players and coaches, but also referees who are prepared, independent, professional and capable of handling the pressure of high levels of competition."

The chip highlighted the extensive experience of González Vázquez, who has been a La Liga referee in Spain, a FIFA international referee and has refereed important matches in European competitions, while among his achievements stands out the refereeing of the final of the U-17 European Championship in 2005.

He also praised his experience in leading and developing refereeing after ending his playing career.

"This experience is exactly what we seek to bring to a new phase of the development of Albanian refereeing. We are convinced that his experience, together with the energy and professionalism of Albanian referees, will help us take an important step forward", - said the Vice President of the AFF.

In his speech, the President of the Albanian Football Referees' Union, Tahir Kastrati, described the appointment of González Vázquez as a choice that aims to further increase the performance and quality of refereeing in Albania.

"This choice was made by the Albanian Football Association in a way that will have the maximum impact on an even more qualitative leap in increasing refereeing performance. González Vázquez has extensive experience as a referee on the field of play and then as a leader in high-level structures in La Liga and FIFA. We believe that his presence and experience will influence the even more qualitative growth of referees in Albania."

Kastrati also emphasized the importance of cooperation between BASHF and the Arbitration Department at the AFF, underlining that this relationship will be an important element for the development of arbitration.

He announced that González Vázquez, in addition to his duties as Director of the Arbitration Department, will have an important role in leading the Arbitration Committee, which includes the Appointment Committee, the Evaluation Committee and the Monitoring Committee.

In his first speech as Director of the Refereeing Department at the Albanian Football Association, Bernardino González Vázquez thanked the President of the Albanian Football Association, Armand Duka, and the Head of Refereeing at UEFA, Roberto Rosetti, for their trust and support.

"I'm not here to talk about myself, because I believe that's not the most important thing. I'm here to bring my experience to refereeing."

González Vázquez described the new task as a great challenge, which he accepted with great desire and enthusiasm, while emphasizing that one of the reasons that prompted him to accept this role was the positive evaluation he had heard about the Albanian Football Association.

The new Director of Arbitration pointed out the potential that exists in Albania and presented his working philosophy:

"There is a lot of talent in Albania. My proposal is simple: to use my experience to help referees every day."

Addressing the Albanian referees, González Vázquez emphasized that continuous work and development will be at the center of his mission.

“The key in refereeing, but also in life, is work. In Spain we have a saying: the harder you work, the luckier you are. My message to Albanian referees is very simple: I will be one of you and I will do my best for you to grow, improve and develop.”

Finally, González Vázquez conveyed a message to the media and the football community, asking that referees' human errors be dealt with responsibly and constructively.

"Referees make mistakes. They always have and they will continue to do so, because they are human. There is no need to destroy a referee for one mistake."

He emphasized that football should be a positive example for younger generations and that players, coaches and referees have a shared responsibility to convey the values ​​of sport in society.

“I can promise you two things: I will work hard and I will give everything to build credibility. I am very pleased to be here.”