Muhammad Taqi Aljaafari Bin Jahari. PIC: FIFA.COM
Doha: Enter the corridors of the Singapore Football Association [FAS] and it is clear they take great pride in their achievements – and with good reason too. Lining the walls are plaques honouring the landmarks and history-makers of local football, be it players, administrators or referees.
A new name is now about to be added to this inspiring homage. Muhammad Taqi Aljaafari Bin Jahari will shortly be heading to the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 where he will feature among world football’s elite as a Video Match Official (VMO).
Impressively, Taqi will be the fifth Singaporean to officiate at a FIFA World Cup.
With four AFF Championships to their credit – a figure better only by regional giants Thailand – Singaporean football has a surprisingly lengthy history of accomplishment. Much like the city-state itself - one of the smaller nations in the world by area - Singapore football has more than made the most of its limited resources.
For Taqi, appointment as a video match official at Qatar 2022 is part of a refereeing journey that has included an AFC Asian Cup, and a FIFA U-20 World Cup among a lengthy list of achievements. Notably, Taqi, in addition to being an elite VMO, has been a key figure in the ongoing implementation of video technology in the Singapore Premier League.
Using FIFA Forward-funding, Singapore is set to become just the third nation to introduce VAR technology in the region. Not only will the local competition benefit, but the upcoming implementation has helped Taqi to now be in a position to represent Asia in the specialised field of a VMO.
His appointment is emblematic of the worldwide changes in the field over the past four years. Most of the VMOs at Russia 2018 hailed from Europe and South America due to the limited number of FIFA Member Associations that had implemented VAR at the time.
“It is a dream come true to be at the World Cup, especially [given] the World Cup is the largest competition or largest tournament or largest sport[ing event], I would say, in the world, and everybody is watching these matches,” Taqi said.
The 35-year-old’s journey to Qatar 2022 has been as gruelling as any of his colleagues, having endured multiple international trips and numerous quarantine periods of 14, and even 21 days.
With 11 years on his CV as a FIFA international assistant referee, Nazeer is well placed to judge both Taqi’s achievements and the importance of managing the introduction of VAR to Singapore.
“I’m very pleased and very proud that we have Taqi - a Singaporean - going to represent Singapore in the World Cup,” he said. “The whole nation itself will be very proud of his achievement as well.
“I think this is also a testament [to] the refereeing programmes that we have in place already. [They] are actually producing results right now, we can see it. And, it’s a testament to Taqi himself, for his dedication, commitment, the time sacrificed and put in over the years so that this opportunity [would come up] for him.
“VAR is quite new in ASEAN countries. So, we really need FIFA’s assistance here – it’s important – because we need to draw on [their] experience and expertise, we need them to come here and lay the foundations. Without FIFA’s support, I don’t think we will get very far in that respect, because we don’t really have much expertise in this area in the ASEAN region."”
Taqi is hoping Singaporeans can take pride in having one of the own at world football’s greatest event and he will can inspire the next generation. “I really hope that I’m not the last one from Singapore to be at a World Cup,” he said.
“I hope to see more, and I hope to share my experiences, my knowledge with these referees because, at the end of the day, honestly, I feel that we have the potential among our young referees to be at the international level."
