Uzbek referees appointed for India’s friendlies with Brazil and Uruguay
The All India Football Federation has appointed a four-member refereeing team from Uzbekistan to officiate India’s international friendlies against Brazil on October 3 and Uruguay on October 6.
A senior AIFF official told TOI: "We asked Uzbekistan to send their referees because they officiated at the World Cup. They are experienced, good enough to handle teams of Brazil and Uruguay’s stature." The Uzbek officials have refereed at the FIFA World Cup and other major international events. Ilgiz Tantashev, the most prominent member of the group, was recently involved in the controversial FIFA World Cup 2026 match between France and Paraguay.
The four referees named for the two friendlies are Ilgiz Tantashev, Rustam Lutfulin, Andrey Tsapenko and Timur Gaynullin. Ilgiz Tantashev is expected to take charge of India’s friendly against Brazil with Rustam Lutfulin acting as fourth official for that match. The roles will be reversed for the Uruguay fixture on October 6, when Rustam Lutfulin will serve as the match referee and Ilgiz Tantashev will be the fourth official.
Andrey Tsapenko and Timur Gaynullin have been appointed as the assistant referees for both matches. Both assistants bring FIFA World Cup experience to the officiating team. Their presence completes the four-member Uzbek contingent assigned to the two friendlies.
Ilgiz Tantashev’s officiating record includes appointments at the Summer Olympics 2024, the FIFA World Cup, two AFC Asian Cups, three AFC U-23 Asian Cups, the ACL Elite and six editions of the AFC Cup. That list of tournaments forms the basis of the AIFF’s decision to engage the Uzbek officials for high-profile opposition.
India will also have representation among match officials: Arunava Bhattacharya will serve as the match commissioner for both the Brazil and Uruguay friendlies. The source notes that Arunava brings experience with AFC and FIFA to the role.
India face Brazil on October 3 and Uruguay on October 6, with the Uzbek refereeing team assigned to those matches and the specified referee roles confirmed for each fixture.
