David Elleray steps down as chairman of the Professional Refereeing Board
The RBFA is sorry to announce that David Elleray has decided to step down as chairman of the Professional Refereeing Board as he is now based in South Africa and, post-pandemic, unable to commit himself to visiting Belgium regularly enough to fulfil his duties.
David Elleray joined the RBFA in December 2018 as an advisor in order to bring Belgian refereeing to a higher standard.
“I met David for the first time in London, 3,5 years ago. At that time there was a huge need for someone being able to draw a plan to rebuild Belgian refereeing. This encounter has led to a positive and nice collaboration in which Belgian refereeing, led by David, has taken big steps forward and is now closing the gap with European top countries. I’m really grateful to David for what he has achieved. Of course, Belgian Refereeing still faces many challenges and we will keep working on them again next season. I really understand David’s decision and wish him the best of luck in his beloved South Africa.”
Peter Bossaert, CEO RBFA
“I spent much of the pandemic in South Africa, a country with which I have a long and close association and during that time I decided to bring forward my plans to make South Africa my base and I started building a new house, which is now close to completion.
Being based in South Africa rather than the UK, and with the post-pandemic return to ‘face-to-face’ work, I reviewed my international commitments, especially those requiring regular attendance at meetings, referee courses and matches and concluded I would not be able to visit Belgium often enough to fulfil my roles and responsibilities effectively and professionally.
So, with great sadness, I have decided to step down.
I have been honored to have led the restructure and growth of Belgian refereeing and the creation of an impressive and hard-working Professional Refereeing Department (PRD). The significant improvement in on and off the field performances testifies to the dedication shown by many people; the progress has been very rewarding to observe, as has the growing international reputation of Belgian referees.
I offer my congratulations to all the match officials and those who lead and work with them, and thank them for their professionalism and friendship. I will continue to take a keen interest in Belgian refereeing and I wish everyone in the RBFA the very best for the future.”
David Elleray
The RBFA will now start the process of David Elleray's succession as chairman of the Professional Refereeing Board. While this process is underway, no further statements will be made on this matter.