Wouter Jaspers

During the World Cup final (Netherlands – Spain), Howard Webb will be the referee. I have been a fan of this referee for a longer period of time. On 12 June 2008, whilst refereeing in his first match of the tournament between Austria and Poland and with less than one minute left in stoppage time, he awarded Austria a penalty after he adjudged Poland’s Mariusz Lewandowski to have pulled the shirt of Sebastian Prödl. The penalty was converted and the match finished 1–1. Afterwards Webb and his family received death threats by Polish fans and even the Polish prime minister said he wished Webb dead after what he did. I think his decision was very brave and well made. He will make sure the game will be played fair and honest. I am not only a fan of The Netherlands, I am also a fan of Webb.