Bulgaria’s Top Referee Georgi Kabakov Suspended Indefinitely After VAR Controversy

Georgi Kabakov, Bulgaria’s top-ranked football referee, has been suspended indefinitely, the Bulgarian Football Union’s Referee Commission announced. The same sanction was also applied to Vladimir Valkov.

The suspension comes in response to what the commission described as “unsatisfactory performance” by both referees in their VAR duties during the Slavia vs. Lokomotiv Sofia match, which ended 2:0 in favor of Slavia. Controversy arose after the first goal, which followed an apparent handball by Martin Georgiev that went unpenalized.

This marks the first time the Referee Commission has imposed temporary suspensions during the Bulgarian football championship. Kabakov, who is also an international referee and regularly officiates UEFA European club competitions, will be unable to accept appointments during this indefinite suspension.

The Referee Commission explained the decision in an official statement: “At a regular meeting, the Refereeing Committee of the Bulgarian Football Union decided to suspend the rights of Georgi Kabakov and Vladimir Valkov for an indefinite period due to their unsatisfactory performance as VAR referees in the XI-round efbet League match between Slavia and Lokomotiv Sofia.”