Kosovan referee
Visar Kastrati is a Kosovan football referee. He has been a FIFA listed referee since 2020 and is ranked as a UEFA second category referee. Starting at 2024, Kastrati has been a FIFA listed as Video Match Official.[1]
In 2024 and 2023, Kastrati was awarded by Football Federation of Kosova as the "Best Referee of the Year".[2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10]
For two years in a row (2023 and 2022), he was named "Best Sports Referee of the Year" by the local Municipality in Prishtina.[11][12][13][14][15][16]
Refereeing career
Kastrati has been promoted as a referee in the Kosovo Superliga, the national top-flight, during the 2016–17 season and his debut match was FC Besa vs KF Hajvalia on 8 March 2017. In the same season, he started attending UEFA’s Centre of Refereeing Excellence (CORE) program,[17] and eventually became a FIFA Referee in 2020 and FIFA VAR in 2024.[18]
On 13 October 2020, Kastrati refereed his first international match, taking charge of a 2021 European Under-21 Championship qualifier between Romania and Malta.[19][20]
In September 2022, Kastrati was appointed to referee the 2022–23 UEFA Europa Conference League group stage match between Gent and Shamrock Rovers.[21]
In June 2023, he refereed Kosovo Cup Final match between SC Gjilani and FC Prishtina. A day before, he refereed Relegation match between FC Ferizaj and FC Liria.[22]
In August 2021, he has been a VAR on Kosovo Supercup, which was the first match played with VAR in Kosovo.[23][24]
Personal life
Kastrati has a degree of Master of Science in Software Engineering and Telecommunications at the University of Sheffield.[25] Beyond refereeing, he works as an Information Technology Consultant at the Central Election Commission in Kosovo.
Since 2021, he also works as a lead VAR instructor for the Football Federation of Kosovo.[26][27]
References
