Peter O'Leary (born 3 March 1972) is a

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 List of islands of New Zealand, smaller islands. It is the ...

former

Association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is t ...

referee A referee is an official, in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection. The official tasked with this job may be known by a variety of other tit ...

, previously of

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by m ...

but now is residing and working in Hamilton. He operated in the Australian

A-League A-League Men (known as the Isuzu UTE A-League for sponsorship reasons) is the highest-level professional men's soccer league in Australia and New Zealand. At the top of the Australian league system, it is the country's premier men's competit ...

and the

New Zealand Football Championship The New Zealand Football Championship ( mi, Te Whakataetae Whutupaoro a Aotearoa) was a men's association football league at the top of the New Zealand league system. Founded in 2004, the New Zealand Football Championship was the successor to a m ...

, and his other occupation is as a teacher and deputy principal at Hamilton's

Melville High School , motto_translation = To serve. To work , coordinates = , fundingtype = State secondary school , principal = Clive Hamill , years = 9–13 , gender = Coeducational , location = 6 Collins Road, Deanwell, Hamilton, Waikato , country = Ne ...

. He currently has the record for controlling the most matches in the FIFA World Club Cup.

Career

He first took up refereeing in 1994. He has officiated in many

Oceania Football Confederation The Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) is one of the six continental confederations of international association football. The OFC has 13 members, 11 of which are full members and two which are associate members not affiliated with FIFA. I ...

tournaments since becoming a FIFA referee in 2003, notably the

OFC Nations Cup The OFC Nations Cup is an international association football tournament held among the Oceania Football Confederation, OFC member nations. It was held every two years from 1996 to 2004; before 1996 there were two other tournaments held at irre ...

in 2004, and the

Oceania Club Championship The OFC Champions League, also known as the O-League, is the premier men's club soccer competition in Oceania. It is organised by the OFC, Oceania's football governing body. Beginning as the Oceania Club Championship (1987–2006), it has been ...

in 2006. In 2007, he was selected to officiate at the FIFA Under-20 World Cup in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...

during June and July of that year. He took charge of the

Group F Group F may refer to: * A set of international motor racing regulations used in touring car racing * One of six or eight groups of four teams competing at the FIFA World Cup ** 2022 FIFA World Cup Group F ** 2018 FIFA World Cup Group F ** 2014 FIF ...

game between

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of G ...

and Costa Rica at the

Royal Athletic Park Royal Athletic Park is a stadium in Victoria, British Columbia and is used for baseball, soccer, softball and football, but also hosts special events, such as the annual Great Canadian Beer Festival and previously the Rifflandia Music Festival ...

Victoria, British Columbia Victoria is the capital city of the Canadian province of British Columbia, on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off Canada's Pacific coast. The city has a population of 91,867, and the Greater Victoria area has a population of 397,237. T ...

, on 1 July. He was then assigned the

Group B Group B was a set of regulations for grand touring (GT) vehicles used in sports car racing and rallying introduced in 1982 by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). Although permitted to enter a GT class of the World Sportsc ...

match between

Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

and

Jordan Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Ri ...

at the

Swangard Stadium Swangard Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Central Park in Burnaby, British Columbia. Primarily used for soccer, rugby, football, and athletics, the stadium also used to be home to the Simon Fraser Clan football team and the Vancouver Whi ...

Burnaby Burnaby is a city in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia, Canada. Located in the centre of the Burrard Peninsula, it neighbours the City of Vancouver to the west, the District of North Vancouver across the confluence of the Burrard ...

, on 4 July. At the

English Premiership The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...

tie between

Aston Villa Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa P ...

and

Sunderland F.C. Sunderland Association Football Club (, ) is an English professional football club based in the city of Sunderland, Tyne and Wear. Formed in 1879, Sunderland play in the Championship, the second tier of English football. The club has won six ...

as a guest of top

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national id ...

Steve Bennett, O’Leary was summoned from the stands to assume Bennett's role on the touchline as 4th official for the second half of the match. O'Leary officiated at the

FIFA Club World Cup The FIFA Club World Cup is an international men's association football competition organised by the ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The competition was first contested in 200 ...

in Japan, as the referee for the fifth place playoff between

Adelaide United Adelaide United Football Club is a professional soccer club based in Adelaide, South Australia, Australia. The club participates in the A-League Men under licence from Australian Professional Leagues (APL). The club was founded in 2003 to fil ...

and

Al Ahly AL, Al, Ål or al may stand for: Arts and entertainment Fictional characters * Al (''Aladdin'') or Aladdin, the main character in Disney's ''Aladdin'' media * Al (''EastEnders''), a minor character in the British soap opera * Al (''Fullmetal ...

and at the

2009 FIFA U-20 World Cup The 2009 FIFA U-20 World Cup was the 17th edition of the FIFA U-20 World Cup, which was hosted by Egypt from 24 September to 16 October 2009. The tournament was initially going to take place between 10 and 31 July. However, the 2009 FIFA Confedera ...

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Med ...

, refereeing group games between Italy and Trinidad and Tobago and between Hungary and the United Arab Emirates, along with one game at the

2009 FIFA Club World Cup The 2009 FIFA Club World Cup (officially known as the FIFA Club World Cup UAE 2009 presented by Toyota for sponsorship reasons) was a football tournament played from 9 to 19 December 2009. It was the sixth FIFA Club World Cup and was played in ...

in United Arab Emirates, refereeing

TP Mazembe Tout Puissant Mazembe, commonly referred to as TP Mazembe, is a Congolese professional football club based in Lubumbashi. History Tout Puissant Mazembe, the first sports club from the Democratic Republic of the Congo with a value of at least $10 ...

and

Pohang Steelers FC The Pohang Steelers (Hangul: 포항 스틸러스) are a South Korean professional football club based in Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province that compete in the K League 1, the top flight of South Korean football. The Steelers were founded on 1 A ...

. O'Leary was included on the short list to officiate at the

2010 FIFA World Cup , image = 2010 FIFA World Cup.svg , size = 200px , caption = ''Ke Nako. (Tswana and Sotho for "It's time") Celebrate Africa's Humanity'It's time. Celebrate Africa's Humanity'' (English)''Dis tyd. Vier Afrika se mensd ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring count ...

along with fellow New Zealand referee

Michael Hester Michael Hester (born 2 May 1972), is a former New Zealand association football referee in the A-League. Holder of a FIFA international licence, he has participated at the highest level, officiating at the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Biography Hester ...

, both of whom were confirmed in the final 30 officials to take charge at the finals. O'Leary refereed the

2015 AFC Asian Cup The 2015 AFC Asian Cup was the 16th edition of the men's AFC Asian Cup, a quadrennial international football tournament organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). It was held in Australia from 9 to 31 January 2015. The tournament was ...

match between Korea Republic and Oman. O'Leary retired in 2015, after controlling his 64th A-League game.

2014 World Cup

On 19 June 2014, he was announced as the referee for the group match between Nigeria and

Bosnia-Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...

at the

2014 FIFA World Cup The 2014 FIFA World Cup was the 20th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's national football teams organised by FIFA. It took place in Brazil from 12 June to 13 July 2014, after the country was awarded the hosting rig ...

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

. The match was won by Nigeria 1–0 after a goal by

Edin Džeko Edin Džeko (; born 17 March 1986) is a Bosnian professional footballer who plays as a striker for club Inter Milan and captains the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team. Džeko was named Bosnian Footballer of the Year for three years in a ...

of Bosnia-Herzegovina was disallowed when he was ruled offside by the assistant referee. Peter O’Leary, later admitted that Džeko's goal was disallowed in error. He was the fourth official for the match between France and Honduras.

A-League Matches

* 2005/2006 Season: 11 Matches (Including: 1 Pre-season) * 2006/2007 Season: 10 Matches (Including: 3 Pre-season) * 2007/2008 Season: 6 Matches (Including: 1 Pre-Season) * 2008/2009 Season: 10 Matches (Including: 1 Pre-season) * 2009/2010 Season: 5 Matches (Including: 1 Pre-season) * 2010/2011 Season: 9 Matches * 2011/2012 Season: 2 Matches * 2012/2013 Season: 5 Matches * 2013/2014 Season: 6 Matches * 2014/2015 Season: 7 Matches

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Oleary, Peter 1972 births Living people New Zealand association football referees A-League Men referees People from Wellington City New Zealand schoolteachers Science teachers 2010 FIFA World Cup referees Olympic football referees Football referees at the 2012 Summer Olympics 2014 FIFA World Cup referees AFC Asian Cup referees