From left to right, assistant referee Lyes Arfa, fourth official Juan Gabriel Benitez, referee Drew Fischer and assistant referee Micheal Barwegen prepare to work a 2025 FIFA Club World Cup match. Arfa and Barewegan say their on-field chemistry with fellow Canadian Drew Fischer has grown strong over the years that they've worked together.Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images
When not commanding the sideline, Micheal Barwegen runs a classroom in Alberta. Fellow assistant referee Lyes Arfa is a partner in a Quebec City law firm.
The two officials will be putting their day jobs on hold this summer to work the FIFA World Cup.
“Both of our employers are extremely accommodating,” said Barwegen, who teaches mathematics at Coalhurst High School near Lethbridge.
But he reckons he gets the best of that bargain.
“Once summer hits, it’s a little easier for me to have some time off to focus on the officiating side. I’m pretty sure people are running legal contracts all the time through [Arfa’s] firm,” Barwegen said.
Arfa credited Stein Monast, his employer, for allowing him to wear two hats.
“I know they have my back,” Arfa said. “So it makes it easier for me to be able to perform on both levels.”
The two joined Canadian referee Drew Fischer and the other 166 match officials at a pre-tournament camp that started May 31 in Miami. Somali referee Omar Artan was slated to join them but was denied access to the U.S.
The three Canadians have stayed in Miami, flying out to their assigned games in the United States, Mexico and Canada.
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Fischer, a 45-year-old from Calgary, served as the fourth official for Monday’s game between Saudi Arabia and Uruguay in Miami, while Barwegen was the reserve assistant referee.
The Canadian trio have worked internationally together for the past three years and have worked together domestically this year ahead of the World Cup.
Their time together has made for a much-needed level of trust between the three.
“We often have only a split second to make a decision,” said Arfa. “So the communication needs to be on point. And it’s by working together, having the experience, we’re able to be as efficient as we are.”
Sometimes the job calls for a short memory.
“You learn how to forget quickly,” said Arfa. “Whether it’s a good decision or a bad decision. Because the most important decision is the next one.”
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Football and teaching make for a busy schedule for Barwegen and his family. His wife, Carmel, is a nurse and they have a two-year-old daughter.
Barwegen, who makes his home in Coaldale, about 20 minutes east of Coalhurst, is no stranger to travel.
For Saturday MLS games, he leaves Friday after school and makes the 2 1/2-hour drive to Calgary to fly to his destination – then does the reverse on Sunday.
“I definitely know that highway drive pretty well, through all sorts of weather,” he said.
Arfa, who turns 40 on June 12, is also ultra-familiar with connections, since he has to fly out of the Quebec capital.
“I got used to it,” he said. “I’m not as stressed as other people in the airport if there’s a delay.”
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Such problems just give him more time to study the teams he is about to see up-close.
“It’s something important because every team has its own style of play,” he said.
Barwegen started refereeing at 12 to make some pocket money. He continued to play soccer until he was 16 or 17, then began to focus on officiating.
Now 40, he has served on Canada Soccer’s list of referees and assistant referees since 2012 and FIFA’s list since 2018.
Just days after getting his FIFA badge, he was on a plane to Trinidad to work a four-team tournament.
“I was like, ‘This is insane. Twelve-year-old me would never believe any of this,’” he recalled.
“It was really cool. And it just continues from there.”
Arfa, who speaks French, English and Russian, was born in Moscow but moved to Algeria with his family when he was 1. The family relocated to Laval, Que., when he was 11.
He started refereeing at 16, “a bit by accident,” due to a shortage of officials where he grew up.
“I did like it. And then it began a new career,” he said.
He made Canada Soccer’s list of referees and assistant referees in 2011 and FIFA’s list in 2021.
While he started as a referee, he eventually opted for an assistant referee role, seeing more opportunities given there are two assistant referees working each game. Although he is also certified as an assistant video referee, he says he would rather be on the field than in front of a bank of TV monitors.
While Barwegen reckons he was a “passable” referee, he too prefers the role of assistant.
“This is where I feel comfortable,” he said.
He knows officials are under constant scrutiny, from fans and from FIFA.
“You’re only as good as your last game,” he said.