Full name William Collum Name Willie Collum | Years League Years League Other occupation Teacher | |
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2005– | ||
Popular Videos - Willie Collum
William "Willie" Collum (born 18 January 1979) is a Scottish football referee.
Contents
- Popular Videos Willie Collum
- Steven Gerrard critical of refereeing decisions after Old Firm defeat
- Career
- Teaching career
- References
Steven Gerrard critical of refereeing decisions after Old Firm defeat
Career
Collum has refereed international matches, the 2008 European Under-19 final and in the UEFA Cup. He is also a regular referee of Scottish Premiership matches.
Collum officiated his first Scottish Football League match in November 2004, and his first SPL match in April 2006. He took charge of his first UEFA Champions League match in September 2010, overseeing FC Copenhagen's 2–0 win away at Panathinaikos, and has also officiated several high profile international matches and UEFA Europa League matches. On 11 June 2012 it was announced that Collum had been elevated to FIFA Elite Referee level joining Craig Thomson on the 24-strong list of the world’s leading referees.
On 24 October 2010, Collum refereed his first Old Firm match at Celtic Park. Following the match some of Collum's decisions during the game came under scrutiny from Celtic, and he received death threats against him and his family which were described as having a 'sectarian undertone'.
On 19 December 2011, Collum was appointed to referee the second Old Firm derby of the season at Celtic Park. Contrary to his previous Old Firm derby match, this one passed without many major incidents. He was credited for keeping control of what could have been a very dangerous game.
Collum was appointed to referee the 2013 Scottish Cup Final between Hibernian and Celtic, his first decisive match of the oldest football tournament in Scotland and second cup final overall, after overseeing the 2012 Scottish League Cup Final.
He was appointed by UEFA as Scotland's representative referee for UEFA EURO 2016, but in 2016 he was demoted to refereeing three Scottish Championship matches after his refereeing in the Inverness Caledonian Thistle v Aberdeen tie.
Teaching career
Collum was previously the principal teacher of the Religious Education department at Cardinal Newman High School, Bellshill, however he stood down as principal in August 2011 to concentrate more on his refereeing. He then taught R.E. at St Aidan's High School in Wishaw, eventually returning to Cardinal Newman High School as an R.E. teacher in August 2012. He started his teaching career in 2000 at St Ambrose High School in Coatbridge working alongside notable teachers including John Cushley and Bob Winslow.