Bob Valentine

Who is Bob Valentine?

Robert Bonar "Bob" Valentine is a former football referee from Scotland. He is mostly known for supervising two matches in the 1982 World Cup in Spain: the infamous "Great Gijon Swindle" between West Germany and Austria, and the second-round match between Poland and the USSR.

He was also one of the linesmen for the classic semi-final that year between France and West Germany at the Estadio Sanchez Pizjuan in Seville.

Valentine also refereed the Euro 84 match between France and Belgium at the Stade de la Beaujoire in Nantes, and the Euro 88 match between West Germany and Denmark at the Parkstadion in Gelsenkirchen.

After his refereeing retirement, Valentine became the Scottish FA's Head of Refereeing. Outside of football, he worked as a print compositor.