Former Premier League referee Anthony Taylor surprises everyone with a new job just days after retiring.
Although Anthony Taylor retired from refereeing last month, he’s already found an exciting new job.
The 47-year-old, who refereed Premier League games for 16 seasons and handled over 830 matches in total, announced his retirement on July 21. This was shortly after managing two matches at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, including a game between Senegal and Iraq, and Spain’s win over Portugal in the round of 16. During his career, Taylor also took charge of the 2024 Champions League final and 163 international games.
In his retirement statement, Taylor called refereeing a “huge privilege” but also said it comes with a lot of “pressure” and “scrutiny.” He said, “Now feels like the right time to step aside and look forward to the next part of my career.” He thanked his assistants, refereeing colleagues, and especially his family and friends for their constant support through the demands of his career.
But just two weeks after retiring, Taylor announced he is joining the Turkish Football Federation as Director of Elite Refereeing. In a LinkedIn post, he shared, “After 16 seasons of elite refereeing, I’m excited to take on this consultancy role with the Turkish Football Federation. I look forward to using my experience to help develop refereeing standards in Türkiye, working with the team to support and improve match officials, following UEFA and FIFA guidelines. I’m grateful to everyone who helped with this opportunity and can’t wait to get started.”
Taylor’s new role comes after a recent investigation revealed many Turkish officials had betting accounts, leading the federation’s president to call for cleaning up the sport. Taylor’s experience will now play a key part in helping improve refereeing in Turkey.