Marco Antonio Rodríguez Moreno (born November 10, 1973 in Mexico City) is a Mexican football referee. In his homeland, he is commonly nicknamed "Chiquidrácula" (and, more recently, "Chiquimarco") due to his resemblance to a Mexican TV character of child Count Dracula, portrayed by Carlos Espejel.[1] A former sports professor, he now serves as a Protestant priest besides his activity as a referee.[2]
In Mexico, Rodríguez is known for being a very strict referee who gives many yellow and red cards.[3]
An international referee since 2000, Rodríguez has been selected for two FIFA World Cups. In the 2006 tournament in Germany, he refereed the England vs Paraguay match and the Côte d'Ivoire vs Serbia and Montenegro match, where he sent off Cyril Domoraud and Albert Nađ. In the 2010 tournament in South Africa, Rodríguez was match referee for the first group match between Australia and Germany, where he contentiously gave a straight red card to Australian striker Tim Cahill. Bastian Schweinsteiger, whom Cahill attempted to tackle, consoled Cahill post-match, by saying he did not think it should have been a red.[4][5]
| Tournament | Date | Venue | Round | Team 1 | Result | Team 2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | June 10 | Commerzbank-Arena, Frankfurt | First Round | England | 1 – 0 | Paraguay |
| 2006 | June 21 | Allianz Arena, Munich | First Round | Côte d'Ivoire | 3 – 2 | Serbia and Montenegro |
| 2010 | June 13 | Moses Mabhida Stadium, Durban | First Round | Germany | 4 – 0 | Australia |
| 2010 | June 25 | Loftus Versfeld Stadium, Pretoria | First Round | Spain | 2 – 1 | Chile |
| Preceded by Carlos Batres |
FIFA Club World Cup final match referees 2007 Marco Rodríguez |
Succeeded by Ravshan Irmatov |
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