This past Saturday, for the first time I worked as a 5th Official on the quarterfinal match between Germany and Japan.
As Marlene explained, the 5th Official is a reserve assistant referee. It is commonly known that if something happens to the referee it is the 4th Official who steps in to replace the referee. The game has evolved and so has the expertise of the referees and assistant referees. In many cases, the referees/4th officials have not worked as an assistant referee in many, many years so if they were to have to step in to replace an assistant referee they would be completely out of their comfort zone as they have not worked in this position in so long. So if something happens to an assistant referee it is the 5th Official who steps in who fully qualified for this position. Referees and assistant referees are also athletes and there is always a risk of injury.

Veronica, Carol Anne (Canada), Rita (Mexico), Quetzali (Mexico), and Mayte (Mexico)
As the 5th official is also part of the crew, I took this role very serious and assisted the team in other ways. Prior to the match, I assisted the crew in any manner I could such as checking ball pressure, helping the crew put on their communication system, and anything else that was requested. During the match, I took meticulous notes of the fouls, cards, and substitutions. Mentally, I had to be fully focused on the match so that if my assistance were required I am already on the same page as the crew, I am cognizant of the level of fouls being called, and aware of all the players in the book. During the game, I also wore my referee uniform under my track suit.

(Crew for the match right before taking the field)
I really enjoyed this assignment. During the match I sat next to the stretchers to the left of Germany's technical area. Since I sat field-level, I got to see the action very close. This was a very exciting match with lots of pace and an incredible atmosphere in the sold out stadium. This game went into overtime and Japan came out as the victor. This match reminded me that in the World Cup any team can win. Germany is the champion for the two prior World Cups, in 2003 and 2007, and had not lost a match in the World Cup since 1999. Therefore, Japan’s win was a surprise namely because the statistics were stacked against them. The fact that any team can win any game is what makes the World Cup so special.