{{Short description|American soccer referee (born 1982)}} {{Multiple issues| {{BLP sources|date=May 2018}} {{notability|Sports|date=May 2018}} }}
{{Infobox football official | name = Chris Penso | image = Chris Penso NYCFC.Seattle.18.Oct.2025-034 (cropped).jpg | caption = Penso in 2025 | fullname = | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1982|04|28}}<!-- Use {{Birth date|YYYY|MM|DD}} if dead --> | birth_place =Dover, Ohio, U.S. | death_date = <!-- Use {{Death date and age|YYYY|MM|DD|YYYY|MM|DD}} if dead (death date followed by birth date) --> | death_place = | years1 = 2011– | league1 = Major League Soccer | role1 = Referee | internationalyears1 = 2013–2015 | confederation1 = FIFA listed | internationalrole1 = Referee | internationalyears2 = 2021– | confederation2 = FIFA listed | internationalrole2 = VAR }}
'''Chris Penso''' (born April 28, 1982) is an American soccer referee who is active in Major League Soccer.<ref name=":0">{{cite web |url=http://proreferees.com/roster/referees/chris-penso/ |title=Profile: Chris Penso |publisher=Professional Referee Organization |access-date=August 3, 2016}}</ref>
==Career==
Penso was raised in Dover, Ohio, and unsuccessfully ran for mayor of the city while studying accounting at Kent State University. He began refereeing in 1997, and also worked at the Transportation Security Administration and the Ohio State Highway Patrol. He quit the state patrol in 2006 to become a full-time referee, and officiated his first Major League Soccer match in 2011.<ref>{{cite news |last=Reed |first=Tom |date=May 26, 2013 |title=Politics aside, Chris Penso follows his dream to officiate and will work U.S. National team friendly in Cleveland |url=https://www.cleveland.com/ohio-sports-blog/index.ssf/2013/05/politics_aside_chris_penso_fol.html |work=Cleveland Plain Dealer |access-date=March 2, 2019}}</ref>
Penso became FIFA listed in 2013 and his first international assignment was on January 30, 2013, when he refereed a match between Mexico and Denmark. He served as a FIFA referee until 2015. In 2021, Penso was added to the FIFA list as a VAR.<ref name=":0" />
Penso was the VAR for the MLS Cup in 2018 and 2021. He also was the referee for the 2016 MLS All Star Game. <ref>{{Cite web |title=MLS All-Star Roll of Honor |url=https://proreferees.com/officials/mls-all-star-roll-of-honor/ |access-date=2026-03-08 |language=en-US}}</ref>
In 2021, Penso was selected as a VAR for the Tokyo Olympics. <ref>{{Cite web |title=Five U.S. Soccer Referees Selected to Officiate at Olympic Football Tournaments Tokyo 2020 |url=https://ussoccer.com/stories/2021/04/five-us-soccer-referees-selected-to-officiate-at-olympic-football-tournaments-tokyo-2020 |access-date=2026-03-08 |website=ussoccer.com |language=en}}</ref> He was the VAR for both the men's and women's gold medal matches. <ref>{{Cite web |title=Chris Penso |url=https://www.sportsofficialscare.org/chris-penso-2/ |access-date=2026-03-08 |website=Sports Officials Care |language=en-US}}</ref>
Penso was assigned as the AVAR for the 2026 CONCACAF Champions Cup Final between Toluca FC and Tigres UANL. <ref>{{Cite web |last=Arellano |first=Bryan |last2=Brennan |first2=Joe |date=2026-05-30 |title=Who is Ismail Elfath, the referee for the CONCACAF Champions Cup final between Toluca and Tigres? |url=https://en.as.com/soccer/who-is-ismail-elfath-the-referee-for-the-concacaf-champions-cup-final-between-toluca-and-tigres-f202605-n/ |access-date=2026-05-31 |website=AS USA |language=en-us}}</ref>
==Internationals== {| class="wikitable" style=" text-align:center; font-size:95%; width:75%" ! Date ! Location ! Teams ! Scoreline ! Competition !width=20| {{yel}} !width=20| {{sent off|1}} !width=20| {{sent off}} |- | January 30, 2013 || Phoenix || {{Flagicon|MEX}} Mexico – Denmark League XI {{Flagicon|DEN}} || '''1 – 1''' || Friendly || 3 || 0 || 0 |- | May 28, 2013 || Edmonton || {{Flagicon|CAN}} Canada – Costa Rica {{Flagicon|CRC}} || '''0 – 1''' || Friendly || 2 || 0 || 2 |- | October 31, 2013 || San Diego || {{Flagicon|MEX}} Mexico – Finland {{Flagicon|FIN}} || '''4 – 2''' || Friendly || 1 || 0 || 0 |- | June 3, 2014 || Tampa || {{Flagicon|CRC}} Costa Rica – Japan {{Flagicon|JPN}} || '''1 – 3''' || Friendly || 3 || 0 || 0 |- | September 9, 2014 || Commerce City || {{Flagicon|BOL}} Bolivia – Mexico {{Flagicon|MEX}} || '''0 – 1''' || Friendly || 2 || 0 || 1 |- | November 19, 2014 || Panama City || {{Flagicon|PAN}} Panama – Canada {{Flagicon|CAN}} || '''0 – 0''' || Friendly || 3 || 1 || 0 |- | May 31, 2015 || Washington D.C. || {{Flagicon|HON}} Honduras – El Salvador {{Flagicon|SLV}} || '''2 – 0''' || Friendly || 4 || 0 || 1 |- | September 8, 2015 || Harrison || {{Flagicon|COL}} Colombia – Peru {{Flagicon|PER}} || '''1 – 1''' || Friendly || 5 || 0 || 0 |- | October 14, 2015 || Washington D.C. || {{Flagicon|CAN}} Canada – Ghana {{Flagicon|GHA}} || '''1 – 1''' || Friendly || 3 || 0 || 0 |}
== Personal life ==
Penso's wife, Tori, is also a professional referee. In 2020, she became the first woman to referee a Major League Soccer match in 20 years. She also refereed the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup final. They have three daughters.<ref>{{cite news |last=Hills |first=Drake |date=September 25, 2020 |title=How Tori Penso became the first woman in 20 years to referee an MLS game |url=https://www.tennessean.com/story/sports/nashvillesc/2020/09/25/tori-penso-female-mls-referee-sandy-hunt-nashville-sc-dc-united/3507723001/ |work=The Tennessean |access-date=September 27, 2020}}</ref>
== References == {{Reflist}}
== External links == * {{PRO referee|chris-penso}} ([https://web.archive.org/web/20131002083648/http://www.proreferees.com/roster-chris-penso.php archive]) * {{WorldReferee.com|chris_penso}}
{{Major League Soccer referees}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Penso, Chris}} Category:1982 births Category:Living people Category:American soccer referees Category:Major League Soccer referees Category:CONCACAF Champions Cup referees Category:North American Soccer League (2011–2017) referees Category:Place of birth missing (living people) Category:Sportspeople from Dover, Ohio Category:Football referees at the 2020 Summer Olympics
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