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Terry Vaughn (referee)

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Terry Vaughn
Born(1973-04-01)April 1, 1973
DiedMay 4, 2023(2023-05-04) (aged 50)
NationalityAmerican
OccupationSoccer referee

Terry Vaughn (April 1, 1973 – May 4, 2023) was an American soccer referee.

Early life

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Terry Vaughn was born in Mount Vernon, Iowa, on April 1, 1973. He graduated from Iowa City West High School in 1992, where he was a wrestler and soccer player. He attended Coe College and decided to enter refereeing instead of continuing his career as a player.[1]

Career

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In 1998 Vaughn became a National referee for the United States Soccer Federation. He continued to hold a referee license until his retirement in 2012. During his career, Vaughn officiated 237 Major League Soccer matches.[2]

Vaughn was appointed to the FIFA panel in 2003 and oversaw matches in the 2009 and 2010 CONCACAF Champions League, the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup, and the 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup. Vaughn was also a member of the FIFA Panel for the United States Soccer Federation.[2]

Personal life

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Vaughn was diagnosed with Huntington's disease, an inherited neurodegenerative disease, at the age of 30 in 2003. He retired from refereeing in 2012 after his symptoms worsened.[3] He died on May 4, 2023.[1]

As a show of solidarity, PRO referees started wearing blue wristbands with "HD" (for Huntington's Disease) during May, Huntington's Disease Awareness Month. [4] This began a trend of referees from grassroots to PRO wearing the bands year - round. US Soccer's official uniform supplier began selling the wristbands with the proceeds going to Terry Vaughn's family to help offset medical costs.[5]

A page on GoFundMe was founded to help Terry and his family pay medical bills by a fellow referee.[6][3]

Legacy

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The Iowa Referee Academy has been renamed the Terry Vaughn Referee Academy in his honor.[6][3]

References

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  1. ^ a b Ford, Nathan (May 4, 2023). "Terry Vaughn, former FIFA and MLS referee from Eastern Iowa, dies after Huntington's Disease battle". The Gazette. Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  2. ^ a b "MLS mourns the passing of MLS and FIFA referee Terry Vaughn". MLSsoccer.com. May 4, 2023. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  3. ^ a b c Boehm, Terry (May 16, 2017). "Soccer community rallies behind Terry Vaughn's battle with Huntington's". MLSsoccer.com. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  4. ^ "Terry Vaughn: 1973-2023". Professional Referee Organization (PRO). May 4, 2023. Retrieved May 5, 2023.
  5. ^ "Official Sports International". Official Sports International. May 5, 2023. Retrieved May 5, 2023.
  6. ^ a b Keefer, Ryan (2016-09-13). "Former MLS referee diagnosed with Huntington's". Black And Red United. Retrieved 2022-05-03.