The iconic Olympic stadium in Amsterdam provided a fantastic backdrop to a gathering of officials and representatives from the GAMMA committees and member federations who assembled at a nearby hotel last weekend to review 2021 and plan for the future.

With the competition programme already concluded for the year, it was an ideal opportunity to assess the current landscape of officiating and to discuss GAMMA’s global development initiatives, which are currently undergoing a period of consultation.

The meetings were led by GAMMA President Alexander Engelhardt and Chairman of the Referee and Judges Committee Michael Wachter.

The objectives given to the GAMMA officials in attendance were clear: to review the competitions and to produce a list of recommendations that would subsequently be presented to the GAMMA Executive Board.

“It is vital that we give all of our stakeholders an opportunity to input into the future development plans for the organisation,” Engelhardt said.

“The feedback that we received over these last two days is extremely valuable and will be shared with the Executive Board in the coming weeks.”

Michael Wachter, a highly respected figure within the MMA community, has led the Referee and Judges Committee since 2018.

He echoed the President’s comments on the value of the meetings and the importance of bringing all the stakeholders together to share ideas.

“The meetings enabled us to reflect on areas of improvement for officiating and to create a plan to put measures in place to ensure officiating is world-class for the sport and all stakeholders involved,” Wachter said.

“The meetings have been interactive and productive, especially since we had to do video calls the last few months, and I look forward to implementing these new structures and processes to develop the standards of officiating for MMA.”

The next meeting of the GAMMA Executive Board will take place together with the GAMMA World Championships in Spring.