EDMONTON — Calgary-born Drew Fischer’s story of how he became a soccer referee is a classic one.

Similarly to many other professional arbiters of the game, he wanted to be a striker.

"But I was a much better referee than I ever was a player," the 45-year-old said with a chuckle in an interview. "You'd be hard pressed to find referees who didn't play at some point."

He said he just couldn't get the footing right but in the years that followed found his calling as a referee.

In October, Fischer was voted by peers and media as Major League Soccer's referee of the year for the second year in a row. He is the first referee to earn consecutive honours since Alan Kelly, an Irish referee, in 2016.

He said he was 10 years old when his parents signed him up for soccer. He also played baseball.

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