Carlos Bernardes, dean of chair umpires: “The Wimbledon final refereed thanks to Nadal, Federer who didn’t seem real, rallies with a player before a match, and Bublik’s strange questions. How did I start? By climbing over the walls of a club…“

He alternates between padel and tennis. He lives in the Bergamo area ”for love.” He enjoys his well-deserved rest by mingling with spectators at major tournaments, such as the 2025 ATP Finals in Turin. He is Carlos Bernardes, dean of chair umpires, a distinguished and smiling Brazilian gentleman who has umpired three Slam finals, the Finals, the Olympic Games, and some 24 number ones in history.
Carlos, why would a guy from Brazil, where soccer dominates, become a tennis umpire?

“In Sao Caetano, my hometown, I had friends who played soccer at a tennis club. Except that…”

Except that?

“We used to climb over the club walls to play on weekends when it was closed. We used athletics hurdles as goals. Then the hurdles would stay on the tennis court and when it rained, they would sink into the clay. One day, the club president ran into us and said, ‘Can’t you come in like normal people?’ At first, I didn’t understand. ‘Come to the club like normal people, you’re young, I won’t charge you…’ He had recognized us… Anyway, that’s how I started playing tennis as a child. I was good at it. When I was 15, I lost my father, and tennis became a job: I was a coach at my club to bring money home. I was put on the competitive team, which at the time also included a scholarship to university: mechanical engineering.”

Ah, congratulations, Engineer Bernardes…

“No, I stopped in my third year. But I graduated in physical education.”

So, player and coach. But referee?

“You see, in Brazil, a newspaper, Gazeta Esportiva, published all the tennis tournament schedules. So if you wanted to know when and with whom you were going to play, you had to check that newspaper. One day I read an ad for a tournament in São Paulo that was looking for 122 line judges. Well, I showed up. It was the Fed Cup, in 1984. From then on, I was on the court refereeing for the next 40 years.”

Have you ever counted the countries you’ve visited?

“Of course! I’ve even put them on an app so I don’t forget them. I’ve been to more than 90 countries and about 350 cities. All of North and South America, all of Europe, most of Asia, five countries in Africa, and of course Oceania. I haven’t been to Antarctica, no.“

Can you explain the life of a tennis chair umpire?

”Well, you start at the lowest level, the Green Badge, which allows you to umpire local tournaments. Then, after a written and oral exam, you move on to the White Badge and Bronze, for small international tournaments. At that point, an exam is no longer enough: you also need to get good evaluations from tournament supervisors. Then you can get the Silver or Golden Badge, the highest level that allows you to referee Slams. For the higher levels, the exams include match simulations, player protests, and on-court arguments between players. You have to learn how to handle every situation.”

Got it. So let’s say you’ve got your Golden, you arrive at Roland Garros, for example, and…

“The evening before the day you’re refereeing, they give you the schedule. You have to arrive at the club at least an hour before your match. You arrive, report to management to say ‘I’m here’ and usually keep an eye on the scoreboard with all the matches. Because tennis isn’t like soccer: a match can last 5 hours or 10 minutes, and you have to be ready. When you realize that the previous match is about to end, you head to the relevant court, wait for the players, and start.“

And when it’s over?

”There are two options. Either you go back to the office and they give you the OK to go home, or they ask you to stay on standby because a colleague is feeling unwell. They may also ask you to go and assess other chair umpires, for example.“

Do you do any special training for concentration and self-control?

”No, I’d say it’s more of a natural gift. However, every referee has their own way of preparing for the tension. Some spend a lot of time at the club talking to colleagues, which can help to ease certain nerves. Others prefer to walk alone, for example.“

Do you know who refereed the 2006 Roland Garros final?

”Um… yes, me. The first South American chair umpire in a Slam final. You see, each Slam has specific procedures for selecting umpires. In that edition in Paris, there were many different nationalities in the quarterfinals, and of course, a chair umpire cannot be of the same nationality as one of the players. At the beginning of the second week, the director said to me, ‘You’re refereeing the final.’ At first, I thought it was a joke. There are usually regular umpires for the finals. ITF-affiliated umpires are given preference, but I was an ATP umpire, so in a sense they broke with tradition. Anyway, when I realized he was serious, I felt incredibly excited. Nadal and Federer on the court, it was wonderful. Among other things, that day I met Tiger Woods, who was at the stadium. I’m a big golf fan, so I got him to sign my ball. That year, I also did the US Open final between Federer and Roddick. But the most special final was Djokovic vs. Nadal at Wimbledon in 2011. I used to watch the Wimbledon finals on TV when I was a kid, so being on Centre Court was incredible. And to think that I wasn’t supposed to be there…”

Why not?

“Because of Nadal. Enric Molina was supposed to be the umpire, but he was Spanish… They told me on Monday of the second week, and I had to wait until the semifinals on Friday to find out whether I would be umpiring or not. Wimbledon was really special. On Saturday, you have to go to the Club to try on your tuxedo, because even the chair umpire is invited to the gala dinner with the winners. In short, it’s a very special protocol.“

The 2021 Australian Open was special for you…

”What a story! It’s like something out of a movie! We’re in the middle of Covid, we have to quarantine for 14 days without leaving our hotel room, we have guards at the door. So, I was doing some exercise on the stationary bike while talking to my daughter on the phone. At one point, I started sweating abnormally, so I didn’t say anything to her but ended the call. Something was wrong… I took a shower, but nothing changed. I was dripping with sweat. I called the front desk, explained that I wasn’t feeling well, and mentioned my symptoms. I hear the girl shouting ‘doctor’. At the time, in large hotels, there was always a doctor on call. She goes upstairs and calls an ambulance. Fortunately, the hotel is opposite the hospital. Within a few minutes, they tell me I’m having a heart attack and take me straight from my room to the operating room. ‘If you had waited another five minutes, you would have died, sir,’ the doctor tells me. After the operation, I wake up in my room, a nurse comes in and starts asking me general questions. I start answering, then, poof, darkness. I wake up to find all the cardiologists in my room. ‘Everything’s fine, Mr. Bernardes. Your heart had stopped, but… we brought you back, as you can see’. What a story!”

And how did it end in Bergamo?

“Ah, for love. In Athens in 2004, I met Francesca, an Italian girl who works in the world of tennis. Anyway, we got married and I’ve been living near Bergamo ever since. Italy is a wonderful place, I don’t understand why you always go on vacation abroad when you have such a beautiful country.”

Can you tell us the most curious episode of your career?

“I remember once, in the early days, I had to referee a match and one of the players, a German, was looking for a sparring partner to hit balls with. But nothing. So I said to him, ‘Come on, you and I will hit balls together.’ What a laugh. In those days we could do that, today it would be impossible. But the strangest thing happened to me at the 2011 US Open. I was umpiring Roddick-Ferrer, if I remember correctly, on Arthur Ashe. It was so hot that the paint on the court was literally melting. The players couldn’t stand up, they were slipping. What to do? The solution was to play on court 11, which was more shaded. Can you imagine going from the center court at Flushing Meadows to a court with a 200-seat grandstand? The best match? It’s hard to say. I remember one in particular, Becker against Ivanisevic in Split, Goran’s hometown. The stadium was packed, people everywhere, the atmosphere was electric. But it was wonderful to see that hard-fought, vibrant match with an audience that never went over the top. They were very well-behaved.“

The most elegant player you’ve umpired?

”Roger Federer. Watching him was unsettling because he made everything look so easy. On the court, he didn’t seem real.”

The most undisciplined?

“Believe me, no tennis player is really undisciplined. There are situations that cause you to change, that’s all. But in general, there is much more fair play today, perhaps because everyone knows they are always under the lens of a camera or a cell phone.”

The biggest argument of your career?

“I remember something that wouldn’t happen today. I was umpiring a tournament in Aruba, a doubles match. One of the players made an unspeakable comment to me. I got off my chair and disqualified him immediately. I told his opponents and left. As I was walking back, I ran into the supervisor, who asked me, ‘What are you doing here?’. So I told him what had happened, and he didn’t bat an eyelid. In reality, only the supervisor could disqualify that player. I had broken the rules, but he had been really offensive.“

The biggest mistake in a match?

”Ah, I’ve made many, for sure. Look, a referee who says he hasn’t made any is actually lying and knows he’s lying.“

At the 2024 ATP Finals, Sinner said in front of the crowd, ‘Let’s celebrate the great Carlos Bernardes in the last match of his career.’ How did that make you feel?

”It’s a nice memory, unexpected because that’s a moment for the players and by the players. Very nice, I must say. During that year, many people greeted me in a special way. Bublik was so nice: I was umpiring him at Indian Wells, he was losing, and at a change of ends he suddenly said to me, ‘Is this your last tournament or are you playing others this year?’. I reassured him, saying it was my last year working but not my last tournament. ‘Ah, then I’ll see you again.’ What a laugh.“

What differences do you see between Sinner and Alcaraz?

”Carlos is creative, Jannik is a machine. Sinner conveys incredible serenity on the court. And he always reacts well to mistakes. When he makes a mistake, he works to avoid repeating it. And if he makes a mistake, it’s because he tried something difficult, a winner. Alcaraz is unpredictable but pays the price for his creativity. Did you know that Federer won over 80% of the matches he played but just over 50% of the points? This means that phenomenal players like them know how much each point counts. Points in tennis are not all equal.”

What did Guga Kuerten mean to you?

“We Brazilians adored him. Not only because he won, but because he was and remained a simple person. Even after his victories, even after his three Roland Garros titles. Just think how much interest there was in Brazil around him, yet he never changed. Always cheerful and humble. That’s why Brazilians put Pelé, Senna, and Guga on the same level.“

And where will Joao Fonseca end up?

”Ah, I don’t know where. What I do know is that he has remarkable natural talent. But he has to stay true to himself, he mustn’t think he has to be number one. Do you know how many potential number ones I’ve seen who never made it? But Fonseca has an advantage: he has a solid family behind him, his parents are cultured, and that helps him keep his feet on the ground. Fonseca is an intelligent young man with intelligent parents, like Sinner and Alcaraz. Work to grow, then time will tell if he becomes number one.”