2025/26 UEFA Champions League Matchday 6, referee assignments for the first set of games, to be played on 9 December 2025.
9 December 2025
16:30 CET - Astana (Astana Arena)
QAİRAT FK (KAZ) - OLYMBIAKÓS SFP (GRE)
Referee: Juan Martínez Munuera ESPAssistant Referee 1: Raúl Cabañero ESP
Assistant Referee 2: Iñigo Prieto ESP
Fourth Official: Javier Alberola Rojas ESP
Video Assistant Referee: Carlos Del Cerro Grande ESP
Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Javier Iglesias Villanueva ESP
UEFA Referee Observer:
UEFA Delegate: Armen Minasyan ARM
18:45 CET - Munich (Allianz Arena)
FC BAYERN MÜNCHEN (GER) - SPORTING CP (POR)
Referee: Nicholas Walsh SCO
Assistant Referee 1: Francis Connor SCO
Assistant Referee 2: Daniel McFarlane SCOFourth Official: Donald Robertson SCO
Video Assistant Referee: Andrew Dallas SCO
Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Rob Dieperink NED
UEFA Referee Observer:
UEFA Delegate: Peter Oskam NED
21:00 CET - Milan (Stadio Giuseppe Meazza)
FC INTERNAZIONALE MILANO (ITA) - LIVERPOOL FC (ENG)
Referee: Felix Zwayer GER
Assistant Referee 1: Robert Kempter GER
Assistant Referee 2: Christian Dietz GER
Fourth Official: Martin Petersen GER
Video Assistant Referee: Sören Storks GER
Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Christian Dingert GER
Video Assistant Referee: Sören Storks GER
Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Christian Dingert GER
UEFA Referee Observer:
UEFA Delegate: Tammo Beishuizen NED
21:00 CET - Barcelona (Camp Nou)
BARCELONA FC (ESP) - EINTRACHT FRANKFURT (GER)
Referee: Davide Massa ITA
Assistant Referee 1: Filippo Meli ITA
Assistant Referee 2: Stefano Alassio ITA
Fourth Official: Simone Sozza ITA
Video Assistant Referee: Marco Di Bello ITA
Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Aleandro Di Paolo ITA
UEFA Referee Observer:
UEFA Delegate: Kris Bellon BEL
21:00 CET - Bergamo (New Balance Arena)
ATALANTA FC (ITA) - CHELSEA FC (ENG)
Referee: Alejandro José Hernández Hernández ESP
Assistant Referee 1: José Naranjo ESPAssistant Referee 2: Diego Sánchez Rojo ESP
Fourth Official: Alejandro Muñiz Ruiz ESP
Video Assistant Referee: César Soto Grado ESP
Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Guillermo Cuadra Fernández ESP
UEFA Referee Observer:
UEFA Delegate: Artur Azaryan ARM
21:00 CET - London (Tottenham Hotspur Stadium)
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR FC (ENG) - SK SLAVIA PRAHA (CZE)
Referee: Benoît Bastien FRA
Assistant Referee 1: Hicham Zakrani FRA
Assistant Referee 2: Aurélien Berthomieu FRA
Fourth Official: Thomas Leonard FRA
Video Assistant Referee: Ivan Bebek CRO
Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Jérôme Brisard FRA
Assistant Referee 1: Hicham Zakrani FRA
Assistant Referee 2: Aurélien Berthomieu FRA
Fourth Official: Thomas Leonard FRA
Video Assistant Referee: Ivan Bebek CRO
Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Jérôme Brisard FRA
UEFA Referee Observer:
UEFA Delegate: Michael Kirchner GER
21:00 CET - Eindhoven (Philips Stadion)
PSV (NED) - CLUB ATLÉTICO DE MADRID (ESP)
Referee: Michael Oliver ENG
Assistant Referee 1: Stuart Burt ENG
Assistant Referee 2: James Mainwaring ENG
Fourth Official: Andrew Madley ENG
Video Assistant Referee: Michael Salisbury ENG
Video Assistant Referee: Michael Salisbury ENG
Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Stuart Attwell ENG
UEFA Referee Observer:
UEFA Delegate: Duncan Fraser SCO
21:00 CET - Monaco (Stade Louis II)
AS MONACO (FRA) - GALATASARAY (TUR)
Referee: Danny Makkelie NED
Assistant Referee 1: Hessel Steegstra NED
Assistant Referee 2: Jan de Vries NED
Fourth Official: Allard Lindhout NED
Video Assistant Referee: Bram Van Driessche BEL
Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Benjamin Brand GER
UEFA Referee Observer:
UEFA Delegate: Patrick Bonacker GER
21:00 CET - Brussels (Lotto Park)
ROYALE UNION SAINT-GILLOISE (BEL) - OLYMPIQUE DE MARSEILLE (FRA)
Referee: João Pinheiro PORAssistant Referee 1: Bruno Jesus POR
Assistant Referee 2: Luciano Maia POR
Fourth Official: Cláudio Pereira POR
Video Assistant Referee: Tiago Martins POR
Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Fábio Oliveira Melo POR
UEFA Referee Observer:
UEFA Delegate: Arturs Gaidels LVA
Atalanta vs Chelsea: Alejandro Hernandez
ReplyDeleteBarcelona vs Eintracht Frankfurt: Massa
Inter vs Liverpool: Zwayer
Kairat Almaty vs Olympiacos: Munuera
DeleteBayern Munchen vs Sporting: Walsh
AS Monaco vs Galatasaray: Makkelie
PSV vs Atletico Madrid: Oliver
Union SG vs Marseille: Pinheiro
Tottenham vs Slavia Praha: Bastien
Oliver get CL match almost every week, other elite referees only has two or less so far...
ReplyDeleteMichael Oliver is said to always perform exceptionally well in UEFA's English tests.
DeletePeter, do you know a reason for that?
DeleteUnfortunately not. Inexplicable to me.
DeleteSeven out of nine referees for Tuesday have already been appointed on MD5. Once again, an Italian referee gets one of the more important matches, which to me is an unexpected assignment. It’s been a long time since anyone has understood Rosetti’s approach to appointments - from matchday to matchday everything seems stranger and more unfair.
ReplyDeleteYes, looks like the number of trusted referees is rather small at the moment. But we have to wait for Wednesday appointments to make more conclusions. Certainly some expected names will remain without game on MD5/6.
DeleteActually, there are many Elite candidates without MD5 game left for Wednesday:
DeleteGil Manzano, Kovacs, Peljto, Turpin, Taylor, Schärer, Gözübüyük, Siebert (recovered after injury) - and possibly a return of Meler or Jovanovic.
Very narrow pool of trusted referees, always same names every matchday: that's Rosetti.
ReplyDeleteQuite good appointments for Walsh and Hernandez - not really expectable after they only got their first game on MD5.
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand not so good games for Pinheiro and Makkelie. For the latter, it unfortunately follows the trend, that he is not considered for the top games anymore.
Martinez probably earned this game in EL. However it is slightly surprising, because it looked like there might be a focus on de Burgos now.
Massa again with a top league duel. He is in a group with Vincic, Letexier and Zwayer, if we consider quality of appointments.
What can we glean from Nicholas Walsh's appointment? On the one hand, it's a top-level match for which one could have expected an Elite referee. On the other hand, he was recently personally observed by Roberto Rosetti in the Europa League. But what is the purpose of all this? Promotion to Elite referee status? Or is it about other areas, such as candidates for upcoming youth tournaments, etc.?
DeleteCorrection: In the Champions League on MD5.
DeleteThe biggest surprise for me is Walsh but also hernandez and pinheiro, oliver get important matches given the arrangement . I look forward appointment's of Wednesday
ReplyDeleteCan someone tell me why Horatiu Fesnic and Giorgi Kruashvili aren't given a chance?
ReplyDeleteThe same names always appear, but I must admit that Rosetti has become quite skilled at optimally selecting the right type of matches for certain referees, some of his choices absolutely reflect the current reputation of each official, at least, in my view. This is the case with the Spaniard, who has risen somewhat lately also due to other referees' unavailability. Basically, it's a not very useful and rather annoying trip to Kazakhstan, especially for someone coming from the opposite zone of Europe, but it's still Champions League, so acceptable. The choice makes sense. It's never a "sacrifice" to go and officiate a match in such a competition, saying the contrary would be a "crime".
ReplyDeleteAs for the Scottish, Walsh, note how the factor that justifies the appointment, despite this being a fairly decent match between a German side and a Portuguese one, which in some cases could be considered a good Champions League-level game, is simply the fact that the German side is playing at home. It would have been harder, perhaps possible but still harder, to see him appointed to the same match if it were in Lisbon. Bayern at home allows for greater flexibility in the assignments; that would apply also to some of their away matches, given the club's standing, but that would already raise the level somewhat. Here, in short, it's a calm home environment, and it will be the Portuguese side, playing away, who will have to produce something without the support (at least the main one) of their crowd.
As for Bastien, who has appeared only a few times in Champions League in recent months, Rosetti assigns him whenever he can. The measure of his use here is represented by the Czech team involved. It's a match viewed in a certain way, one that could easily be handled even by a Category 1 referee, according to committte, so they use the chance to give it to the "third French".
And Hernández… well, an Italian team is always tricky Champions League, but in this case we are dealing with a side currently struggling domestically, with modest expectations, trying to hold their own against Chelsea, a sort of Italian-English big match, but absolutely second-tier. And therefore here comes (you will understand my point of comparison) an Elite referee who is likewise somewhat second-tier.
For me, studying all these choices by committee is extremely interesting and instructive.
Let me add, we wait for tomorrow, but still no Turpin at all after the famous second YC in Slovenia (if not assigned in tomorrow's games we could be 100% sure committee didn't like the choice...). And that would be very sad.
I don't agree on Atalanta-Chelsea being second-tier. Two (at least) top 25 clubs in Europe and with Atalanta at home it should be relatively open. Furthermore they stand at 10 points each fighting for top 8.
DeleteFor Bayern-Sporting, I would not have been surprised to see a promotion candidate like Sozza there. However, Walsh seems a step too far IMO - unless he suddenly is considered for promotion.
12/01/2026
ReplyDeleteCONCACAF and CONMEBOL seminary before WC selection
Barton – SLV
Calderon – CRC
Dickerson – USA
Elfath – USA
Escobar – GUA
Fischer – CAN
García – MEX
Martínez – HON
Penso – USA
Ramos – MEX
Abatti – BRA
Benítez – PAR
Claus – BRA
Falcón Pérez – ARG
Garay – CHI
Herrera – ARG
Matonte – URU
Ortega – PER
Sampaio – BRA
Tejera – URU
Tello – ARG
Valenzuela – VEN
Candidate referees from Conmebol who didn't make the cut: Mendez (BOL), Maza (CHI), Ospina (COL), Aragón (ECU), Pérez (PER) & Alexis Herrera (VEN)
DeleteCantidate referees from Concacaf who didn't make the cut:
López (GUA), Nation (JAM), Ortiz (MEX), Herrera (CRC) and Williams (TRI)
Also Rojas from Colombia, removed from U20WC after a poor performance in Flamengo - Estudiantes de la Plata Libertadores tie.
DeleteNo Colombian is maybe the biggest surprise here.
DeleteIn CONMEBOL the host and women question is the most interesting. I assume Penso > Garcia, but you probably can't have three Americans and only one Mexican.
Fischer should be save anyway.
Otherwise it looks like 3 out of 4 for the non-host referees.
Big surprise appointments for both Hernandez and Walsh.. difficulty games for them..
ReplyDeleteOliver getting appointment after appointment and I think it’s safe to say he will get a european final.
Chefren, I have some questions for you.
ReplyDelete1. There are generally negative opinions about Rosetti on the forum. What's the reason?
2. We see that Makkelie was appointed to the Monaco-Galatasaray match. Could the poor performance of Sanchez Martinez, the referee of last week's Galatasaray-Union SG match, be the reason for the match being so well-refereed?
I think the first question is rather pointless, I mean, you are asking me, and I don't understand why! If there are negative opinions on Rosetti when reading the blog, the reasons are obviously in the comments themselves; I can't answer on behalf of others. I believe many people don't appreciate his way of doing things. But perhaps there are also others who appreciate him (though the latter kind of people doesn't write much on this blog).
DeleteAs for the second question, first of all, the claim that the performance wasn't perfect may be your opinion as well as mine, but we don't know the committee's view. Secondly, I believe that Rosetti is still keeping an eye on the Turkish team because he has seen good results (which, in my view, were hardly imaginable at the beginning of this league phase, given the Turkish situation). Therefore, he is protecting himself by appointing experienced Elite referees for all Galatasaray matches. For me, this is the key to interpreting the appointment of the Dutch referee for that match, perhaps even regardless of how the Spanish officiated the previous one involving Galatasaray.
Benjamin Brand is German
ReplyDeleteMassa appointment is from Rosetti perspective logical.
ReplyDeleteMassa is not a wc referee next year. When he makes a fault, its not so bad for him, because Rosetti will give him matches and he knows that he is not a candidate for WC.
Some WC referee candidates get lower profile matches, not to get in the picture.
Chefren, can we expect Walsh to be promoted? Given the fact hes been observed by Rosetti in Copenhagen and now this sort of match in Munich! Or could it be for future youth competitions and more tests for his future?
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion he won't be promoted now, because there were long periods where he wasn't appointed at all and we barely saw him. Recently he has been on a good path, compared to a few months ago, but I think he still needs time, six months or a year before we can say anything. So right now, if it were up to me, though of course this is only my opinion, I would give him more tests. The one in Munich on Tuesday is the first of them anyway. We will see…
DeleteAfter this week Munuera will have done 2 games in both the Champions League and Europa League in his career. Pretty weird stat....
ReplyDeleteHe's lucky that Kairat - Olympiacos is on Tuesday instead of Wednesday, the weather forecast says 0ºC for Tuesday evening but below -10ºC for Wednesday evening, from "unpleasant" to "freezing cold" like Jablonski last year in the Conference League Chelsea game.
DeleteAppointing Zwayer to a high-profile match is, at least on paper, somewhat surprising, given that every one of his previous Champions League outings this season featured a VAR overturn. That alone says enough about the RefCom’s guiding principle: avoid controversy at all costs. Beyond that, whether a referee scores a 7.9 or an 8.4 seems to matter very little. Their confidence in Zwayer remains intact.
ReplyDeleteA mitigating factor is that the match itself should, in principle, be a fair one. Inter are not among the most “problem-prone” Italian sides, and Liverpool would normally be expected to finish within the top 24. In that sense, the assignment does suit Zwayer — and Rosetti can, of course, monitor him closely.
Busy 24 hours for Michael Salisbury. Refereeing Man U vs Wolves Monday Night. Champions League VAR Tuesday.
ReplyDelete@ Chefren: How do you read the VAR assignments this season?
ReplyDeleteA few things stand out for me:
- In previous seasons we saw pretty fixed referee-VAR pairs. This year there are a lot more mixed teams with foreign VARs. It looks like the most trusted VARs are being used for the biggest matches — you can see that, for example, in Bastien’s appointment. They don’t want to use a top French VAR there, so he’s paired with Bebek instead.
- What also catched my eye is that both Marciniak and Makkelie have been matched with foreign VARs several times. The Marciniak–Kwiatkowski pairing can sometimes be seen as “compromised” (e.g. in the example with Napoli). Makkelie and Dieperink have been intentionally split up by UEFA — obviously not Makkelie’s choice, since they still worked together domestically. Perhaps, their coach–pupil dynamic isn’t ideal, which might explain why Makkelie is now often given a VAR who’s a bit more distant…? And I guess Rosetti trusts the Belgian VAR since he’s being assigned to Italian teams.
- Meanwhile, referees like Oliver, Zwayer, Turpin, and the Italian and Spanish crews still always work with VARs from their own country. So the question is: why are certain referees specifically given a foreign VAR? It’s clear that the traditional top-5 countries aren’t participating in this “musical-chairs” approach.
Oliver has had Dallas as his VAR numerous times
Delete