It has become sort of an tradition on this site that I predict the referee for the final in both Europa League and Champions League. This year I am a bit late to the game, as Wolfgang Stark has been appointed to referee the Europa League final as this is written. However, I will take a stab at guessing who will be in charge of the game between Bayern München and Chelsea on May 19.
Last year’s referee was Hungarian Viktor Kassai, and his last match before the final was a match in the round of 16. Unusual decision by Uefa, as the referee for the final usually is one who has refereed a quarter-final. This year’s referees in the quarter-finals are listed below.
Felix Brych, Germany
Paolo Tagliavento, Italy
Carlos Velasco Carballo, Spain
Jonas Eriksson, Sweden
Björn Kuipers, Netherlands
Svein Oddvar Moen, Norway
Damir Skomina, Slovenia
Gianluca Rocchi, Italy
From this list we can exclude Felix Brych, as he is still considered the number 2 in Germany behind Stark who got the Europa League final. Brych also refereed one of the semi-finals, making him ineligible for the final. Paolo Tagliavento and Gianluca Rocchi are both rated behind Nicola Rizzoli by Uefa. Jonas Eriksson and Damir Skomina both had an Europa League semi-final, and although Lubos Michel went from a semi to a final in 2009, it is highly unlikely.
If we apply all these constraints, we are left with the following list from the Champions League quarter-finals:
Björn Kuipers, Netherlands
Carlos Velasco Carballo, Spain
Svein Oddvar Moen, Norway
Carlos Velasco Carballo refereed the Europa League final last year, and while it is not unprecedented to do the two finals in a row (Herbert Fandel did in 2006 and 2007) I see it being highly unlikely. Svein Oddvar Moen has had a great season in the Champions League, and is obviously highly rated by Uefa. He has only been refereeing matches in the Champions League for a couple of seasons and I believe Uefa would like someone more experienced. It is also clear, from not being selected to go to the Euro that he is rated behind Kuipers at the present moment.
From my deduction we are left with the Dutch referee Björn Kuipers. He would be a good choice, but I still have my doubts as to if Uefa would choose him for this year’s final. As the Euro is this year I would like to bring in the referees who are selected for the tournament, but did not referee a quarter-final in the Champions League.
Including these (eligible) referees increases the size of our candidate list to three.
Björn Kuipers, Netherlands
Nicola Rizzoli, Italy
Pedro Proença, Portugal
Rizzoli and Proença both refereed a match in the round of 16 of the Champions League and a quarter-final in Europa League. Kuipers made his first appearance in the Champions League in the 09/10 season, while Rizzoli refereed his first in the 08/09 season, with Proença getting his first match in 07/08. Although Proença got his first Champions League experience in 2007, Rizzoli is rated as Italy’s number one and has accumulated a total of 17 matches in the competition, most of the three candidates.
Rizzoli is clearly the most experienced of these three officials, and he was also selected to referee the Europa League final in 2010. Last time the Champions League final had an Italian referee was in 2000, with Stefano Braschi in charge. Pierluigi Collina refereed the final the year before.
I believe that Nicola Rizzoli would be an excellent choice for this year’s final.
Champions League 2012: Nicola Rizzoli
Who do you think will referee the final?
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