German referee Bastian Dankert has built an outstanding international career as a Video Match Official. He had been involved in numerous major tournaments, including the FIFA World Cups in Russia 2018 and Qatar 2022, the FIFA Women’s World Cup France 2019, and the FIFA Club World Cup 2025. Over time, he has accumulated the highest number of VAR appointments in major FIFA and UEFA finals:
UEFA Euro 2020 Final
UEFA Conference League 2022 Final
UEFA Europa League 2023 Final
UEFA Super Cup 2024 Final
UEFA Europa League 2025 Final
FIFA Club World Cup 2025 Final
UEFA Champions League 2026 Final
FIFA World Cup 2026 Final
When VAR was introduced at the highest level, Italian Massimiliano Irrati was widely considered the top Video Match Official in the world. His most important appointments include:
FIFA World Cup 2018 Final
UEFA Champions League 2020 Final
FIFA World Cup 2022 Semi-final
UEFA Champions League 2022 Final (AVAR)
UEFA Champions League 2024 Final (SVAR)
