UEFA Champions League 2026/2027 – Group Stage (Matchday 3)

20 October 2026
Sabah FK – Borussia Dortmund
Referee: Javier Alberola Rojas ESP
Assistant Referee 1: Alfredo Rodríguez Moreno ESP
Assistant Referee 2: Carlos Álvarez Fernández ESP
Fourth Official: Víctor García Verdura ESP
VAR: César Soto Grado ESP
AVAR: Valentín Pizarro Gómez ESP
Referee Observer: Michael Riley ENG

Fenerbahce – Slavia Praha
Referee: Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea ESP
Assistant Referee 1: Iker De Francisco Grijalba ESP
Assistant Referee 2: Iván Massó Granado ESP
Fourth Official: Adrián Cordero Vega ESP
VAR: Guillermo Cuadra Fernández ESP
AVAR: Javier Iglesias Villanueva ESP
Referee Observer: Aleksandar Stavrev MKD

Paris St. Germain – FC Barcelona
Referee: Michael Oliver ENG
Assistant Referee 1: Stuart Burt ENG
Assistant Referee 2: James Mainwaring ENG
Fourth Official: Robert Jones ENG
VAR: Marco Di Bello ITA
AVAR: Daniele Chiffi ITA
Referee Observer: Rune Pedersen NOR

Liverpool FC – Villarreal CF
Referee: Szymon Marciniak POL
Assistant Referee 1: Tomasz Listkiewicz POL
Assistant Referee 2: Adam Kupsik POL
Fourth Official: Wojciech Myc POL
VAR: Piotr Lasyk POL
AVAR: Benjamin Brand GER
Referee Observer: Itchko Lozev BUL



Manchester City – AEK Athens

Referee: Willy Delajod FRA
Assistant Referee 1: Erwan Finjean FRA
Assistant Referee 2: Valentin Evrard FRA
Fourth Official: Bastien Dechepy FRA
VAR: Bram Van Driessche BEL

AVAR: Christian Dingert GER

Referee Observer: Carlos Velasco Carballo ESP



AS Roma – Slovan Bratislava

Referee: Sandro Schärer SUI

Assistant Referee 1: Stéphane De Almeida SUI
Assistant Referee 2: Jonas Erni SUI
Fourth Official: Anojen Kanagasingam SUI
VAR: Fedayi San SUI
AVAR: Tomasz Kwiatkowski POL

Referee Observer: Peter Sippel GER



FC Porto – PSV Eindhoven

Referee: Daniel Siebert GER

Assistant Referee 1: Jan Seidel GER

Assistant Referee 2: Rafael Foltyn GER

Fourth Official: Max Burda GER
VAR: Sören Storks GER
AVAR: Robert Schröder GER
Referee Observer: Alain Hamer LUX



SSC Napoli – Bodo Glimt

Referee: José Sánchez Martínez ESP

Assistant Referee 1: Raúl Cabañero Martínez ESP

Assistant Referee 2: Íñigo Prieto López ESP

Fourth Official: Juan Martínez Munuera ESP

VAR: Tiago Martins POR

AVAR: Carlos del Cerro Grande ESP

Referee Observer: Leslie Irvine NIR



VfB Stuttgart – Atletico de Madrid

Referee: Serdar Gözübüyük NED

Assistant Referee 1: Patrick Inia NED

Assistant Referee 2: Rogier Honig NED

Fourth Official: Jeroen Manschot NED

VAR: Dennis Higler NED

AVAR: Stuart Attwell ENG

Referee Observer: Martin Atkinson ENG



21 October 2026

LOSC Lille – Galatasaray

Referee: Rade Obrenovič SVN

Assistant Referee 1: Jure Praprotnik SVN

Assistant Referee 2: Matej Žunič SVN
Fourth Official: Martin Matoša SVN
VAR: Matej Jug SVN
AVAR: Dennis Higler NED
Referee Observer: Terje Hauge NOR



Como FC – Manchester United

Referee: Sven Jablonski GER

Assistant Referee 1: Eduard Beitinger GER

Assistant Referee 2: Robert Kempter GER

Fourth Official: Tobias Reichel GER

VAR: Christian Dingert GER

AVAR: Sören Storks GER

Referee Observer: Stéphane Lannoy FRA



Bayern Munchen – Arsenal FC

Referee: Davide Massa ITA

Assistant Referee 1: Filippo Meli ITA

Assistant Referee 2: Alessio Berti ITA

Fourth Official: Fabio Maresca ITA

VAR: Carlos Del Cerro Grande ESP

AVAR: Marco Di Bello ITA

Referee Observer: Karen Nalbandyan ARM



Real Madrid – RB Leipzig

Referee: Istvan Kovacs ROU
Assistant Referee 1: Mihai Marica ROU
Assistant Referee 2: Ferencz Tunyogi ROU
Fourth Official: Szabolcs Kovacs ROU
VAR: Tomasz Kwiatkowski POL

AVAR: Bram Van Driessche BEL

Referee Observer: Mattias Gestranius FIN



Inter Milano – Shakhtar Donetsk

Referee: Harm Osmers GER

Assistant Referee 1: Christian Gittelmann GER

Assistant Referee 2: Christian Dietz GER

Fourth Official: Florian Exner GER

VAR: Robert Schröder GER

AVAR: Benjamin Brand GER

Referee Observer: Emil Bozinovski MKD



Sporting CP – LASK Linz

Referee: Nicholas Walsh SCO

Assistant Referee 1: Francis Connor SCO
Assistant Referee 2: Daniel McFarlane SCO
Fourth Official: Donald Robertson SCO
VAR: Stuart Attwell ENG
AVAR: Piotr Lasyk POL

Referee Observer: Vladimir Šajn SVN



Aston Villa – Viking FK

Referee: Sebastian Gishamer AUT

Assistant Referee 1: Roland Riedel AUT

Assistant Referee 2: Santino Schreiner AUT
Fourth Official: Walter Altmann AUT
VAR: Alan Kijas AUT
AVAR: Ivan Bebek CRO

Referee Observer: Fredy Fautrel FRA



Club Brugge – RC Lens

Referee: Luis Godinho POR

Assistant Referee 1: Pedro Martins POR
Assistant Referee 2: Gonçalo Freire POR
Fourth Official: Miguel Nogueira POR
VAR: André Narciso POR
AVAR: Tiago Martins POR
Referee Observer: Tomasz Mikulski POL



Real Betis – Feyenoord Rotterdam

Referee: Simone Sozza ITA

Assistant Referee 1: Giovanni Baccini ITA

Assistant Referee 2: Davide Imperiale ITA

Fourth Official: Andrea Colombo ITA

VAR: Daniele Chiffi ITA

AVAR: Fedayi San SUI

Referee Observer: László Vagner HUN

Taylor takes charge of Turkish refereeing

 The Turkish Football Federation (TFF) has appointed Anthony Taylor as chairman of its Central Referees Committee (MHK), the body responsible for overseeing refereeing in Turkish football, as part of a series of administrative changes approved by its board of directors. Taylor, who currently serves as Elite Referee Director, will take over the committee's leadership following a review of vacant positions, the federation announced in a statement published on its official website.

The TFF also appointed Alan Snoddy, who currently works as an instructor responsible for women's referees, alongside Igor Radojicic and Baris Simsek as new members of the committee. The board also agreed to introduce specific disciplinary regulations covering statements made about referees before and after matches, although the announcement did not set out the penalties that would apply.

Source: Türkiye Today

Concacaf Central American Cup 2026 – Semi-finals (First Leg)

21-22 October 2026

CS Cartagines – Club Olimpia Deportivo

FC Motagua – LD Alajuelense

FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup 2026 – Group Stage (Matches 17-20)

21 October 2026

Canada – Norway
Referee: Miriama Bockova SVK
Assistant Referee 1: Tilde Hedberg SWE
Assistant Referee 2: Anita Vad HUN
Fourth Official: Karen Hernandez MEX
Reserve AR: Karla Flores MEX

Japan – France
Referee: Carly Shaw-MacLaren CAN
Assistant Referee 1: Melissa Snedden CAN
Assistant Referee 2: Stephanie Yee Sing JAM
Fourth Official: Caroline Lanssens BEL
Reserve AR: Linda Schmid SUI

Ghana – Brazil
Referee: Deily Gomez CRC
Assistant Referee 1: Iris Vail GUA
Assistant Referee 2: Mayra Mora MEX
Fourth Official: Vimarest Diaz DOM
Reserve AR: Santa Medina DOM

Venezuela – Zambia
Referee: Dong Fangyu CHN
Assistant Referee 1: Xie Lijun CHN
Assistant Referee 2: Bao Mengxao CHN
Fourth Official: Oh Hyeong-Jeong KOR 

Reserve AR: Suwida Wongkraisorn THA

CAF Futsal Africa Cup of Nations 2026

Morocco, 12-21 October 2026

Referees
1. Adel Chenaoua (ALG)
2. Tchitcha Cazanga (ANG)
3. Eric Elingui (CMR)
4. Ahmed El-Abbasi (EGY)
5. Ali Al-Ayat (LBY)
6. Mohammed Al-Sertawi (LBY)
7. Said El Haoud (MAR)
8. Khalid Hnich (MAR)
9. Mustapha Rguig (MAR)
10. John Ojeleye (NGA)
11. Sipho Mahlangu (RSA)
12. Elhadji Dieme (SEN)
13. Abdelakram El-Hentati (TUN)
14. Nabil Gueddich (TUN)

UEFA Champions League 2026/2027 – Group Stage (Matchday 3)

20 October 2026

Sabah FK – Borussia Dortmund
Referee: Javier Alberola Rojas ESP (photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Alfredo Rodríguez Moreno ESP
Assistant Referee 2: Carlos Álvarez Fernández ESP
Fourth Official: Víctor García Verdura ESP
VAR: César Soto Grado ESP
AVAR: Valentín Pizarro Gómez ESP
Referee Observer: Michael Riley ENG

Fenerbahce – Slavia Praha
Referee: Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea ESP
Assistant Referee 1: Iker De Francisco Grijalba ESP
Assistant Referee 2: Iván Massó Granado ESP
Fourth Official: Adrián Cordero Vega ESP
VAR: Guillermo Cuadra Fernández ESP
AVAR: Javier Iglesias Villanueva ESP
Referee Observer: Aleksandar Stavrev MKD

Paris St. Germain – FC Barcelona
Referee: Michael Oliver ENG
Assistant Referee 1: Stuart Burt ENG
Assistant Referee 2: James Mainwaring ENG
Fourth Official: Robert Jones ENG
VAR: Marco Di Bello ITA
AVAR: Daniele Chiffi ITA
Referee Observer: Rune Pedersen NOR

Liverpool FC – Villarreal CF
Referee: Szymon Marciniak POL
Assistant Referee 1: Tomasz Listkiewicz POL
Assistant Referee 2: Adam Kupsik POL
Fourth Official: Wojciech Myc POL
VAR: Piotr Lasyk POL
AVAR: Benjamin Brand GER
Referee Observer: Itchko Lozev BUL

Manchester City – AEK Athens
Referee: Willy Delajod FRA
Assistant Referee 1: Erwan Finjean FRA
Assistant Referee 2: Valentin Evrard FRA
Fourth Official: Bastien Dechepy FRA
VAR: Bram Van Driessche BEL
AVAR: Christian Dingert GER
Referee Observer: Carlos Velasco Carballo ESP

AS Roma – Slovan Bratislava
Referee: Sandro Schärer SUI
Assistant Referee 1: Stéphane De Almeida SUI
Assistant Referee 2: Jonas Erni SUI
Fourth Official: Anojen Kanagasingam SUI
VAR: Fedayi San SUI
AVAR: Tomasz Kwiatkowski POL
Referee Observer: Peter Sippel GER

FC Porto – PSV Eindhoven
Referee: Daniel Siebert GER
Assistant Referee 1: Jan Seidel GER
Assistant Referee 2: Rafael Foltyn GER
Fourth Official: Max Burda GER
VAR: Sören Storks GER
AVAR: Robert Schröder GER
Referee Observer: Alain Hamer LUX

SSC Napoli – Bodo Glimt
Referee: José Sánchez Martínez ESP
Assistant Referee 1: Raúl Cabañero Martínez ESP
Assistant Referee 2: Íñigo Prieto López ESP
Fourth Official: Juan Martínez Munuera ESP
VAR: Tiago Martins POR
AVAR: Carlos del Cerro Grande ESP
Referee Observer: Leslie Irvine NIR

VfB Stuttgart – Atletico de Madrid
Referee: Serdar Gözübüyük NED
Assistant Referee 1: Patrick Inia NED
Assistant Referee 2: Rogier Honig NED
Fourth Official: Jeroen Manschot NED
VAR: Dennis Higler NED
AVAR: Stuart Attwell ENG 

Referee Observer: Martin Atkinson ENG

FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup 2026 – Group Stage (Matches 9-16)

19 October 2026

Kenya – China
Referee: Fabienne Michel GER (photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Amina Gutschi AUT
Assistant Referee 2: Anne Uersfeld GER
Fourth Official: Miriama Bockova SVK
Reserve AR: Tilde Hedberg SWE

Spain – Mexico

Referee: Paula Fernandez COL

Assistant Referee 1: Nataly Arteaga COL

Assistant Referee 2: Carolina Vicuna COL

Fourth Official: Vimarest Diaz DOM

Reserve AR: Santa Medina DOM

USA – Samoa
Referee: Zoulaikha Harmasse MAR
Assistant Referee 1: Sakina Alfa NIG
Assistant Referee 2: Ihassane Ennouajeli MAR
Fourth Official: Lara Lee AUS
Reserve AR: Nuannid Donjangreed THA

Australia – Chile
Referee: Josphine Wanjiru KEN
Assistant Referee 1: Nancy Kasitu ZAM
Assistant Referee 2: Tabara Mbodji SEN
Fourth Official: Natalie Simon USA
Reserve AR: Kali Smith USA

20 October 2026
Argentina – New Zealand
Referee: Natalie Simon USA
Assistant Referee 1: Katarzyna Wasiak USA
Assistant Referee 2: Kali Smith USA
Fourth Official: Carly Shaw-MacLaren CAN
Reserve AR: Melissa Snedden CAN

Morocco – Germany
Referee: Lara Lee AUS
Assistant Referee 1: Nuannid Donjangreed THA
Assistant Referee 2: Nicoleta Bria ENG
Fourth Official: Dong Fangyu CHN
Reserve AR: Xie Lijun CHN

Korea DPR – Poland
Referee: Emanuela Rusta ALB
Assistant Referee 1: Ivona Pejić CRO
Assistant Referee 2: Marilena Nan ROU
Fourth Official: Vimarest Diaz DOM
Reserve AR: Melissa Nicholas TRI

Nigeria – Puerto Rico
Referee: Adriana Alvarez ARG
Assistant Referee 1: Daiana Milone ARG
Assistant Referee 2: Maria Bevilacqua ARG
Fourth Official: Karen Hernandez MEX
Reserve AR: Mayra Mora MEX

UEFA Youth League 2026/2027 – Group Stage (Matchday 3)

20 October 2026

Paris St. Germain – FC Barcelona
Referee: Oğuzhan Çakir TUR (photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Furkan Ürün TUR
Assistant Referee 2: Anıl Usta TUR
Fourth Official: Gabriel Henry FRA
Referee Observer: Rune Pedersen NOR

FC Porto – PSV Eindhoven
Referee: Thomas Owen WAL
Assistant Referee 1: Lewiss Edwards WAL
Assistant Referee 2: Johnathon Bryant WAL
Fourth Official: Flávio Jesus POR
Referee Observer: Alain Hamer LUX

Fenerbahce – Slavia Praha
Referee: Joakim Sars SWE
Assistant Referee 1: Simon Kristensson SWE
Assistant Referee 2: Max Wilde SWE
Fourth Official: Melih Aldemir TUR
Referee Observer: Murat Ilgaz TUR

Sabah FK – Borussia Dortmund
Referee: Giorgi Avazashvili GEO
Assistant Referee 1: Giorgi Gogokhia GEO
Assistant Referee 2: Gocha Taruashvili GEO
Fourth Official: Cavid Calilov AZE
Referee Observer: Halis Özkahya TUR

AS Roma – Slovan Bratislava
Referee: Robin Hensgens NED
Assistant Referee 1: Stefan de Groot NED
Assistant Referee 2: Marco Ribbink NED
Fourth Official: Francesco Fourneau ITA
Referee Observer: Stefan Johannesson SWE

SSC Napoli – Bodo Glimt
Referee: Olatz Rivera Olmedo ESP
Assistant Referee 1: Iragartze Fernández Esesúmaga ESP
Assistant Referee 2: Eliana Fernández González ESP
Fourth Official: Mario Perri ITA
Referee Observer: Leslie Irvine NIR

VfB Stuttgart – Atletico de Madrid
Referee: Mohammad Aslam NOR
Assistant Referee 1: Aleksander Jaeger NOR
Assistant Referee 2: Henrik Sunde NOR
Fourth Official: Marc Eckermann GER
Referee Observer: Dejan Jakimovski MKD

Liverpool FC – Villarreal CF
Referee: Dovydas Švėgžda LTU
Assistant Referee 1: Benas Kikutis LTU
Assistant Referee 2: Vytenis Kazlauskas LTU
Fourth Official: Scott Jackson ENG
Referee Observer: Kenneth Clark SCO

Manchester City – AEK Athens
Referee: Marek Radina CZE
Assistant Referee 1: Adam Beneš CZE
Assistant Referee 2: Pavel Pospíšil CZE
Fourth Official: John Baines ENG
Referee Observer: Robert Malek POL

21 October 2026
Como FC – Manchester United
Referee: Antoni Bandić BIH
Assistant Referee 1: Stefan Tešanović BIH
Assistant Referee 2: Josip Josip Čolić BIH
Fourth Official: Daniele Perenzoni ITA
Referee Observer: Gediminas Mažeika LTU

LOSC Lille – Galatasaray
Referee: Stefan Ebner AUT
Assistant Referee 1: Manuel Undesser AUT
Assistant Referee 2: Mario Diesenberger AUT
Fourth Official: Thomas Vincent FRA
Referee Observer: Jonathan Lardot BEL

Sporting CP – LASK Linz
Referee: Oliver Reitala FIN
Assistant Referee 1: Olli Jantunen FIN
Assistant Referee 2: Christian De Casseres FIN
Fourth Official: Gonçalo Rafael Santos Neves POR
Referee Observer: Zoltán Szarka HUN

Aston Villa – Viking FK
Referee: Florian Badstübner GER
Assistant Referee 1: Christof Günsch GER
Assistant Referee 2: Philipp Hüwe GER
Fourth Official: Richie Watkins ENG
Referee Observer: Claus Bo Larsen DEN

Club Brugge – RC Lens
Referee: Sven Wolfensberger SUI
Assistant Referee 1: Guillaume Maire SUI
Assistant Referee 2: Claudio Dos Santos SUI
Fourth Official: Jasper Vitse BEL
Referee Observer: Alexandre Boucaut BEL

Bayern Munchen – Arsenal FC
Referee: Bence Csonka HUN
Assistant Referee 1: Gergo Vigh-Tarsonyi HUN
Assistant Referee 2: Norbert Bornemissza HUN
Fourth Official: Wolfgang Haslberger GER
Referee Observer: Dagmar Damková CZE

Real Madrid – RB Leipzig
Referee: Mihály Káprály HUN
Assistant Referee 1: Bence Belicza HUN
Assistant Referee 2: Gergely Becséri HUN
Fourth Official: Anas Bakali Bentaleb ESP
Referee Observer: Stavros Mantalos GRE

Inter Milano – Shakhtar Donetsk
Referee: Damian Kos POL
Assistant Referee 1: Bartosz Heinig POL
Assistant Referee 2: Artur Zakrzewski POL
Fourth Official: Giovanni Ayroldi ITA
Referee Observer: Paolo Dondarini ITA

Real Betis – Feyenoord Rotterdam
Referee: Roman Jitari MDA
Assistant Referee 1: Vlad Lifciu MDA
Assistant Referee 2: Anatolie Basiul MDA
Fourth Official: Ignacio De Santisteban ESP
Referee Observer: Helmut Fleischer GER

Uruguay tests electronic cards

A referee raised a phone-sized electronic device to caution a player during a Uruguayan cup match this week, replacing the familiar flash of a yellow card with a digital screen in a ​trial aimed at modernising one of football's oldest rituals. Match official Eduardo Varela used the device ‌during Nacional's Copa Uruguay match against Rentistas on Thursday, testing a system designed to simplify referees' administrative work by recording disciplinary decisions digitally. "We are looking to bring technology to the only thing in football that is still analogue," said Mauro ​Sacco, director of REFe, the company behind the project, in an interview with Uruguayan radio El ​Espectador Deportes on Friday. The idea emerged more than three years ago when Sacco ⁠and fellow director Diego de la Pena watched a match in rainy conditions and considered how referees ​recorded cautions by hand before transferring the information to digital systems. The new device logs match incidents with timestamps, ​with developers aiming to streamline the submission of official records to the Uruguayan Football Association's COMET platform.

For Varela, the new tool was comfortable to use and its software responded quickly, although he acknowledged that it lacked the drama of ​the traditional gesture. "You lose a little of the magic of the quick card, but I think it ​is something that will help us a lot, especially with the administrative side," he said. The first real-world tests have also ‌exposed ⁠a problem: visibility. An earlier trial was abandoned because sunlight made the screen difficult to see, while spectators and television viewers struggled to distinguish some decisions during Thursday's match. "It's a project with room for improvement. It looked much better live than it did on TV. The challenge we face now is to improve ​it for the whole audience," ​De la Pena said. "The ⁠yellow card has to be yellow, the red card has to be red, and it has to be visible to people at the ground and on ​television." The developers are exploring changes, including LED lighting around the device, to make ​the colours ⁠clearer to spectators. Sacco said the brand had been registered and the hardware and software patented, with the developers based in China. The trial has drawn mixed reactions online. "We have seen all kinds of comments, positive and negative. We ⁠have even ​laughed at the memes," he said. "The important thing is that ​people are talking about it. Any innovation takes time." REFe hopes to refine the technology and eventually see it adopted by CONMEBOL and FIFA.

Source: Reuters

CONMEBOL Libertadores 2026 – Semi-finals (Second Leg)

21-22 October 2026

Palmeiras – Fluminense
Referee: Esteban Ostojich URU (photo)
Assistant Referee 1: Martin Soppi URU
Assistant Referee 2: Horacio Ferreiro URU
Fourth Official: Alberto Feres URU
VAR: Andres Cunha URU
AVAR: Hector Bergalo URU
SVAR: Christian Ferreyra URU
Referee Assessor: Manuel Bernal PAR
VAR Supervisor: Cesar Escano PER

Flamengo – Estudiantes
Referee: Gustavo Tejera URU
Assistant Referee 1: Nicolas Taran URU
Assistant Referee 2: Carlos Barreiro URU
Fourth Official: Jose Burgos URU
VAR: Antonio Garcia URU
AVAR: Santiago Fernandez URU
SVAR: Leodan Gonzalez URU
Referee Assessor: Roberto Silvera URU 

VAR Supervisor: Oswaldo Segura ECU