OLIVER TWIST
PREMIER LEAGUE referee Michael Oliver is one of the English game's most experienced officials.
And he'll be the man in the middle throughout Euro 2024 as one of the top refs in the game.
1
Who is Michael Oliver?
Born in Ashington, Northumberland, , on February 20, 1985, Michael Oliver began refereeing at the age of 14 after being introduced to it by his father.
By 2007 he had become the youngest referee to officiate at Wembley stadium when he whistled the Conference National play-off final.
Oliver continued to break records becoming the youngest-ever Football League referee and youngest Premier League fourth official.
In 2010, Oliver became the youngest ever Prem referee at the age of 25 years and 182 days old when he officiated Birmingham City’s game with Blackburn Rovers.
He is one of the most experienced referees in the Premier League having taken charge of 372 matches in the top flight.
He was used as an official in both Euro 2020 and the 2022 World Cup and has officiated over 50 Champions League and Europa League matches.
Oliver was also in charge for the 2018 FA Cup final between Chelsea and Manchester United - which was notable for the absence of Prince William who was attending the wedding of his brother Prince Harry to Meghan Markle.
He officiated again in the 2021 final in which Leicester defeated Chelsea.
Most read in Euro 2020
He has also taken charge of matches in the United Arab Emirates Pro League.
In 2023 he officiated the game between Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr and Al-Hilal for a reported £3,000.
Italy football legend Marcello Lippi sympathises for Gianluigi Buffon after being sent off in final ever Champions League match by Michael Oliver
In the 2023/2024 season, the referee came under huge scrutiny after failing to award Liverpool a penalty during the 1-1 draw with Man City at Anfield.
He made headlines again in April 2024 over a penalty decision during a London derby between Arsenal and Spurs.
In 2024, it was revealed he was one of the main referees at the Euros in Germany.
His assistants have been named as Stuart Burt and Dan Cook.
Full list of main referees at Euro 2024
- Michael Oliver (England)
- Anthony Taylor (England)
- Artur Soares Dias (Portugal)
- Jesus Gil Manzano (Spain)
- Marco Guida (Italy)
- Istvan Kovacs (Romania)
- Ivan Kruzliak (Slovakia)
- Danny Makkelie (Netherlands)
- Szymon Marciniak (Poland)
- Halil Umut Meler (Turkey)
- Glenn Nyberg (Sweden)
- Daniele Orsato (Italy)
- Sandro Schärer (Switzerland)
- Daniel Siebert (Germany)
- Clement Turpin (France)
- Slavko Vinčić (Slovenia)
- Felix Zwayer (Germany)
- François Letexier (France)
- Facundo Tello (Argentina)