Pius Nsabe
On Saturday, May 31(tonight), the 2025 Champions League will crown its new champion at the Allianz Arena in Munich, Germany, and the man in charge of officiating the match between Paris Saint-Germain and Inter Milan will be Romanian Istvan Kovacs, one of the most experienced referees on the current European scene.
Traditionally, in an epic encounter like one that will surely go down on the night, all eyes are focused on the players, their bench and the pedigree of the coaches. Very little is usually said about the man at the center of the two sides– the referee.
Little wonder The Journal’s sports bench found it needful to look away a bit from the regular, and instead beam the light on the man who will be ‘adjudicating’ as both clubs file out against each other.
Who is Istvan Kovacs, the referee for the Champions League final?
Born in Carei, Romania, on September 16, 1984, Kovacs has built a solid track record that has led him to be part of UEFA’s elite group of referees.
He has been an international referee since 2010 and has more than a decade of experience officiating top-level matches at both club and international level. At 40 years of age, he has already been involved in multiple decisive stages, including European finals and World Cup qualifiers.
This will be his third continental final. In 2022, he was the referee for the final of the UEFA Conference League between Roma and Feyenoord, and in 2024 he refereed the final of the Europa League between Atalanta and Bayer Leverkusen.
In addition, he was fourth official in the 2022/23 Champions League final. His experience is not limited to finals: this season he has refereed seven Champions League matches, including the thrilling last-16 clash between Liverpool and PSG.
His career in refereeing
In total, Kovacs has refereed 29 Champions League matches, showing 126 yellow cards and only three red cards, which speaks of a firm but balanced style
In domestic and other international competitions, he has also shown authority: in 308 matches in the Romanian top flight, he has shown 1,687 yellow cards and 54 red cards.
His history in national team tournaments includes numerous UEFA youth qualifying phases and championships, as well as his participation in the Nations League and the recent Euro 2024. In addition, he was part of the refereeing team at the 2019 FIFA U-17 World Cup in Brazil, confirming his extensive experience in highly demanding contexts.
For the grand final in Munich, Kovacs will be joined by his compatriots Mihai Marica and Ferencz Tunyogi as assistants, while Portuguese Joao Pinheiro will be the fourth official. In the VAR booth will be Dennis Higler (Netherlands), Catalin Popa (Romania) and Paulus van Boekel (Netherlands).
The match kicks off at 8pm Nigerian time.
