WHO IS THE REFEREE FOR THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FINAL?

Let's hope we don't even notice the referee for this season's Champions League final

The last thing anyone wants in the Champions League final is a bad refereeing performance.

A little bit of VAR drama wouldn't go a miss... as long as it doesn't ruin the game.

So the important question who is refereeing the biggest game in the club football calendar this year?

Who is the refereeing the Champions League final?

Romanian referee Istvan Kovacs (Image credit: Getty Images)

Istvan Kovacs will be the man in the centre of the action on Saturday night.

The Romanian referee took charge of one game at Euro 2020, and officiated Manchester City's 4-3 Champions League semi-final win over Real Madrid at the Etihad in 2023.

(Image credit: Getty Images)

He also took charge of the inaugural Europa Conference League final between Roma and Feyenoord, which Roma won 1-0.

He was fourth official for the last time Inter Milan reached a Champions League final in 2023 and took charge of the Europa League final last year, which Atalanta won 3-0 against Bayer Leverkusen.

His assistant referees are Mihai Marica and Ferencz Tunyog who are both also Romanian. Fourth official is Joao Pinheiro.

The VAR referee is Dennis Higler from the Netherlands, with Romanian Catalin Popa and fellow Dutchman Pol van Boekel his assistants.

- Ewan Gennery

RED-CARD ESCAPE FOR ARSENAL BOSS MIKEL ARTETA SET TO LEAD TO LAW CHANGE

The International Football Association Board (IFAB) is set to change the law on coaches interfering with the ball in play after Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta wrongly escaped a red card in his side's Champions League defeat at Inter Milan.

Inter defender Matteo Darmian moved to play a ball which was going out for a throw-in, and Arteta picked it up before it had crossed the line. Referee Istvan Kovacs showed Arteta a yellow card, but by the Laws of the Game it should have been a red card.

This year, West Bromwich Albion manager Carlos Corberán and Kilmarnock boss Derek McInnes have both been sent off in similar circumstances, but after lengthy discussions at its Annual Business Meeting on Monday the IFAB recommended a change to the law.

While Kovacs' decision at San Siro was incorrect, the IFAB believes that when the sole intention of the coach is helping the game restart quickly -- as was the case with Arteta, Corberán and McInnes -- then a caution is a more suitable disciplinary outcome.

The change to the law, which would come in next summer, must be approved at the IFAB's AGM on March 1.

The only other law set to change covers the dropped ball. Currently, if a team has possession and a pass his the referee, they get the dropped ball regardless.

The proposal is that if the pass is wayward and obviously going to the other team, then the dropped ball should go to opposition.

- Dale Johnson, General Editor, ESPN FC