Daniel Siebert: the German referee appointed for the Arsenal vs PSG Champions League final

Daniel Siebert will take charge of the Champions League final between Paris Saint-Germain and Arsenal at the Puskas Arena in Budapest on Saturday, 30 May, after being appointed by the Uefa Referees Committee.

The 42-year-old German official brings considerable experience to the role, having refereed nine Champions League matches in the current season alone across an 11-year career that began in 2015. He has also officiated at two European Championship tournaments — Uefa Euro 2020 and Uefa Euro 2024 — as well as last season’s Europa League semi-final between Manchester United and Athletic Bilbao.

Arsenal supporters will find Siebert a familiar face. He refereed the quarter-final first leg between Sporting Lisbon and Arsenal, which the Gunners won 1-0, and was also in charge of the semi-final second leg against Atletico Madrid — another 1-0 victory for Mikel Arteta’s side. Across both matches, Siebert has yet to show a yellow card to an Arsenal player, having brandished just three in total.

His one PSG assignment this season came in a goalless draw at Athletic Bilbao in December, where he issued four yellow cards. Overall, Siebert averages 4.44 yellow cards and 0.22 red cards per game in the Champions League this term, according to WhoScored — higher than his Bundesliga averages of 3.20 yellows and 0.13 reds per game from 15 league matches.

The appointment comes in the same week that Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta publicly praised the courage of match officials, following a high-profile VAR decision that ruled out Callum Wilson’s equaliser for West Ham in Arsenal’s most recent league fixture. Referee Chris Kavanagh reviewed 17 replays over four minutes and 17 seconds before disallowing the goal due to a foul by Pablo on David Raya.

“When I had to be critical, I have been,” Arteta said. “Today I have to congratulate them. You needed a lot of courage and bravery to stand out and give the opportunity to the referee to have a look at the action. When you see the picture, there is no question that it is a clear foul. They were very brave.”

The full officiating team for the final is as follows: assistants Jan Seidel and Rafael Foltyn (both Germany); fourth official Sandro Schärer (Switzerland); reserve assistant referee Guadalupe Porras Ayuso (Spain); VAR Bastian Dankert (Germany); assistant VAR Robert Schröder (Germany).