World Cup final referee Marciniak picked for Champions League final duty
Referee Szymon Marciniak shows a yellow card to Manchester City's Ruben Dias, center, during the Champions League semifinal second leg soccer match between Manchester City and Real Madrid at Etihad stadium in Manchester, England, Wednesday, May 17, 2023. Credit: AP/Jon Super
NYON, Switzerland — After refereeing the World Cup final in December, Szymon Marciniak of Poland was picked Monday to officiate the Champions League final between Manchester City and Inter Milan.
UEFA selected Marciniak to complete a rare feat on June 10 in Istanbul of refereeing the biggest finals in national team and European club soccer in the same season.
The 42-year-old Pole won praise for his handling of Argentina’s World Cup win over France in a penalty shootout in Doha, Qatar.
The first World Cup-Champions League final double was done by English referee Howard Webb in 2010.
Marciniak handled games with both Champions League finalists in the knockout rounds — Manchester City’s 4-0 win over Real Madrid in the semifinals and Inter Milan’s 0-0 draw at Porto in the round of 16.
UEFA also picked referees for its three other finals.
Anthony Taylor of England will referee the Europa League final between Sevilla and Roma on May 31 in Budapest, Hungary.
Referee Szymon Marciniak helps Manchester City's Jack Grealish get back on his feet after showing a yellow card to Real Madrid's Dani Carvajal during the Champions League semifinal second leg soccer match between Manchester City and Real Madrid at Etihad stadium in Manchester, England, Wednesday, May 17, 2023. Credit: AP/Jon Super
At age 47, Carlos del Cerro Grande of Spain gets to take charge of his first European final in the meeting between Fiorentina and West Ham in the Europa Conference League on June 7 in Prague.
Cheryl Foster of Wales will referee the Women’s Champions League final between Barcelona and Wolfsburg on June 3 in Eindhoven, Netherlands. For that game, all the match officials are women except for video review specialist Massimiliano Irrati of Italy.
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