In this article, we will discuss How Much Champions League Referees Make.
UEFA Champions League is one of the biggest football club competitions in the world. Domestic league champions across Europe play for the crown of being the champions of the Europe League.
UEFA Champions League referees are majorly chosen to rely on their performance level from various countries, but what do the Champions League referee earnings look like per match and annually?
The stakes get more significant when the match is more significant, it’s not only the clubs, players, and management who aces up their A levels but also the referees who require to pull up their socks.
A recent study has revealed the UEFA Champions League referees’ salaries and per-match fees.
Similar to how UEFA appoints the best teams for the high-voltage occasion, they also prefer the best referees from the finest domestic leagues across Europe.
Thus, UEFA made a committee known as UEFA Elite Panel where the best referees are allotted for some large event scheduled in the Champions League.
How Much Champions League Referees Make?
There are a total of 4 referees in a Champions League match, one standing as the match official, 2 assistant referees, and a 4th umpire. The league doesn’t fail to dissatisfy any administrator with their paychecks, as all the referees are paid handsomely for their job.
They have organized their distribution of referees into five types of divisions and their essential wages vary accordingly.
Champions League referees are categorized into various tiers which rely on their experience.
Elite is a well-experienced referee who has been in the game for 5-7 years of experience in football league careers.
They are appointed for the big matches of the knockout round, semifinals, round of 16, and finals. The elite-class referees get paid around $7,000-$8,000 per match in the Champions League.
The list of the primary wage of UEFA referees is as follows.
| Category | Match Official | Assistant Referee | 4th Umpire |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elite | $10,000 | $3,000 | $1,000 |
| Elite Development | $6,500 | $2,000 | $800 |
| First | $3000 | $750 | N/A |
| Second | $2000 | $550 | N/A |
| Third | $1000 | $350 | N/A |
The Referees contained in the Elite panel are the highest-paid referees and must hold experience of a minimum of 5-6 years.
Highest Paid UEFA Champions League Referees
| Referee | Per Match Fees | Category | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| Damir Skomina | $10,000 | Elite Panel | Solvenia |
| Daniele Orsato | $10,000 | Elite Panel | Italy |
| Cüneyt Çakır | $10,000 | Elite Panel | Turkey |
| Björn Kuipers | $10,000 | Elite Panel | Netherlands |
| Dr. Felix Brych | $10,000 | Elite Panel | Germany |
| Clément Turpin | $10,000 | Elite Panel | France |
| Danny Makkelie | $8,000 | Elite Panel | Netherlands |
| Antonio Mateu Lahoz | $8,000 | Elite Panel | Spain |
| Gianluca Rocchi | $8,000 | Elite Panel | Italy |
| William Collum | $8,000 | Elite Panel | Scotland |
| Carlos Del Cerro Grande | $8,000 | Elite Panel | Ukraine |
| Benoît Bastien | $6,500 | Elite Panel | France |
| John Beaton | $3,000 | First | Scotland |
| Anatoliy Abdula | $2,000 | Second | Ukraine |
| Aliyar Aghayev | $2,000 | Second | Azerbaijan |
| Marius Avram | $2,000 | Second | Israel |
| Mohammed Al-Hakim | $1,000 | Third | Sweden |
| Sascha Amhof | $1,000 | Third | Switzerland |
UEFA shows 6 referees a whopping full of $10,000 per match which is more than Premier League referees.
Daniele Orsato carried the majority of cash back home as he worked for more matches and also the 2019/20 Champions League final match between Bayern Munich and PSG.
Thus, Orsato is the ultimate-paid referee in the Champions League according to a trusted source. The Champions League doesn’t spend every referee in the Elite a total of $10,000.
Rather, referees officiating just for group stage matches receive around $8,000 per match and the ones running in the knockout stage get around $10,000 per match.
How Much Does Assistant Referee Gets Paid Per Match in the Champions League?
In complement to these match fees, UEFA referees are also provided a €200 daily allowance for meals at the time of their travels containing a $272 (€200) one-time lump-sum for domestic travel expenditures like visas, hotels before an early flight, transport to the airport, and more.
However, that wage rate is just for the few Elite Centre referees. In reality, most of the men in charge of Europe’s most prestigious games, on which the fortunes of clubs turn, make more undersized than the moderate bi-monthly take-home pay of a white-collar professional.
In the case of fourth referees, they make much more undersized than this. And there are only very few Champions League match days each year.
Champions League Referees Per Match Fees (2020)
|
Official |
Category |
Per Match Fees |
Country |
|
Damir Skomina |
Elite Panel |
$10,000 |
Solvenia |
|
Cüneyt Çakır |
Elite Panel |
$10,000 |
Turkey |
|
Björn Kuipers |
Elite Panel |
$10,000 |
Netherlands |
|
Danny Makkelie |
Elite Panel |
$8,000 |
Netherlands |
|
Antonio Mateu Lahoz |
Elite Panel |
$8,000 |
Spain |
|
Dr. Felix Brych |
Elite Panel |
$10,000 |
Germany |
|
Daniele Orsato |
Elite Panel |
$8,000 |
Italy |
|
Gianluca Rocchi |
Elite Panel |
$8,000 |
Italy |
|
Clément Turpin |
Elite Panel |
$10,000 |
France |
|
William Collum |
Elite Panel |
$8,000 |
Scotland |
|
Carlos Del Cerro Grande |
Elite Panel |
$8,000 |
Ukraine |
|
Benoît Bastien |
Elite Panel |
$6,500 |
France |
|
John Beaton |
First |
$3,000 |
Scotland |
|
Anatoliy Abdula |
Second |
$2,000 |
Ukraine |
|
Aliyar Aghayev |
Second |
$2,000 |
Azerbaijan |
|
Marius Avram |
Second |
$2,000 |
Israel |
|
Mohammed Al-Hakim |
Third |
$1,000 |
Sweden |
|
Sascha Amhof |
Third |
$1,000 |
Switzerland |
This was for the How Much Champions League Referees Make?
FAQ
a. How much do champion league refs get paid?
The elite-class referees get paid around $7,000-$8,000 per match in the Champions League.
b. What is the highest-paid referee?
Orsato is the ultimate-paid referee in the Champions League according to a trusted source.
c. Is FIFA bigger than UEFA?
d. Who is the No 1 referee in football?
Daniele Orsatto (2020) and Felix Brych (2021), Poland’s referee Szymon Marciniak is crowned as the best referee of football.
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