François Letexier
French football referee (born 1989)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
François Letexier[a] (born 23 April 1989) is a French football referee who officiates in Ligue 1. He has been a FIFA referee since 2017 and is ranked as a UEFA elite category referee. He is also the youngest referee to officiate a UEFA Euro final, as he took charge of the UEFA Euro 2024 final when he was 35 years old.
Early life and personal life
Refereeing career
In January 2016, Letexier began officiating in Ligue 1.[2] His first match as referee was on 23 January 2016 between Montpellier and Caen.[8] He was put on the FIFA referees list in 2017,[2] and he officiated his first senior international match the following year between Bulgaria and Bosnia and Herzegovina.[9] As a UEFA elite category referee, Letexier has officiated in every major club and international-level tournament,[2] including the 2019 UEFA Youth League final between Porto and Chelsea; the 2021 Coupe de France final between Monaco and Paris Saint-Germain;[10] and, as VAR, the 2021 UEFA Europa League final between Villarreal and Manchester United. Letexier also refereed three matches of the 2021 UEFA European Under-21 Championship (including the quarter-final between Portugal and Italy).[4]
On 20 August 2022, Letexier refereed a Ligue 2 match between Saint-Étienne and Le Havre, issuing two red cards to three Saint-Étienne players (Anthony Briançon, Mathieu Cafaro and Etienne Green) and a member of the Saint-Étienne staff, resulting in Saint-Étienne being relegated from Ligue 1.[11]
On 16 August 2023, he was the referee for the 2023 UEFA Super Cup between Manchester City and Sevilla.[12]
In May 2024, he officiated the Olympic intercontinental play-off between Indonesia and Guinea, qualifying the latter for the Olympics for the first time since 1968. He sent off Indonesia's then-coach Shin Tae-yong, who argued with Letexier's decision to award Guinea a second penalty.[13]
In April 2025, he refereed the second leg of the Champions League quarter-final between Real Madrid and Arsenal.[14] Next month, Letexier took charge of the final of the 2025 UAE President's Cup between Sharjah and Shabab Al Ahli.[citation needed]
Letexier was selected to officiate at the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup in the United States, where he took charge of a group stage match between Benfica and Bayern Munich, the Brazilian rivalry between Palmeiras and Botafogo in the round of 16 and a semifinal between Chelsea and Fluminense.[15]
On 12 January 2026, Letexier officiated his first match in Saudi Arabia when he took charge of the Riyadh derby between Al-Hilal and Al Nassr in the Saudi Pro League.[16]
On 11 May 2026, UEFA announced Letexier would officiate the 2026 UEFA Europa League final between SC Freiburg and Aston Villa on 20 May.[17]
Real Madrid matches
On 9 April 2024, he refereed the first leg of the UEFA Champions League quarterfinal knockout tie between Real Madrid and Manchester City at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium,[10] which finished 3–3.[18] Prior to the match, he officiated two other games involving Real Madrid.[19][20][21] He was appointed by UEFA in May 2024 as the fourth official for UEFA Champions League final between Borussia Dortmund and Real Madrid.[22] He also refereed the 2024 Coupe de France final between Lyon and Paris Saint-Germain.[23]
UEFA Euro 2024
Weeks after Letexier was selected to officiate at the Men's Olympic Games football tournament,[24] he was chosen as a referee for the UEFA Euro 2024 in Germany.[25][26] Letexier refereed three games,[27][28][29] as well as the final between England and Spain on 11 July,[30] making him the youngest referee to take charge of a UEFA Euro Final at the age of 35,[31] beating the previous record of Swedish official Anders Frisk, who was 37 years old when he refereed the UEFA Euro 2000 final.[32] 10 days after the Euro 2024 final, Letexier was assigned the opening round Group D pool match between Japan and Paraguay at the 2024 Summer Olympics.[33]
Ligue 1 matches
Letexier was the subject of scutiny following the Week 12 Ligue 1 match between Nice and Nantes on 19 October. In the 19th minute, he did not award a penalty to Nantes when the ball hit both of Mattia Viti's arms within the six-yard box.[2] Near the end of the match, he awarded a penalty to Nice when the ball hit Jean-Charles Castelletto's arm.[citation needed] Letexier issued seven yellow cards in total,[2] and showed red cards to Nantes' Kader Bamba and their goalkeeper Alban Lafont, who received a second yellow card after the match ended.[citation needed] Days later, after receiving death threats on social media, Letexier defended his decisions in an interview with L'Équipe.[34]
On 27 October 2024, Letexier was at the centre of attention during a Ligue 1 match between Marseille and Paris Saint-Germain when he sent off Marseille's Amine Harit for his foul on PSG's Marquinhos. After Letexier's decision to send Harit off caused backlash online, Letexer defended the decision, explaining that he felt that Harit's action put Marquinhos' physical integrity at risk.[35]
2026 FIFA World Cup
Michael Oliver was originally appointed to the match between Ivory Coast and Ecuador, but he pulled out due to a minor injury and was subsequently replaced by Letexier.[36][37] On 27 June, Letexier refereed another match, this time between Cape Verde and Saudi Arabia.[38]
Argentina vs Egypt match
On 7 July 2026, Letexier, assisted by Cyril Mugnier and Mehdi Rahmouni,[2] officiated the round of 16 match between Argentina and Egypt.[39] During the match, he overturned an Egyptian goal when a foul on Lisandro Martínez was committed.[40] His officiating decisions were strongly criticized by the Egyptian team following the match.[41] Egyptian left winger Mostafa Ziko, who had an apparent goal disallowed, claimed the refereeing was "not fair" and "rigged",[42] while Egyptian manager Hossam Hassan criticized Letexier, claiming he had displayed favoritism towards Argentina.[41] FIFA referee chief Pierluigi Collina defended the performancce of the match officials.[43] As a response, Letexier deactivated his Instagram account.[40]
Letexier and fellow French official Clément Turpin were sidelined from the remainder of the World Cup, though Jérôme Brisard remained as a VAR because France was in the semifinal, and FIFA removes officials whose countries reach the semifinals to avoid a conflict of interest.[44][45]
Notes
- French pronunciation: [fʁɑ̃swa lətɛksje]
