Matthew Kallio
Canadian basketball referee
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Matthew Leigh "Matt" Kallio (Edmonton, 26 September 1986) is a Canadian NBA and FIBA referee,[1][2] who has been a licensed FIBA official since 2012.[3]
In 2021–22, he made his NBA debut as a non-staff referee and officiated 10 regular-season NBA games.[1] He was promoted to full-time NBA officiating staff ahead of the 2022–23 season, becoming the first international official at the NBA level.[4]
Early life and education
Kallio was born in Edmonton, Alberta, with Finnish ancestry. He attended M.E. LaZerte High School before graduating from the University of Alberta in 2008.[1]
Officiating career
Canada (College / University)
Before entering the professional and international officiating ranks, Kallio accumulated extensive experience in Canadian collegiate basketball. He spent multiple years officiating in the Canadian Colleges Athletic Association (CCAA) and in U Sports.[citation needed]
FIBA
Kallio obtained his FIBA referee licence in 2012 and has served on FIBA tournaments since then.[3] He was assigned to the 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup in China.[5] He was also selected as one of the FIBA referees for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Basketball Tournament.[6]
In September 2025, he officiated the gold medal game of EuroBasket 2025 between Germany and Turkey in Riga.
NBA / WNBA / NBA G League
Kallio refereed in the NBA G League for multiple seasons and also worked in the WNBA prior to joining the NBA full-time.[1] During the 2021–22 NBA season he officiated as a non-staff official before being promoted to the NBA officiating staff for the 2022–23 season.[4]
Notable assignments
- First Canadian to officiate an NBA regular-season game as a referee in January 2021.[7]
- Assigned to the Tokyo 2020 Olympics (held in 2021).[6]
- Named on FIBA's Long List of referees and selected for Olympic assignments for Paris 2024, and officiated games in the Paris 2024 tournament.[8]
- Assigned as referee for the EuroBasket 2025, and also was the head referee in the EuroBasket 2025 semifinal game, Greece vs. Turkey (held in September 2025).
