Chris Kavanagh is an English football referee born in Ashton-under-Lyne, Greater Manchester, England on 4 September 1985. He made his Premier League debut on 8 April 2017. He has been FIFA-listed since 2019. Kavanagh has been a Premier League official since 2017 and has also built a growing UEFA profile. He is part of the current Premier League officiating pool and is regularly relevant for pre-match analysis, appointment previews and VAR-focused discussion.
In the 2025/26 Premier League season, Kavanagh has officiated 21 league matches, averaging 22.71 fouls, 0.29 penalties, 3.86 yellow cards and 0.10 red cards per game. Those numbers point to a balanced but firm profile, with a solid middle ground in disciplinary terms. For The VAR Verdict, that statistical snapshot helps readers understand the disciplinary threshold and general tone he has shown this season.
Historical coverage is selective. We only show seasons and competitions where our sources provide enough verified referee data, so some older seasons may not be available.
Crystal Palace
2–3
Ipswich
Arsenal
2–1
Chelsea
Bournemouth
1–1
Everton
Kairat Almaty
0–3
Anderlecht
Sunderland AFC
2–1
Chelsea
Aston Villa
4–2
Liverpool
West Ham
0–1
Arsenal
Newcastle
3–1
Brighton
Manchester United
2–1
Brentford
Everton
1–2
Liverpool
Chelsea
0–3
Manchester City
Fulham
3–1
Burnley
Crystal Palace
2–3
Ipswich
Arsenal
2–1
Chelsea
Bournemouth
1–1
Everton
Kairat Almaty
0–3
Anderlecht
Sunderland AFC
2–1
Chelsea
Aston Villa
4–2
Liverpool
West Ham
0–1
Arsenal
Newcastle
3–1
Brighton
Manchester United
2–1
Brentford
Everton
1–2
Liverpool
Chelsea
0–3
Manchester City
Fulham
3–1
Burnley
Liverpool
1–1
Tottenham
Genk
1–0
SC Freiburg
Brighton
0–1
Arsenal
Manchester United
2–1
Crystal Palace
Ferencvárosi TC
2–0
Ludogorets Razgrad
Sunderland AFC
0–1
Liverpool
Brighton
1–1
Everton
Slavia Praha
2–4
FC Barcelona
Historical coverage is selective. Only seasons with sufficient verified referee data are shown; some competitions and older seasons are intentionally unavailable when coverage is incomplete.
VAR event counts describe provider-coded incidents. They do not represent The VAR Verdict's editorial judgment on whether a decision was correct or incorrect.
