Michael Oliver is an English football referee born in Ashington, Northumberland, England on 20 February 1985. He made his Premier League debut on 21 August 2010. He has been FIFA-listed since 2012. One of England's most experienced officials, Oliver has handled major domestic and UEFA fixtures. 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, Oliver has officiated 22 league matches, averaging 22.23 fouls, 0.05 penalties, 2.82 yellow cards and 0.09 red cards per game. Those numbers point to a more measured and lower-card profile, with a relatively restrained yellow-card average. 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.
Bournemouth
0–1
Liverpool
Manchester United
0–1
Manchester City
Real Madrid CF
2–1
FC Internazionale Milano
Hull City AFC
0–0
Aston Villa
Chelsea
4–3
Brighton
Bodø/Glimt
3–0
NEC Nijmegen
Brentford
3–0
Tottenham
Spain
2–1
Belgium
Canada
0–3
Morocco
Norway
1–4
France
Netherlands
5–1
Sweden
Tottenham
1–0
Everton
Liverpool
2–2
Manchester United
Leicester
0–2
Manchester City
Brentford
0–2
Nottingham Forest
Brighton
1–3
Crystal Palace
Manchester City
3–0
Nottingham Forest
Brentford
4–1
Leicester
Chelsea
1–1
Arsenal
Bournemouth
2–1
Manchester City
Brighton
2–2
Wolverhampton Wanderers FC
Ipswich
0–2
Everton
Bournemouth
3–1
Southampton
Manchester City
2–2
Arsenal
Liverpool
0–1
Nottingham Forest
West Ham
1–3
Manchester City
Aston Villa
0–2
Arsenal
Nottingham Forest
1–1
Bournemouth
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.
