Referee appointed for UEFA Super Cup in Monaco

093 – Belgian official Frank De Bleeckere to handle FC Barcelona vs FC Shakhtar Donetsk

UEFA has appointed the match officials for the UEFA Super Cup match between the UEFA Champions League winners, FC Barcelona, and the last UEFA Cup winners, FC Shakhtar Donetsk, to be played on Friday 28 August at the Stade Louis II in Monaco, kicking-off at 20.45 CET.

Frank De Bleeckere of Belgium has been selected to officiate at the final and his team will be completed by Peter Hermans and Walter Vromans, who will operate as assistant referees, with Paul Allaerts acting as fourth official.

Frank De Bleeckere was born in Oudenaarde on 1 July 1966 and became an international referee in 1998. With over seventy international matches in his refereeing career, last season in the UEFA Champions League Frank De Bleeckere handled one third qualifying round match, three group stage matches and then, in the first knock-out round, the second leg between Liverpool FC and Real Madrid CF.

The match on Friday will be his fourth meeting with FC Barcelona in the UEFA Champions League. He was the referee when the Spanish team met Panathinaikos FC in Athens on 18 October 2005 in the group stage of the 2005/06 UEFA Champions League en route to their 2006 winning final in Paris, and Chelsea FC in London on 18 October 2006 in the group stage of the 2006/07 season. He was also the referee at Camp Nou on 11 December 2002 when they played Newcastle United FC in the second group stage of the 2002/03 UEFA Champions League.

This will be his third meeting with FC Shakhtar Donetsk. He was the referee when the Ukrainian team met Legia Warszawa in Donetsk on 9 August 2006 in the third qualifying round before their qualification in the group stage of the 2006/07 UEFA Champions League, and he was also the referee at Giuseppe Meazza on 24 November 2004 when they played AC Milan, in the group stage of the 2004/05 UEFA Champions League.