Football Australia Elite Refereeing Department and Referees Committee have finalised the Match Officials Panels for the 2025/26 A-Leagues seasons.
CLICK HERE to view the Match Officials Panels for the 2025/26 A-Leagues seasons.
Following an extensive selection process, the A-League Men's and Women's panels feature a mix of emerging refereeing talent and experienced officials, ensuring the continued delivery of one of the most exciting football competitions in the world.
Headlining the selections are the two referees of the year in Izzy Cooper (ALW) and Adam Kersey (ALM), as well as a number of debutants across each panel including Lucy Hungerford from NNSW Football as the most recent addition.
Upon announcing this season's Panels, Football Australia would like to acknowledge and thank the following members of the elite referee community who have retired from the A-Leagues' Match Officials Panel since last season.
Andre Giev (Football NSW), Ryan Gallagher (NNSW Football), Sarah Ho (Football QLD), Kelly Jones (Football NSW), Josh Manella (Football WA), Janelle Sammut (Football VIC), Jasmine Steger (Football VIC), David Walsh (Football QLD) Joanna Charaktis (Football VIC).
Football Australia would also like to thank several New Zealand officials who will return to their respective Member Association competitions and continue their officiating for potential selection on A-Leagues Panels into the future:
CK Kiwana-Waugh, Edward Cook, Gareth Sheehan, Beth Rattray & Heloise Welch
Quotes attributable to Head of Refereeing at Football Australia, Jon Moss:
"After a record-breaking year for the A-Leagues, there is no doubt the contribution of Australian officials to these results continues to see them highly regarded in world football.
"These panels have a strong balance of established and emerging officials. Our program will continue to evolve from last season, seeking to elevate our standards to be at world class levels and play our role in delivering a strong playing environment for what will be an even better season ahead for the A-Leagues."
Quotes attributable to General Manager Elite Refereeing, Alan Shortall:
"Having four debutants on the A-League Men's Grand Final, including our first female assistant referee in Emma Kocbek shows our ethos of rewarding performance across a season.
"Adam Kersey and Izzy Cooper officiating their respective A-League Grand Finals as debutant referees, shows in all aspects our want to develop and select world class and high-performance officials."
