UEFA has appointed Somali referee Omar Artan to officiate the 2026 UEFA Super Cup, which will take place on August 12 in Salzburg.
Artan will officiate the match between the UEFA Champions League winners, Paris Saint-Germain, and the UEFA Europa League winners, Aston Villa FC.
In a statement issued on Thursday June11, UEFA said the decision following intensive discussions with its sister confederation, Confédération Africaine de Football (CAF).
“Referee announced for 2026 #SuperCup! We’re pleased to share that Somali referee Omar Artan will officiate the highly anticipated match between PSG and Aston Villa in Salzburg,” UEFA said.
“The decision to appoint Artan to officiate the UEFA Super Cup match has been made in the framework of the Memorandum of Understanding (“MoU”) recently signed between UEFA and CAF to encourage cooperation in many areas, including refereeing.”
UEFA Appoints Artan to Officiate PSG vs Aston Villa Match
It added that UEFA and CAF are united by a shared commitment to developing football at all levels and promoting the core values of unity, equality and non-discrimination.
UEFA president, Aleksander Čeferin, described Omar Artan as an excellent young but already experienced referee, who has proven himself at the highest competition level of the Confederation of African Football.
“Football is made to connect people, and UEFA wants to show its respect to Omar and his outstanding officiating skills, which had earned him such a prestigious nomination. I am grateful to my friend CAF President Patrice Motsepe for supporting enthusiastically our initiative,” he said.
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On his part, Dr Patrice Motsepe, CAF president, stated that Omar Artan has made Somalia and the entire people of the African Continent, extremely proud.
He added that Omar’s receipt of the CAF Men’s Referee of the Year Award 2025 and his appointment as a referee of the FIFA World Cup 2026 are a recognition of his world-class refereeing ability and the international respect that he enjoys.
“I am very thankful to my friend, Aleksander Čeferin for enabling Omar Artan to officiate the UEFA Super Cup 2026 match. This is a great honour for Omar Artan and for African referees and is also an excellent example of football, bringing together and uniting people from Africa and Europe and worldwide,” he added.
Also Read: Omar Artan: Story of Award-Winning Somali Referee Who Was Denied Entry Into the U.S
The 34-year-old Artan has been on the FIFA international list since 2018 and was named CAF Men’s Referee of the Year in 2025.
Among the most notable matches Artan has officiated is the second leg of the 2025/26 CAF Champions League final.
Artan was included by FIFA in the list of match officials for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, but he could not participate after being denied entry into the United States.
