Kavanagh Promoted To UEFA Elite List of Referees

Chris Kavanagh has been promoted to the elite list of Uefa referees alongside Michael Oliver and Anthony Taylor.

It means England will have three referees in the top tier of European officials for the first time in eight years.

That last happened in the second half of the 2017-18 season when Oliver and Taylor were added to the elite list, joining Martin Atkinson.

It was shortlived as Atkinson retired from international matches at the end of that season at the age of 47. He did continue to referee in the Premier League for another four years.
It will raise speculation that Taylor, 47, could also step away at the end of this season.

In October, Taylor told BBC Sport that he was unsure how long he would continue refereeing, adding that he was “quite old for somebody to be operating at this level, running around after people a lot younger than you”.

Taylor said that the main focus was to have “two refereeing teams at the World Cup”.
Prior to 2018, 2013-14 was the previous time England had three elite officials: Atkinson, Mark Clattenburg and Howard Webb.

The elite list of referees take charge of tournament and Champions League games. The first list is for the Europa League and Conference League. The second list is for Conference League games and qualifying ties.

Germany continues to lead the way with four referees in the elite category. Kavanagh’s promotion finally puts England on a par with France, Italy and Spain, who all have three.