On Tuesday, November 4th, as part of Matchday 4 of the 2025-2026 Champions League group stage, Paris Saint-Germain (1st) will face Bayern Munich (2nd) at the Parc des Princes (kick-off at 9 pm, CET). The referee for the match has been chosen: Maurizio Mariani (43 years old). He has some Champions League experience, having officiated 12 matches.
The referee will be assisted by Stefano Alassio and Alberto Tegoni. The fourth official will be Matteo Marcenaro. Video assistant referees (VAR) will be Marco Di Bello and Aleandro Di Paolo.
Yellow cards –
With Mr. Mariani in charge, we can expect yellow cards to be shown quite frequently during the match. Indeed, while the French average per match is 3.53 yellow cards (standard deviation of 0.39), Tuesday’s referee has averaged 4.00 yellow cards per match throughout his Champions League career (Transfermarkt figures). That’s high; let’s hope he doesn’t neglect dialogue to avoid tensions. At the very least, the players should be protected.
Direct Red Cards –
The referee is much less strict when it comes to direct red cards. In fact, Mariani averages 0.08 red cards per match in his career, while the French average is 0.17 (standard deviation of 0.07). This suggests a more controlled approach, rather than indiscriminate punishment.
Second Yellow Cards –
Maurizio Mariani isn’t “afraid” of sending off a player after their first yellow card in a match, as he has given a second yellow to the same player an average of 0.08 times per game. This is lower than the French average of 0.09 (standard deviation of 0.03). With so many yellow cards initially, this reinforces the idea of issuing a second yellow to calm tempers. But he doesn’t hesitate to take action when necessary.
Penalties –
Regarding penalties, the man who will referee the final is well above average, awarding 0.50 penalties per game, while the Ligue 1 average is 0.34 (standard deviation of 0.08). There wasn’t one in his last Champions League match (Liverpool/Atlético Madrid in September), but the average expects there will be one this time (it’s obviously not that simple).
History –
Mariani has refereed PSG once: in the first leg of the quarter-final against Aston Villa last season (3-1, 1 yellow card). He has never officiated a Bayern Munich match in the Champions League.
