This Friday, as part of Matchday 28 of the 2025-2026 Ligue 1 season, Paris Saint-Germain (1st) will face Toulouse (9th) at the Parc des Princes (kick-off at 8:45 PM, CET). The referee for the match has been chosen: Eric Wattelier (39 years old). He has some experience in Ligue 1, as this is his first season and he has officiated 16 matches.
The referee will be assisted by Cédric Favre and Florian Conçalves. The fourth official will be Karim Abed. Video assistance will be provided by Mathieu Verice and Dominique Julien.
Yellow cards –
With Mr. Wattelier as referee, we can expect yellow cards to be issued rather liberally during the match. Indeed, while the national average per match is 3.53 yellow cards (standard deviation of 0.39), Friday’s referee has averaged 3.01 yellow cards per match throughout his Ligue 1 career (Transfermarkt figures). This is significantly lower than the average. As long as player safety is not compromised, all the better.
Direct Red Cards –
The referee on Friday was stricter with direct red cards. Wattelier has averaged 0.17 dismissals per match in his career, while the national average per match is 0.17 (standard deviation of 0.07). Therefore, there is no question of letting bad behavior go unpunished, nor of handing out cards indiscriminately.
Second Yellow Cards –
Eric Wattelier doesn’t usually send off a player after their first yellow card in a Ligue 1 match. The national average is 0.09 (standard deviation of 0.03), while his is 0.04. Given the very few yellow cards shown initially, this seems rather illogical.
Penalties –
Finally, regarding penalties, the referee on Friday was above average with 0.40 penalties awarded per match, while the Ligue 1 average is 0.34 (standard deviation of 0.08).
