This Saturday, as part of the ninth matchday of Ligue 1 2025-2026, Paris Saint-Germain (2nd) will face Brest (12th) at the Stade Francis Le-Blé (kickoff at 5 p.m., CET). The referee for the match has been chosen: Jérémie Pignard (38). He is gaining experience in Ligue 1, as this is his first season and he has 16 matches under his belt.
The man with the whistle will be assisted by Florian Gonçalves and Ludovic Reyes. Brendan Roffet will serve as the fourth official. Video assistance will be provided by Hamid Guenaoui and Christian Guillard.
Yellow cards –
With Mr. Pignard in charge, we can expect yellow cards to be handed out very easily during the match. While the national average per match is 3.53 (standard deviation of 0.39), Saturday’s referee has given an average of 4.05 yellow cards per match throughout his Ligue 1 career (Transfermarkt figures). This is well above average. Players will have to behave themselves. But at least he should be “protected.” Let’s hope that doesn’t mean forgetting about dialogue.
Direct red cards –
The man with the whistle this Saturday is also strict when it comes to direct red cards, but slightly less so. Pignard averages 0.18 sendings-off per game in his career, while the national average per game is 0.17 (standard deviation of 0.07). So there’s no question of letting bad behavior slide.
Second yellow cards –
Jérémie Pignard tends to send off players after their first yellow card in Ligue 1 matches. The national average is 0.09 (standard deviation of 0.03), while his is 0.12. With lots of yellows and reds, this confirms his strictness.
Penalties –
Finally, when it comes to penalties, Saturday’s referee is even higher than average with 0.40 penalties called per game, while the Ligue 1 average is 0.34 (standard deviation of 0.08).
