This Wednesday, in a rescheduled match from Matchday 29 of the 2025-2026 Ligue 1 season, Paris Saint-Germain (1st) will face Lens (2nd) at the Stade Bollaert (kick-off at 9 pm, broadcast on beIN SPORTS). The referee for the match has been chosen: Benoît Bastien (43 years old). He has significant experience in Ligue 1, having officiated 275 matches.
He will be assisted by Hicham Zakrani and Aurélien Berthomieu. The fourth official will be Thomas Leonard. Video assistance will be provided by Willy Delajod and Stéphane Bré.
Yellow cards –
With Mr. Bastien as referee, we can expect yellow cards to be issued relatively freely during the match. Indeed, while the national average per match is 3.53 (standard deviation of 0.39), Wednesday’s referee has averaged 3.91 yellow cards per match throughout his Ligue 1 career (Transfermarkt figures). This is significantly higher than the average. Let’s hope there will still be some dialogue, in addition to protecting the players.
Direct Red Cards –
The referee on Wednesday was less strict when it came to direct red cards. Bastien has an average of 0.18 red cards per match in his career, while the national average per match is 0.17 (standard deviation of 0.07). Therefore, there’s no question of letting bad behavior go unpunished, nor of handing out cards indiscriminately.
Second Yellow Cards –
Benoît Bastien doesn’t typically 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 0.08. With so many yellow cards initially, there’s a sense that the warning is meant to de-escalate the situation and avoid a more severe sanction.
Penalties –
Finally, regarding penalties, the referee on Wednesday was in line with the average, awarding 0.34 penalties per match, while the Ligue 1 average is 0.34 (standard deviation of 0.08).
