On Wednesday, October 14, during Matchday 2 of the 2026-2027 Champions League, Paris Saint-Germain (1st) will face Manchester City (8th) at the Etihad Stadium (kick-off at 9:00 PM, CET). The match official has been selected: Sven Jablonski (36). He brings limited but interesting Champions League experience, having officiated 19 matches in the competition.
The referee will be assisted by Eduard Beitinger and Christian Dietz. Tobias Reichel will serve as the fourth official, while Bastian Dankert and Sören Storks will handle video assistant referee (VAR) duties.
Yellow cards –
With Mr. Jablonski officiating, yellow cards are likely to be relatively rare during the match. While the average in French matches is 3.53 (standard deviation of 0.39), Wednesday’s referee has averaged 2.2 yellow cards per game over his Champions League career (according to Transfermarkt data). This is a low figure, though it should be viewed in the context of his limited number of matches.
Straight red cards –
The referee for Wednesday’s match is even less strict when it comes to straight red cards. Jablonski has issued zero straight red cards in the competition throughout his career, compared to an average of 0.17 per match in France (standard deviation of 0.07). Let’s hope this isn’t because he simply forgets to issue the sanctions. Second yellow cards –
Sandro Schärer does not typically send a player off after their first yellow card of the match; in the Champions League, he has issued a second booking to the same player at a rate of 0.2 times per match over his career (resulting in 1 red card). The French average stands at 0.09 (standard deviation of 0.03), so this is not particularly surprising given the low number of yellow cards and matches involved.
Penalties –
Regarding penalties, the official in charge of Tuesday’s match has a lower rate than is typical in France, awarding 0 penalties per match, whereas the Ligue 1 average is 0.34 (standard deviation of 0.08). Once again, the sample size of matches is limited.
History –
Jablonski has never officiated a PSG match.
He has officiated Manchester City once: a 3-1 defeat against Bodø/Glimt (2025-2026 league phase).
His Champions League matches since November 2025: Pafos vs. Villarreal (1-0), Ajax vs. Benfica (0-2), Club Brugge vs. Arsenal (0-3), Bodø/Glimt vs. Manchester City (3-1), and FC Barcelona vs. Feyenoord (5-1).
