Michael Oliver
The independent Key Match Incidents panel has reviewed 84 of those matches and confirmed 9 errors in them. Everything below is a count: RefCard publishes errors, not an accuracy percentage, because no source publishes the denominator such a figure would need.
Season by season
| Season | Matches | Fouls/game | Yellows/game | Reds/game | Penalties | Confirmed errors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-27 | 5 | 23.0 | 3.00 | 0.20 | 1 | 0 |
| 2025-26 | 29 | 22.3 | 3.14 | 0.07 | 2 | 2 |
| 2024-25 | 26 | 23.1 | 4.65 | 0.19 | 3 | 1 |
| 2023-24 | 24 | 21.2 | 4.12 | 0.21 | 5 | 6 |
| 2022-23 | 30 | 21.0 | 2.90 | 0.03 | —‡ | — |
| 2021-22 | 26 | 21.2 | 2.81 | 0.27 | —‡ | — |
| 2020-21 | 28 | 22.4 | 2.96 | 0.11 | —‡ | — |
| 2019-20 | 32 | 21.0 | 3.28 | 0.00 | —‡ | — |
| 2018-19 | 30 | 21.3 | 2.77 | 0.23 | —‡ | — |
| 2017-18 | 30 | 22.4 | 3.23 | 0.17 | —‡ | — |
| 2016-17 | 33 | 21.6 | 3.33 | 0.09 | —‡ | — |
| 2015-16 | 26 | 20.5 | 3.42 | 0.19 | —‡ | — |
| 2014-15 | 28 | 22.9 | 3.32 | 0.18 | —‡ | — |
| 2013-14 | 27 | 23.2 | 3.52 | 0.11 | —‡ | — |
| 2012-13 | 23 | 21.4 | 2.74 | 0.04 | —‡ | — |
| 2011-12 | 21 | 21.1 | 2.48 | 0.19 | —‡ | — |
| 2010-11 | 16 | 26.4 | 3.50 | 0.12 | —‡ | — |
Confirmed errors are only available from 2023-24, when the Key Match Incidents panel began. Earlier seasons show the disciplinary record only. ‡ Penalties are recorded from 2023-24 onward; a dash means the figure was never collected for that season, not that none were given.
Cards and fouls
The career average is 3.25 yellow cards a game, against a league median of 3.67 for rated referees, on 22.0 fouls a game.
Added time
6.6 minutes of second-half added time on average, against a league median of 7.2. A model of each match's substitutions, cards and goals expects 7.0 from these fixtures — less than those stoppages predict.
Added time is captured from 2024-25 onward, over the 47 matches where we hold it — a shorter window than the figures above.
Club by club
Every club refereed at least three times, with that club's own record in those matches and the cards it took.
| Club | Matches | W–D–L | Yellows | Per game |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liverpool | 60 | 28–20–12 | 90 | 1.50 |
| Everton | 58 | 19–22–17 | 101 | 1.74 |
| Arsenal | 57 | 25–13–19 | 101 | 1.77 |
| Manchester City | 55 | 38–8–9 | 81 | 1.47 |
| Tottenham | 52 | 24–11–17 | 95 | 1.83 |
| Chelsea | 51 | 23–15–13 | 81 | 1.59 |
| Manchester United | 47 | 19–13–15 | 92 | 1.96 |
| West Ham | 43 | 10–10–23 | 67 | 1.56 |
| Aston Villa | 39 | 12–8–19 | 70 | 1.79 |
| Leicester | 37 | 19–5–13 | 51 | 1.38 |
| Crystal Palace | 34 | 11–4–19 | 46 | 1.35 |
| West Brom | 27 | 8–11–8 | 50 | 1.85 |
| Wolves | 26 | 6–6–14 | 49 | 1.88 |
| Southampton | 25 | 12–2–11 | 40 | 1.60 |
| Stoke | 23 | 8–7–8 | 41 | 1.78 |
| Swansea | 23 | 6–8–9 | 32 | 1.39 |
| Burnley | 22 | 3–4–15 | 31 | 1.41 |
| Fulham | 21 | 9–4–8 | 36 | 1.71 |
| Brighton | 21 | 6–7–8 | 26 | 1.24 |
| Bournemouth | 18 | 6–7–5 | 34 | 1.89 |
| Watford | 18 | 4–4–10 | 33 | 1.83 |
| Norwich | 14 | 3–3–8 | 24 | 1.71 |
| Leeds | 13 | 3–3–7 | 21 | 1.62 |
| Nottingham Forest | 13 | 5–2–6 | 24 | 1.85 |
| Brentford | 12 | 6–2–4 | 20 | 1.67 |
| Huddersfield | 8 | 2–2–4 | 5 | 0.62 |
| Wigan | 7 | 2–4–1 | 15 | 2.14 |
| Hull | 7 | 2–2–3 | 11 | 1.57 |
| Cardiff | 7 | 0–3–4 | 8 | 1.14 |
| Sheffield Utd | 6 | 1–1–4 | 10 | 1.67 |
| Bolton | 4 | 0–0–4 | 6 | 1.50 |
| QPR | 4 | 0–2–2 | 1 | 0.25 |
| Birmingham | 3 | 2–1–0 | 2 | 0.67 |
| Blackpool | 3 | 2–1–0 | 4 | 1.33 |
| Reading | 3 | 1–1–1 | 5 | 1.67 |
The W–D–L is the club's. Nothing here is evidence of bias — a difference this size is what chance looks like. See how that was measured.
Panel review
2026-27
5 of Michael Oliver’s decisions were reviewed by the panel this season — 5 upheld, none ruled incorrect.
At VAR, the same 5 decisions: 5 correct, 0 incorrect. The VAR layer is a separate official’s work and is never attributed to the referee.
1 further decision in these matches was led by an assistant referee. The League names the role and not the official, so it is counted for the match and not against a referee.
- Brentford v Tottenham · 03:10 — Penalty not awarded. Handball appeal against Gallagher (TOT)
The panel upheld (5-0). “The Referee's call of no penalty for a potential handball offence against Gallagher was supported. Gallagher's arm was in a justifiable position with the defender right in front of him.” - Brentford v Tottenham · 46:56 — Penalty not awarded. Challenge by Senesi (TOT) on Collins (BRE)
The panel upheld (5-0). “The panel unanimously supported the Referee's call of no penalty, understanding that there is a slight pull on Collins' shirt, but judging that Collins had initially instigated the contact with Senesi before going to ground.” - Brentford v Tottenham · 52:45 — Penalty not awarded. Handball appeal against van Hecke (TOT)
The panel upheld (5-0). “The Referee's call of no penalty for a potential handball offence against van Hecke was supported. His arms were tucked in and the ball hits from close proximity.” - Brentford v Tottenham · 52:49 — Penalty awarded. Challenge by Bentancur (TOT) on Schade (BRE)
The panel upheld (5-0). “The panel supported the Referee's call of a penalty for a foul by Bentancur. Contact was made into the back of Schade, reaching the threshold for a penalty kick.” - Chelsea v Brighton · 69:20 — DOGSO dismissal not given. Challenge by Dunk (BHA) on Pedro (CHE)
The panel upheld (5-0). “The panel supported the referee's call of no red card for a DOGSO offence. The play was wide, a long way from goal, with a covering defender in a central position - all mitigating against an obvious goal-scoring opportunity.”
Panel-confirmed errors
- 2025-26 · Wolves v Everton · 70' — VAR missed an on-field error
- 2025-26 · Everton v Manchester City — VAR missed an on-field error
- 2024-25 · Wolves v Arsenal · 43' — VAR missed an on-field error; A cynical trip to stop a counter-attack. The initial point of contact is high on the shin, but not forceful and with the side of the boot. This initial contact moves down quickly to the foot, meaning this foul should only result in a yellow card for a reckless challenge.
- 2023-24 · Manchester City v Fulham · 45' — VAR missed an on-field error
- 2023-24 · Everton v Burnley · 67' — VAR missed an on-field error