All at the Macron NCEL would like to congratulate one of our former match officials who has been chosen as referee for next month's Emirates Cup Final at Wembley Stadium connected by EE.

Darren England heads a group of seven officials for the match between Chelsea and Manchester City that takes place on Saturday 16th May, 2026, kick-off 3pm.

It is Darren's first appointment to referee the FA Cup Final, having previously been the fourth official at the 2025 final and an assistant referee in 2015.

He was appointed as a Premier League referee in August 2020 after previously being an assistant referee in the top flight between 2012 and 2015. He was also added to FIFA’s list of international referees in 2022.

Four other officials who have been involved in matches in the NCEL are also part of the team with Akil Howson an assistant referee, Sam Barrott the fourth official, Steve Meredith the reserve assistant referee, and Nick Hopton an assistant VAR.

Congratulations to all of them on their appointment to the showpiece event.

The full list of Emirates FA Cup Final 2026 match officials is as follows:
Referee: Darren England (Sheffield & Hallamshire FA)
Assistant referees: Tim Wood (Gloucestershire FA) and Akil Howson (Leicestershire & Rutland FA)
Fourth official: Sam Barrott (West Riding FA)
Reserve assistant referee: Steve Meredith (Nottinghamshire FA)
Video assistant referee: Peter Bankes (Liverpool FA)
Assistant VAR: Nick Hopton (Derbyshire FA)