We know more about the crew who will be blowing the whistle at the France Rugby World Cup in 2023 thanks to the Rugby World Cup’s announcement of their panel of referees. Rugby supporters can book France Rugby World Cup Tickets on our website at exclusively discounted prices.

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There are some recognisable names in the lineup, including complete referees from the Gallagher Premiership. Wayne Barnes, Matthew Carley, Luke Pearce, and Karl Dixon are among those who are joining the group, but there are also a few newcomers.

Joy Neville from Ireland will join the officiating squad as a TMO for the first time in Rugby World Cup history, which is a welcome addition. Ben Whitehouse, a fellow TMO, enters the list of TMOs in the competition, continuing the legacy of his father, Nigel Whitehouse, who served as a TMO and referee at the 2003 Rugby World Cup.

In collaboration with Acme Whistles, we examine the main referees who will be in charge of the Rugby World Cup 2023 matches later this year.

Nika Amashukeli (Georgia)

The Georgian referee, who is already experienced, had completed more than 16 examinations by the time he was 29 years old. Nika, a member of the Six Nations officiating team, was in the spotlight during the Scotland vs. France match in Paris in February. On the international refereeing scene, Nika is one of the growing talents.

Nika, who was a flanker, switched to the centre. But after sustaining five concussions by the age of 20, breaking an ankle, and suffering a knee injury, he decided to stop playing. After picking up the whistle in 2013, he developed swiftly as a referee, making his test debut in 2015, barely two years later.

When he took command of Wales V. Canada in July 2021, he made history by becoming the initial Georgian referee to ever officiate a tier-one match.

Wayne Barnes (England)

Without question, Wayne Barnes is one of the top international officials in modern World Rugby. He has officiated games in the Rugby World Cup, Rugby Championship, Six Nations, and Pacific Nations Cup.

Wayne Barnes officiated his 100th international match as a referee on November 5, 2022, when he officiated a game between Wales and New Zealand in the Autumn Nation Series, tying Nigel Owens’ previous mark.

Wayne has started officiating matches in the English Premier League regularly and has also taken centre stage in competitions for the Heineken Cup and the European Cup. Wayne keeps setting records across the world and encouraging many people to become referees.

Nic Berry (Australia)

Nic is one of the very few former Super Rugby players who has officiated a Super Rugby match. He was chosen as one of the referees for the 2019 Rugby World Cup because he has emerged as a top official on the international stage. Nic started off as a referee before playing professionally. He stopped playing in 2012 as a result of an injury and numerous concussions.

After overseeing his first Super Rugby match in 2016, he was appointed to the World Rugby panel the following year and oversaw the match between Scotland and Samoa. In 2017, he officiated the Under 20s World Championships final.

His first top-level Test match, between Ireland and Argentina, took place in 2018. He also officiated in the Six Nations in 2019 and 2020. One of the twelve referees chosen for the 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan was Nic.

Andrew Brace (Ireland)

Andy Brace played for Belgium on the international level and now serves as a referee for the Irish Rugby Football Union. Throughout his career, he has officiated games both domestically and abroad, earning acclaim as one of the top referees in the world.  Andy, a 1988 hire by Munster Rugby, served as a community rugby officer.

He was initially invited to referee a game at a school tournament because they were low on officials. As a result of his father’s family, he was requested to play for the Belgium national team in the interim. In 2012, he assisted Belgium in winning the Emirates Cup of Nations. After a string of injuries, his international playing career came to an end.

John Lacey pushed Andy to referee, and he rapidly established himself as a regular on the home and European circuits. Andy quickly transitioned to his first Test Match in May 2017 between England and the Barbarians after supervising games at the under-20s Six Nations championship and the under-16s Rugby World Championship in 2016.

He was previously hired for the Rugby World Cup and Six Nations, and since then, he has become a fixture on the international Test Match scene. We recently had the chance to speak with Andy to learn more about how he became a referee.

Matthew Carley (England)

Matt officiates games regularly in the English Premiership and has officiated at the domestic, international, and European levels. He presently officiates Test Matches all over the world. Matt didn’t start using the whistle for a match between Aylesford 3rds and Maidstone 4ths until he was 16 years old.

Before officiating his first English Premiership match in 2013, Matt developed as a referee and began officiating local National One and Two-level Championship matches in 2010. Matt was the first official to officiate a professional game while wearing “RefCam” in that same year.

In 2015, Matt made his international debut. His first match as a World Rugby official was against the USA and Russia, and his first Tier 1 international was between Scotland and Georgia in 2016. Since then, Matt has participated in the Six Nations and other significant international competitions.

Karl Dickson (England)

Before officiating matches for clubs in the local and national leagues as well as for schools, clubs, junior sevens, and sevens tournaments, he made his refereeing debut at a school 7’s tournament in Reigate.

Karl advanced fast into the elite leagues in England, officiating two semi-final matches between Exeter and Newcastle in 2016 and Gloucester and Wasps in 2017. He presided over the Scotland vs. France match at Murrayfield in 2022 to make his Six Nations debut.

At the 2019 Rugby World Cup, Karl served as an assistant referee and made his Rugby World Cup debut in the middle.

Angus Gardner (Australia)

Angus officiated international matches in the largest stadiums on earth and was crowned world rugby referee of the Year in 2018. Angus began officiating games at the age of just 15 after suffering a back injury. A few of Angus’ accomplishments include his selection for the IRB Junior World Championship in 2012 and 2014.

As well as his selection as an assistant referee for the Rugby World Cup in 2015. Angus’s first top-tier Test match occurred in 2016, and since then, he has presided over matches in important competitions like the Six Nations and The Rugby Championship.

His finest accomplishment, though, was officiating matches at the Rugby World Cup in September 2019 between Wales and Uruguay, France and Argentina, and Japan and Ireland.

Jaco Peyper (South Africa)

Jaco made his Super Rugby debut in 2008 after quickly rising through the South African ranks. He was appointed as a referee for the Junior World Championship in Italy in 2011 and oversaw the match in which New Zealand defeated England.

After suffering severe injuries as a player, Jaco transitioned to a job as an official after having played, coached, and refereed. Since then, he has presided over 56 test matches and, as of this writing, more than 116 Super Rugby matches.

He is no stranger to the biggest games and largest occasions in the sport, having been a member of the official squad for both the 2015 and 2019 Rugby World Cups. Jaco officiated matches between Argentina and Tonga, Japan and Samoa, and England and France in the Rugby World Cup’s most recent edition in Japan.

He also presided over the match between Wales and France in the quarterfinals. To become RWC 2023 eye witness you can buy France Vs Italy Tickets from our online platform.

Ben O’Keeffe (New Zealand)

One of the top rugby union referees in New Zealand, Ben oversees local, Super Rugby, and Test Match games all around the world. Ben oversaw a match between Fiji and Tonga at the 2015 World Rugby Pacific Nations Cup, making his international debut. Ben presided over a historic game between Samoa and Georgia that ended in a tie at 19 all just one year later.

Ben presided over his first Six Nations match in the same year. Ben now frequently officiates matches in the Six Nations and Rugby Championship competitions. For more about Rugby World Cup Final Tickets.

He was the youngest official at the 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan when he presided over matches involving Scotland vs. Japan, France vs. the United States, and Australia vs. Fiji.

Luke Pearce (England)

Luke is a top-tier referee for the Rugby Football Union in England. Luke has officiated in the English Premiership at the European level and internationally on the largest platform. Luke is a fixture on the international rugby scene.

After playing rugby at the junior level with teams like Exeter Saracens Rugby Club, he decided to continue playing by becoming a referee. Luke initially blew the whistle for a match between Crediton 2nds and Nuneaton Abbott 3rds in September 2005. Luke advanced fast through the ranks and was appointed to the RFU National Panel in 2009 as the panel’s youngest referee.

By 2011, Luke had presided over his first Premiership game, Gloucester vs. Worcester, and had also joined the group for the World Seven Series. His first international assignment came in 2013, when he presided over a European Nations Cup match between Russia and Romania. Luke made his Six Nations debut the following year.

Luke officiated eight games in the 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan, three of which he refereed, including Wales vs. Georgia, South Africa vs. Canada, and New Zealand vs. Italy. He also served as an assistant referee in the other five matches.

Mathieu Raynal (France)

Mathieu, now referees at the top level of rugby and is a member of the World Rugby Referees Panel. This will be his second Rugby World Cup as a referee. Before becoming a referee, Mathieu participated in local youth sports and was a member of the French junior national championship-winning team.

When he joined a local referees society in 2001, his career as a referee officially began. In 2006, Mathieu received a promotion from officiating amateur rugby games to the second level of France’s professional rugby hierarchy. He officiated his first professional match between Grenoble and Toulon shortly after.

In 2008 at the European Nations Cup, Malta and the Netherlands played in Mathieu’s first Test Match. Scotland and Tonga played in Mathieu’s first Tier One match in 2012. The Bledisloe Cup between Australia and New Zealand in 2022 was overseen by Mathieu.

Mathieu has officiated 36 test matches as of this writing, including contests at the Six Nations and the 2019 RWC when he officiated South Africa vs. Namibia, Australia vs. Uruguay, and Scotland vs. Russia.

Paul Williams (New Zealand)

Paul began officiating at the youth level in 2011 while still competing as a club scrumhalf. In 2014, he was selected for New Zealand’s High-Performance Referee Squad. Since that time, Paul has quickly progressed up the ranks at the domestic and international levels, becoming a Super Rugby full-time referee and a regular on the international rugby stage.

In 2018, Paul advanced to the international level, taking control of England vs. Japan, Scotland vs. Argentina, and the second test involving Australia and Ireland in Melbourne.

Paul has thus far presided over 27 test matches, ranging from under-20 contests to top-tier international contests, including the 2022 Six Nations match involving England and Scotland and the 2019 RWC matchups between England and Tonga, Georgia and Fiji, and Argentina and the United States.

Additionally appearing at the France Rugby World Cup are:

Assistant Referees

Chris Busby (Ireland)

James Doleman (New Zealand)

Craig Evans (Wales)

Pierre Brousset (France)

Jordan Way (Australia)

Brett Cronan (Australia)

Tom Foley (England)

Brian MacNeice (Ireland)

Joy Neville (Ireland)

Christophe Ridley (England)

Ben Whitehouse (Wales)

Marius Jonker (South Africa)

Brendon Pickerill (New Zealand)

Andrea Piardi (Italy)

Television Match Officials (TMOs)

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