ANKARA
Turkey’s Cuneyt Cakir will referee the Juventus-Barcelona Champions League Final on June 6, becoming the first ever Turkish referee to officiate the league’s final.
UEFA released a statement on Monday evening that said that the 38-year-old was chosen as the referee of the final in Berlin.
This season, Cakir took charge of three UEFA Europa League fixtures and four in the UEFA Champions League, including the round of 16 first leg between Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea FC in France, the UEFA statement said.
“Cakir will be assisted by his countrymen Bahattin Duran and Tarik Ongun. The fourth official will be Jonas Eriksson from Sweden, and the two additional assistant referees, Huseyin Gocek and Barıs Simsek, are also from Turkey. A Turkish reserve assistant referee – Mustafa Emre Eyisoy – completes the refereeing team,” the statement added.
The highest tournament match that a Turkish referee appeared in was the then-European Champion Clubs’ Cup, where 40 years ago, Dogan Babacan officiated the semi-final.
