He’s not quite a novice but he’s a referee accustomed to the shadows who will be on the whistle for the Champions Trophy, this Thursday between PSG and OM in Kuwait City. The LFP has indeed chosen Thomas Léonard (44 years old), who will therefore referee his first Champions Trophy and his first clasico.
Accustomed to slightly less upscale matches, Thomas Léonard, who is not an international referee, has been on the whistle for OM 10 times in his career, 8 times for PSG. The last time he refereed the Rouges et Bleus was on September 27, during the home victory against AJ Auxerre (2-0).
In cups, he is also rather used to lower stakes matches. He had never refereed beyond the 1/8 finals of the late Coupe de la Ligue, and has 35 Coupe de France matches to his credit, including only two 1/8 finals and one 1/4 final.
8th best referee in France in 2024-2025
Thomas Léonard, however, remains a sure value in arbitration in France. Active in Ligue 1 since 2017, he has to date refereed 146 matches in the elite of French football, for 116 in Ligue 2 and 65 in National. Last season, he placed 8th (out of 19) in the ranking of federal referees 1 published by the LFP.
Thursday, Thomas Léonard will be assisted by the touchline referees Huseyin Ocak and Ludovic Reyes. Guillaume Paradis will officiate as 4th referee. Bastien Dechepy and Julien Schmitt will be providing video assistance.
The last five clasicos had been refereed by Jérôme Brisard, Clément Turpin, François Letexier, Benoît Bastien and Willy Delajod.
