New referees’ chief sought with Mike Riley to step down next summer

Mike Riley will step down as English referees chief at the end of the coming season. Riley has been managing director of Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) for 13 years, but will bring his tenure to a close at the end of the 2022-23 campaign.

“I am proud of the contribution our match officials have made to the professional game and have enjoyed working with a such a dedicated, professional and high-quality group at all of the levels that PGMOL manages,” said Riley.

“As the elite referee development plan begins to take shape, now is the right time to plan for the future and allow the new leadership team to build on the strong foundations that we have in place. I look forward to working with the new team over the next season and giving them my support before I step down.”

The PGMOL will now look to appoint a chief refereeing officer to oversee development of officials, and a chief operating officer to manage organisational administration.

“On behalf of the Premier League, I would like to thank Mike for his valuable contribution and significant commitment to PGMOL over the last 13 years as well as his considerable service to the game as an elite referee for 20 years,” said the Premier League chief executive, Richard Masters.

“During his time at PGMOL, he has worked hard to deliver and develop high-quality match officials across the professional game and led on the implementation of VAR into the Premier League three seasons ago.”