There is no more important or eagerly anticipated football event than the UEFA Champions League Final. The 2023 edition’s championship game will be played at the Atatürk Stadium in Istanbul, Turkey.
On one side are Manchester City who are aiming for a historic treble crown this season. They have already won the Premier League trophy and the FA Cup, so this is their last chance for a major honor. Since the Sky Blues have never taken first place in this competition before, this may be an entirely new experience for them.
Meanwhile, Inter are an unexpected addition to the final match. The Nerazzurri benefited more from the draw than the opposing team did, although they were able to win several favorable matches. The Italians, who finished third in Serie A this season, have won three UCLs so far in the past.
Who will officiate Manchester City vs Inter?
Referee Szymon Marciniak
The 2023 UEFA Champions League final between Manchester City and Inter will be officiated by Szymon Marciniak of Poland. The UCL has seen him officiate eight times so far this season.
After acting as a fourth official in the 2018 Final, he will be taking the whistle for the first time this year. The 42-year-old also served as a referee for last year’s FIFA World Cup final in Qatar, which was played between Argentina and France.
After allegations surfaced that the referee had participated in a networking event hosted by a far-right politician, UEFA launched an investigation into the matter. Nonetheless, once Marciniak apologized for his involvement in the event linked to an extreme-right organization, he was allowed to continue with his duties as the referee for the Champions League final.
Marciniak will have countrymen Pawe Sokolnicki and Tomasz Listkiewicz working with him. The fourth member of the team is the Romanian Istvan Kovacs. Tomasz Kwiatkowski, also from Poland, will serve as the video assistant referee with fellow Pole Bartosz Frankowski and German official Marco Fritz.
