AFC Bournemouth v West Ham United
Premier League, Vitality Stadium, Monday 16 December 2024, 8pm GMT
Referee: Chris Kavanagh
Assistants: Lee Betts and Richard West
Fourth Official: Matt Donohue
VAR: Michael Salisbury
Assistant VAR: Mat Wilkes
Chris Kavanagh has been confirmed as the man in the middle for Monday’s Premier League match at AFC Bournemouth.
Kavanagh is from Ashton-under-Lyne – the same town in Greater Manchester where Sir Geoff Hurst was born – and began his refereeing career at the age of 13.
Now 39, he worked his way up through the officiating ranks and was promoted to the National League in 2012. He started working in the English Football League in 2014 and was invited into the Select Group of Referees, and therefore the Premier League, in 2017, where he has refereed 149 games.
Kavanagh has overseen three cup finals, including last term’s Carabao Cup final between Chelsea and Liverpool and the 2021 EFL Championship Play-Off final between Brentford and Swansea City, while he also took charge of the UEFA Youth League showpiece between Benfica and Real Madrid in 2020.
He’s also refereed in the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League and UEFA Europa Conference League, and on the international scene in the recently-concluded UEFA Nations League.
He has refereed West Ham United on 22 previous occasions, the most recent of which was almost a year ago, in the 3-0 Premier League win at home to Wolverhampton Wanderers on 17 December 2023.
Kavanagh will be assisted by Lee Betts and Richard West at Vitality Stadium.
The pair run the line in the Premier League regularly, with Betts and West having officiated at two and three West Ham fixtures respectively last term.
Norwich-based Betts has been a Select Group and FIFA assistant referee since August 2016, and ran the line in the Hammers’ 3-0 defeat to Chelsea at London Stadium in September.
West has worked as an assistant referee in the Premier League since the 2008/09 season. He has worked seven Premier League outings this campaign, and was also appointed to the 2017 EFL Cup final between Manchester United and Southampton.
Monday’s fourth official is Matt Donohue. Donohue has refereed primarily across the EFL this season, taking charge of eleven Championship matches, and has also served as the fourth official in three other Premier League games this campaign.
Video Assistant Referee duties are set to be overseen by Michael Salisbury. Part of the Select Group of Referees since the 2022/23 season, Salisbury refereed three Irons games during the 2023/24 campaign, and most recently worked as a fourth official in our 5-2 home defeat to Arsenal in November.
