The Two Teams Michael Oliver Is Prohibited from Officiating
Referee Michael Oliver has once again become the centre of controversy after backing his assistant’s call to disallow Virgil van Dijk’s goal for offside during Liverpool’s 3-0 defeat to Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium.
Andy Robertson was deemed to have obstructed Gianluigi Donnarumma’s view, with the Premier League explaining that the defender made “an obvious action directly in front of the goalkeeper.” However, the decision sparked outrage among fans, who argued that Robertson wasn’t blocking the keeper and had merely ducked to let the ball pass into the net.
For years, some Liverpool supporters have accused Oliver of bias against their club, pointing to incidents such as Jeremy Doku’s unpunished challenge on Alexis Mac Allister in the same fixture in 2024. Further fuelling that belief is the fact that Oliver has never sent off a Manchester City player. But few are aware that he’s actually barred from officiating matches involving two English teams.
The Two Clubs Michael Oliver Is Not Permitted to Referee
Born in Ashington, Northumberland, Oliver began refereeing at the age of 14 and quickly rose through the ranks, earning promotion to the National List of Referees in 2007. In August 2010, he became the youngest referee in Premier League history when he took charge of Birmingham vs Blackburn at just 25 years old.
Due to his North East roots, the 40-year-old is prohibited from officiating games involving Newcastle United. For the same reason, he is also not allowed to referee Sunderland matches. “We have to declare any club allegiances or family connections,” Oliver once explained, as quoted by the Express. “You can’t take charge of any match involving that team, and I can’t do Sunderland either, for obvious reasons.”
Former PGMOL chief Keith Hackett elaborated on the rule:
“At the start of every season, referees’ background information is reviewed. They submit details about who they support, their playing history, and where they live. That helps prevent potential conflicts of interest — for example, you wouldn’t assign a Sheffield-based referee to a Sheffield club.”
Following the Manchester City match, Oliver faced intense criticism on social media for his role in the disallowed goal, while Liverpool have since lodged a formal complaint with PGMOL expressing their “serious concerns” about the handling of the incident.
