Him again: derby ref with bad memories gets São Paulo v Palmeiras | OneFootball

The CBF has appointed referees from Rio Grande do Sul for the clash between São Paulo and Palmeiras taking place this Saturday (12) at 6:30 p.m. (Brasília time), for the 27th round of the Brazilian Championship.

The main referee for the Choque-Rei will be Rafael Rodrigo Klein, with Rafael da Silva Alves and Michael Stanislau, all from Rio Grande do Sul, as on-field assistants at Palmeiras’ stadium. Rodrigo D’Alonso Ferreira, from Santa Catarina, will be in charge of the VAR booth.

As the CBF usually states, the selection of referees is defined by taking into account the stages of the competition, the importance and level of complexity of each match, and the referees’ qualifications, fitness, and technical performance.

This season, Klein has officiated only one Tricolor match, the recent 1-0 loss to Chapecoense in an away game in the 24th round of the Brasileirão.

However, in 2025, he was in charge of a particularly painful derby for São Paulo. In last year’s Brasileirão, Palmeiras hosted Tricolor at Arena Barueri in the 8th round of the competition. The match was level at 0-0 until the 49th minute of the second half, when Vitor Roque pounced on a rebound and scored for the rival side.

At the moment of the goal, the officiating crew even tried to ‘help’ Tricolor and called offside. However, after a VAR review, the striker’s position was confirmed as legal and the goal was awarded, giving Palmeiras a 1-0 win over Tricolor.

In 2026, Rafael Klein officiated the Supercopa final, won by Corinthians over Flamengo, and his most recent assignment was Athletic’s 5-0 thrashing of Vila Nova in Série B last week.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.