Referee for Sporting v Rio Ave revealed, set for his top-flight debut | OneFootball

The Arbitration Council of the Portuguese Football Federation has already announced the appointments for Matchday 16 of Liga Portugal Betclic. For the clash between Sporting and Rio Ave, the choice fell on Carlos Macedo. This decision marks a unique moment in the referee’s career, as he will have the responsibility of officiating a Lions’ match for the first time.

Absolute debut at Alvalade

The 39-year-old referee will be assisted by Luís Costa and João Macedo. For the role of fourth official, the responsible body has appointed David Silva. As for VAR, Bruno Esteves will be in charge, with the support of Sílvia Domingos as AVAR.

This will be an absolute debut for Carlos Macedo in official matches of the main green and white team. Until now, the referee had never crossed paths with Rui Borges’ squad.

Interestingly, the referee has already had contact with the Leonine universe – which faces a major obstacle in signing a reinforcement – this season, but in the second tier. Carlos Macedo officiated the B team’s trip to Oliveirense’s ground in August. In that match, the young Lions ended up defeated, 1-0, with a goal conceded in first-half stoppage time.

The match is scheduled for next Sunday, December 28, 2025, with kick-off set for 8:30 pm. The stage for the action will be Estádio José Alvalade, where a good crowd is expected to attend this Liga Portugal Betclic fixture, broadcast on SportTV 2.

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