AFA weigh Ramírez, Rey Hilfer, Herrera and Falcón Pérez for Superclásico | OneFootball

With nine days to go until a new edition of Argentine football’s Superclásico, the fever is already starting to be felt on both sides, and speculation has begun over who could be the referee in charge of the match.

Although there is no official confirmation, the AFA Referees Committee is weighing four options for the official who will oversee the clash between Boca and River: Darío Herrera, Nicolás Ramírez, Yael Falcón Pérez, and Leandro Rey Hilfer.

As expected, the Argentine referees who were confirmed this week to travel to the 2026 World Cup are part of this select list, with the exception of Facundo Tello, who suffered an injury to his right knee that forced him to leave the World Cup playoff between Jamaica and the Democratic Republic of the Congo in tears.

Herrera, who will also travel to the World Cup, has vast experience: since his debut in 2013, he has officiated 536 matches, 42 involving Boca, 34 involving River, and six between the two, the most famous being the remembered pepper spray clash in 2015. His record favors the Xeneize, who won three times, while the Núñez side won only once. The other two ended in draws.

Meanwhile, Falcón Pérez, another one heading to the World Cup, has a bit less experience: he has taken charge of 21 River matches and 18 involving the team from La Ribera, only two of which were head-to-head meetings, both in 2024 — one draw and one blue-and-gold victory in the quarterfinals of that year’s Torneo Apertura.

With less of a track record but very highly regarded, Nicolás Ramírez also appears as an option. He has officiated nine local football finals over the last three years and three editions of the Superclásico, with two wins for the Banda and one for the Xeneize in the most recent meeting between the two, in November of last year. Ramírez will not travel to the United States, probably because of his not-so-extensive career.

Meanwhile, the dark horse to take charge of the match could be Rey Hilfer, who will not be on the field this round and will serve as VAR referee. On Tuesday he officiated in the Copa Sudamericana and is in optimal physical condition. It is worth noting that he has never officiated a Superclásico, so neither team would be able to veto him on solid grounds.

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