Assistant ref completes 500th Premier League game

An assistant referee has told of his pride at becoming one of only four officials to reach 500 Premier League games.

Stuart Burt, from Northampton, began refereeing in 1996 before joining the Football League as an assistant referee in 2006. He spent three years there before moving to the Premier League, where he is now in his 17th season.

The 41-year-old first ran the line in the Premier League at Fratton Park for Portsmouth v Bolton, and match number 500 was on 23 November at the Emirates Stadium for Arsenal v Tottenham.

"I'm only [the fourth official] to have ever achieved [500 games] in the country, so I feel very honoured to get that number," he said.

Three decades after he started his career, Burt has worked in Champions League ties and international matches.

He has officiated at games involving Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, and multiple Premier League title winner (and one-time Northampton Town loanee) Kyle Walker.

Highlights include the FA Cup final in 2011 and a World Cup quarter-final in Qatar between Brazil and Croatia in 2022.

"Just going to the World Cup was amazing. We did Saudi Arabia v Mexico and then Brazil v Croatia in the quarters. Any match with Brazil screams World Cup football to me," Burt said.

He has had to make sacrifices along the way and said he had missed countless family events.

"But if you want to succeed, you have to prioritise football. I still pinch myself, and sometimes I wonder what I'm doing here. It's really surreal," he added.

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