Who is Turpin, the referee for RM vs Man City in the Champions League?

Experienced French referee, Clement Turpin, is the official selected for the clash of giants between Real Madrid and Manchester City in the UEFA Champions League.

What is Turpin’s record as a referee?

Clément Turpin is a highly experienced French referee who has overseen 279 matches in Ligue 1. When it comes to the UEFA Champions League, Turpin has officiated 69 games. In these European matches, he averages about 3.8 yellow cards per game and has shown a readiness to hand out cards when needed (with 13 red cards across those fixtures) and to award penalties (38 in total across those matches).

He also refereed Real Madrid’s 3-2 win over Manchester City at the Etihad last season and across 10 games, Los Blancos have never lost with him on the pitch (9 wins, 1 draw).

Turpin has also appeared in the UEFA Europa League, refereeing 31 matches. In this tournament, he averages 3.7 yellow cards per game, with a total of 4 red cards issued and 16 penalties awarded.

The big news surrounding the game is that Real Madrid have left out Kylian Mbappé from the starting lineup against after the French forward struggled with both knee and hand issues in the days leading up to the fixture.

Real Madrid vs Manchester City: time, how to watch

On matchday six of the 2025/26 Champions League, Madrid and City meet at the Bernabéu on Wednesday, December 10, with kickoff scheduled for 3:00 p.m. ET/12 noon PT. Viewers in the U.S. will be able to watch the game on Paramount+.

And wherever you are in the world, you’ll have the option of following live-text coverage of the game, right here at AS USA with the mighty William Allen.