Víctor García Verdura: Catalan referee for the Espanyol-Barça derby in LaLiga

FC Barcelona visits Espanyol this Saturday, January 3, 2026 (9:00 PM CEST) for matchday 18 of LaLiga, and will do so under the refereeing of Víctor García Verdura. The Catalan referee was appointed for the derby by the Technical Committee of Referees (CTA) along with Juan Luis Pulido Santana (VAR).

This season, García Verdura has refereed 8 league matches, none for Espanyol or Barça. The 31-year-old referee was the main official in the 'pericos'' victory against Atlètic Lleida (1-2) in the first round of the Copa del Rey. The Catalans, however, have not played a match with the Mataró native as the main referee since the 2024 Joan Gamper Trophy (a 0-3 defeat against Monaco)

How has Barça fared in matches officiated by García Verdura?

The Catalan referee debuted in LaLiga in the 23/24 season. So far, he has officiated 46 matches in LaLiga with a record of 7 expulsions, 5 of them direct red cards. Due to the territoriality criterion, he has not been the main referee in any match involving Barça or Espanyol, except for the aforementioned precedents.

In the case of the 'pericos', it was a **Cup duel between Catalan teams**. For the blaugrana side, a pre-season friendly. From the 25/26 season onwards, however, the CTA president, Fran Soto, has broken with the territorial criterion for League derbies

José Luis Munuera Montero (Andalusia), for example, was selected for the Sevilla-Betis match on matchday 14, while Juan Martínez Munuera (Valencia) was assigned to the postponed Levante-Villarreal match from J17. The same applies to Miguel Ángel Ortiz Arias (Madrid), the main referee for Rayo-Getafe, also from matchday 18.

Historic Referee Appointment for Espanyol-Barça

The only precedent in La Liga for an Espanyol-Barça derby with a Catalan referee dates back more than 78 years, in the 1947/48 season. On December 7, 1947, Ramón Azón Roma officiated the 'blanquiazul' team's victory (2-1) at Sarrià. The 'culés' were champions that season, with Valencia finishing as runners-up.

The appointment of Víctor García Verdura as the referee for the Catalan derby on matchday 18, however, was not well received by the 'perico' coach, Manolo González. The Galician coach believes that it puts extra pressure on the referee to officiate a derby in Cornellà, the hottest match in recent years between Catalan teams due to its context.

In addition to the good current form of both teams, Joan García will also make his return to the RCDE Stadium as a Barça goalkeeper. Barça is the leader and winter champion with 46 points, after winning their last 8 matches. Espanyol has won 5 consecutive games and is fifth, with 33 units and one game in hand.