German referee Siebert chosen for Italy vs. Belgium

German referee Siebert chosen for Italy vs. Belgium German referee Daniel Siebert will officiate Italy’s Nations League match with Belgium, as fellow countryman Bastian Dankert is in the VAR booth. It kicks off at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome on Friday at 19.45 UK time (20.45 CEST). They are in the same group as France and Turkiye, and this is the opening fixture for the Nazionale in this tournament. Siebert assigned to Italy vs. Belgium TURIN, ITALY – NOVEMBER 04: Pierre Kalulu of Juventus shakes hands with Luis Suarez of Sporting CP as match referee, Daniel Siebert looks on following the UEFA Champions League 2025/26 League Phase MD4 match between Juventus and Sporting Clube de Portugal at Juventus Stadium on November 04, 2025 in Turin, Italy. (Photo by Stefano Guidi/Getty Images) UEFA have announced that the referee taking charge of the match is Siebert, who will be assisted by Jan Seidel, Rafael Foltyn and fourth official Sascha Stegemann. The VAR team for the encounter is also German, specifically Bastian Dankert and assistant VAR Pascal Muller. Siebert is 42 years old and was given the honour of officiating the Champions League Final between Paris Saint-Germain and Arsenal last season. EINDHOVEN, NETHERLANDS – OCTOBER 21: Lorenzo Lucca of Napoli reacts after being shown a red card by referee, Daniel Siebert, during the UEFA Champions League 2025/26 League Phase MD3 match between PSV Eindhoven and SSC Napoli at PSV Stadion on October 21, 2025 in Eindhoven, Netherlands. (Photo by Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images) He has already overseen two Italy games before, a 3-1 European Championship victory away to Armenia in September 2019 and the 6-0 friendly win against Moldova in October 2020. His record with Belgium is a little more mixed, as they lost the Nations League semi-final to France 3-2 in October 2021. MUNICH, GERMANY – DECEMBER 20: Referee Daniel Siebert looks on during the Bundesliga match between FC Bayern München and RB Leipzig at Allianz Arena on December 20, 2024 in Munich, Germany. (Photo by Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images) However, that was followed by a 3-0 play-off victory against Ukraine in March 2024 and the 4-2 World Cup qualifier success in Wales in October 2025. Notably, Belgium converted two penalties in that most recent match, both awarded for handling offences.