Premier League referee barred from officiating club over controversial past

Premier League referee Stuart Attwell is reportedly being kept away from Nottingham Forest’s matches as a result of an incident which occurred two years ago.

Attwell has not officiated a Forest game in any capacity since acting as video assistant referee (VAR) when the East Midlands club lost 2-0 away at Everton in April 2024.

At the time, the fixture was seen as a ‘relegation six-pointer’ which could have seen Forest drop to the Championship – although they did manage to retain their Premier League status.

Those associated with Forest believed the side should have been given three penalties against the Toffees, before the club posted a bizarre statement on X, which read: “We warned the PGMOL that the VAR is a Luton fan before the game, but they didn’t change him. Our patience has been tested multiple times.

“NFFC will now consider its options.”

The post drew criticism from pundits and fans before it was eventually deleted.

Speaking on Sky Sports at the time, Gary Neville said: “It is a horrendous statement by that football club and it lets the proud history of that club down. That they inferred cheating, as suggested by the fact there is a Luton Town official, is absolutely ridiculous.”

Forest were fined £750,000 by the English Football Association (FA), as well as receiving a warning for “misconduct in relation to comments posted on social media”.

Attwell pulled from Nottingham Forest match

Attwell has not been involved in any game which Forest have played and was taken off fourth-official duties for the side’s FA Cup third-round tie at Wrexham, despite initially being named as part of the officiating team for the clash.

He was replaced by Darren England, with no explanation put forward.

And now The Athletic have it confirmed to them by Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) sources that the reason for Attwell’s absence from Forest games directly relates to the incident at Goodison Park two years ago.

It remains unclear whether Attwell has requested to be kept away from Forest games or if the decision has been made by his bosses.

Several other referees have previously been kept away from officiating certain clubs, with Mark Clattenburg prevented from refereeing Everton at Goodison Park for six years after the Merseyside derby in 2007.

Martin Atkinson was also kept away from Manchester United matches due to several incidents involving Sir Alex Ferguson.