UEFA has announced the appointment of Norwegian referee Espen Eskås to officiate the match between Barcelona and Borussia Dortmund in the first leg of the 2024/2025 UEFA Champions League quarter-finals.

Eskås is considered one of the elite referees in Europe and has held the international badge since 2017. The Dutch referee Dennis Higler will be responsible for the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) during the match.

This match will be Eskås's seventh in the current edition of the Champions League, having officiated four matches in the group stage, one in the intermediate knockout round, and another in the round of 16.

Moreover, this will be the second encounter he officiates for Barcelona this season, after he refereed the Catalan team's match against Red Star in Belgrade, which ended with a 5-2 victory for Barca.

Despite Barcelona's positive memories with the Norwegian referee, Spanish fans hold mixed feelings towards him, as he officiated the final of the Under-21 European Championship in the summer of 2024, which Spain lost to England 1-0.

He also officiated the semi-final match of the Paris 2024 Women's Olympics, where the Spanish team lost to Brazil 4-2, despite being the reigning World Cup champions at that time.