Referee appointed for Barcelona vs Athletic Bilbao in La Liga

Barcelona will host Athletic Bilbao on Thursday evening in their first home match of the season, as part of the Spanish league competition.

The Spanish Football Federation has announced the appointment of referee Miguel Ángel Ortiz Arias to officiate the match, scheduled to take place at 10 PM Cairo time, with Jorge Figueroa Vázquez serving as the Video Assistant Referee.

Ortiz Arias officiated 20 matches in the Spanish top flight last season, along with three matches in the Copa del Rey. He also previously gave a lecture to Real Madrid players regarding the latest refereeing updates.

The referee has previously officiated 12 matches for Barcelona, during which the team achieved 9 victories, 2 draws, and suffered just 1 defeat. That sole loss came against Almería, with a score of 1-0, in the 23rd round of the 2022/2023 season.

The first match officiated by Ortiz Arias for Barcelona was in the 36th round of the 2021/2022 season, when the Catalan team hosted Celta Vigo at Camp Nou, ending in a 3-1 victory for the home side. His last match in charge of Barcelona was in November of last year, where they secured a 3-1 win against Alavés.

On the other side, Ortiz Arias has officiated 12 matches for Athletic Bilbao, during which the team achieved 6 victories, 2 draws, and 4 defeats.

Athletic Bilbao's last appearance under referee Ortiz Arias was in May of last season, when they lost to Valencia 1-0 at San Mamés. The team's last victory with him was in the first leg against Valencia at Mestalla on September 20 of last year, which ended in a 2-0 win for Bilbao.