The UEFA Referees Committee has appointed experienced Italian referee Davide Massa to officiate the second leg of the UEFA Champions League third qualifying round.
The future referee was born on July 15, 1981, in the city of Imperia. He studied in Genoa, holds a law degree, and currently works in the banking sector. Massa began his refereeing career in 1997, reaching the professional level in 2006. He has been officiating in Serie B since 2010, and made his Serie A debut on January 23, 2011, in the match Fiorentina – Lecce. He became a full-time Serie A referee in 2012, and that same year received the Premio Bernardi as the best debutant in Italy’s top division.
He has been a FIFA referee since 2014. During this time he has never officiated a match involving Dynamo, though he has refereed Ukrainian teams on several occasions. In 2016 Massa oversaw Ukraine’s 4:3 friendly victory over Romania, with Karavayev and Yarmolenko in the squad. In 2023 under his supervision Shakhtar Donetsk lost 1:3 to Porto in the UEFA Champions League group stage.
The highlights of Davide’s refereeing career include officiating the 2017 Italian Super Cup match (Juventus – Lazio – 2:3) and the 2020/2021 Coppa Italia final (Atalanta – Juventus – 1:2).
However, his career has not been without controversy. In 2023 during a Coppa Italia match between Juventus and Inter Massa sent off visiting striker Romelu Lukaku in the fifth minute of stoppage time for a second yellow card which he received for an emotional goal celebration. Lukaku had gestured «Shut up!» toward the stands in response to repeated provocations and racist abuse – after that Massa faced accusations of racism afterward. Three weeks later, the Italian referee traveled to Greece for the Olympiacos – AEK match (1:3), and after the game while leaving the pitch he was attacked by local fans. In his match report he stated that he «felt a blow to the groin area».
The match Pafos – Dynamo will take place on Tuesday, August 12, in Limassol, with kick-off at 20:00.
