Akil Howson will make history as the first Black official to work an FA Cup final, when Chelsea face Manchester City at Wembley on 16 May.
The 35-year-old assistant referee, who hails from the Leicestershire & Rutland FA, has been named to the officiating crew for the showpiece match. He has been a member of the Premier League's Select Group 1 for the past three seasons.
Darren England will referee his first FA Cup final, having previously served as fourth official in 2025 and as an assistant referee in 2015. Tim Wood will be the second assistant, and Sam Barrott will act as fourth official. VAR duties will be handled by Peter Bankes, with Nick Hopton assisting.
Howson's appointment is part of ongoing efforts by the Professional Game Match Officials (PGMO) to increase diversity in refereeing. Other Black officials, such as Farai Hallam, Ruebyn Ricardo, and Sam Allison, now work in the top two tiers of English men's football, while Paul Howard has advanced through an enhanced training program to serve as a Premier League VAR.
For England, this final marks a major step in his recovery from a high-profile error during a Tottenham-Liverpool match in September 2023, when he was VAR and incorrectly disallowed a Luis Diaz goal for offside. He did not referee a Premier League game for nearly three months afterward. Added to FIFA's international referee list in 2022, the 40-year-old now gets the chance to oversee the season's most prestigious fixture.