John Brooks will referee Arsenal’s Premier League trip to Sunderland on Saturday night.
The 35-year-old has been appointed for the Stadium of Light clash, with Stuart Attwell on VAR duty.
Arsenal travel north looking to maintain their perfect start to the Premier League season following Wednesday night’s Champions League win over Napoli.
Supporters can find the full Sunderland vs Arsenal TV channel, live stream and kick-off information here: Sunderland vs Arsenal TV guide
Sunderland vs Arsenal referee and VAR confirmed
The Premier League’s official Matchweek 4 appointments confirm Brooks as referee.
The full officiating team is:
- Referee: John Brooks
- Assistants: James Mainwaring and Wade Smith
- Fourth official: Elliot Bell
- VAR: Stuart Attwell
- Assistant VAR: Edward Smart
Brooks has already taken charge of two Premier League fixtures this season.
Those games were Chelsea’s 3-2 win at Fulham and Manchester United’s 2-2 draw with Everton. He showed 11 yellow cards across those matches.
What is Arsenal’s record with John Brooks?
Arsenal have generally enjoyed a strong record when Brooks has been in charge.
Across six previous Arsenal matches refereed by Brooks, the Gunners have recorded four wins, one draw and one defeat.
Three of those assignments came last season.
Arsenal beat West Ham 2-0 at the Emirates before winning 2-1 against Brighton in December.
Brooks then oversaw Arsenal’s 1-1 draw away to Brentford in February.
His only defeat while refereeing Arsenal came in the 2024/25 Carabao Cup semi-final first leg against Newcastle.
The Sunderland appointment therefore continues a relatively familiar recent relationship between Brooks and Mikel Arteta’s side.
Saturday’s game kicks off at 8pm BST, with Sunderland already facing selection problems before Arsenal arrive.
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