Bobby Madley is set to officiate his first Premier League match in four and a half years this weekend after he was suspended by the PGMOL.
According to the official website of the Premier League, the 37-year-old, who was fired by Professional Game Match Official Limited [PGMOL] in August 2018 for gross misconduct based on discrimination, will oversee Brentford’s match against Wolves at home.
Before now, referee Madley disclosed that he was suspended by the PGMOL for making a video that appeared to insult a disabled person and sharing it with his employer.
He moved to Norway and began refereeing in the lower divisions.
Madley, however, made a comeback to referee in England in 2020, and as a Select Group Two official this season, he has overseen 13 games in the EFL Cup, Championship, League One, and Two.
In April 2018, Referee Bobby Madley was in-charge when Everton defeated Newcastle 1-0. The game was his last as a Premier League referee to date.
In 2013, Madley was swiftly promoted to Select Group One and from there, his career as an elite referee took off.
“I’m not proud of myself,” Madley stated after the PGMOL fired him. “For the rest of my life, I will have to deal with this.
“It destroyed my career, my reputation and caused immeasurable damage to my family life.”
“I have learned from this and feel I am a better and stronger person for it.”
“[The] PGMOL dealt with what they considered a discriminatory act in the strongest way.”
“There can be no criticism for that and I have never sought to do anything other than respect the decision and to learn from it as a person.”
Due to Madley’s comeback, two brothers will officiate in the Premier League on the same weekend for the first time in the history of the league.
The Brighton vs. Chelsea home game will be officiated by older brother Andy, 39.
Who is Bobby Madley?
Robert Madley, an English professional football referee who usually officiates in the Premier League, was listed among the Select Group Referees between 2013 and 2018. He was born on October 6, 1985.
One of the youngest officials to advance to English football’s top division, he began working as a referee in the Football League in 2010.
Madley previously served as one of the West Riding County Football Association’s referee development officers before beginning a full-time position with the Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL).
Football League referee Andrew Madley is his older brother.
What happened to Madley Bobby?
Former Premier League referees like Keith Hackett, Graham Poll, and Mark Halsey criticized Madley for a number of his judgments during the 2017–18 season.
According to a statement by PGMOL, he abruptly left his job in August 2018 when he “decided to relocate owing to a change in his personal circumstances.”
He later acknowledged in December 2019 that he had made a film “mocking” a disabled person and submitted it to a friend, who forwarded it to his superiors, after being fired and departing the ranks of PGMOL referees.
After that, he relocated to Norway where he refereed games in lower leagues.
Road back to Premier League
Madley expressed how much he loved playing 6-a-side football when he agreed to officiate the 6-a-side World Cup in 2019.
Additionally, he officiated the 2019 6-a-side World Cup final between Russia and Poland in Crete.
During the competition, he served as a mentor to other referees. Following discussions with PGMOL, it was announced on February 13, 2020, that Madley would resume officiating English football matches, starting at the youth level before joining the National List of referees, enabling him to call League One and League Two games for the following 2020–21 season.
He officiated the Newport County vs. Morecambe League Two Play-Off Final in 2021, and despite denying a Newport first-half penalty appeal, he controversially awarded Morecambe a penalty in extra time.
Bobby received a 4 year promotion back to the Premier League on October 25, 2022. On Saturday, October 29, 2022, he will oversee the Brentford vs. Wolves match.
