Luke Pearce named the best rugby referee in the world

Love them or loathe them, without referees, there would be no game of rugby union.

As a result, RUCK asked fans to debate who are the best rugby referees in the world.

Of course, criticism of officials often comes with the territory, but every so often, a referee has a game that makes the sport’s fraternity stand up and take notice.

Here are, according to fans, the five best rugby union referees at present.

Born in Perpignan, France, in 1981 Mathieu now officiates at the highest level of rugby and is on the World Rugby Referees Panel, returning as a referee for his second World Cup appearance as a referee. 

Before refereeing Mathieu played locally and was part of the successful junior team that won the junior championships in France. 

His refereeing career started in 2001 when he joined a local referees society. Mathieu was promoted from refereeing amateur rugby matches to the second division of France's professional rugby structure in 2006, and quickly moved onto his first professional game as a match official between Grenoble and Toulon.

Mathieu’s first Test Match was between Malta V Netherlands in 2008 at the European Nations Cup, with his first Tier One fixture in 2012 - an Autumn international between Scotland and Tonga.

In 2022 Mathieu oversaw the Bledisloe Cup between Australia and New Zealand.

At the time of writing, to date Mathieu has overseen 36 test matches including fixtures at the Six Nations and the 2019 World Cup where he refereed South Africa V Namibia, Australia v Uruguay, and Scotland v Russia. 

Ben is one of New Zealand's leading rugby union referees overseeing domestic, Super Rugby and Test Match games around the world. 

Born in January 1989 in Blenheim, New Zealand, Ben first started refereeing in 2008 at the age of 19, becoming a professional referee in 2013.

Making his international debut during the 2015 World Rugby Pacific Nations Cup, Ben officiated a game between Fiji and Tonga. 

Just one year later, Ben took charge of a historic match between Samoa and Georgia which ended in a 19-all draw. The same year Ben also oversaw his first Six Nations game. 

Ben now regularly referees both Six Nations and Rugby Championship tournaments and was the youngest referee at the 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan where he oversaw the games between Australia V Fiji, France V USA and Japan V Scotland.

In association with our partners at ACME Whistles we managed to speak to Ben O'Keefe to learn a little more about the man behind the whistle. Click here to read more. 

Wayne Barnes is undoubtedly one of the leading international referees in World Rugby today. He has refereed matches in the World Cup, Six Nations the Rugby Championship and Pacific Nations Cup. 

On the 5th of November 2022, Wayne Barnes refereed a match between Wales and New Zealand at the Autumn Nation Series, his 100th international match as a referee, equalling the record previously set by Nigel Owens. 

Born on the 20th of April 1979 in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, Wayne started playing rugby at the age of 8, taking up refereeing just seven years later.

Since then, Wayne has become a regular referee in the English Premiership and has also been centre stage at the Heineken Cup and the European Cup challenge. 

Internationally, Wayne continues to break records and inspire many others in refereeing.

Angus was named world rugby referee of the year in 2018 and has overseen internationals in the biggest stadiums around the world. 

Born in August 1984 in Sydney, Australia, Angus started refereeing at the age of just 15 when he injured his back. 

Just some of the accolades Angus has amassed include his appointment for the IRB Junior World championship in 2012 and 2014 and in 2015 Angus was appointed as an assistant referee at the World Cup. 

Angus’s first tier one Test Match was in 2016 since which he's overseen games at major tournaments including the Six Nations and The Rugby Championship. 

His biggest highlight however was refereeing France V Argentina, Japan V Ireland, and Wales V Uruguay at the World Cup in September 2019. 

Luke is one of the leading English referees representing the Rugby Football Union. A regular on the international rugby scene, Luke has officiated in the English Premiership at European level and internationally on the biggest stage.

Born in Pontypool in 1987 - but growing up in Exeter, England, - Luke first joined the Devon Referee Society in 2005 at the age of 16. 

Having played rugby at junior level with the likes of Exeter Saracens Rugby Club he turned his attention to refereeing to continue his time in the sport. In September 2005 Luke first picked up the whistle for a game between Crediton 2nds and Nuneaton Abbott 3rds. 

Rising quickly through the ranks Luke became the youngest referee on the RFU National Panel in 2009. 

By 2011 Luke was overseeing his first Premiership match between Gloucester V Worcester and joined the team for the World Seven Series the same year.

His first international was in 2013 when he took charge of a game between Romania and Russia in the European Nations Cup. The following year Luke made his Six Nations debut.

In 2019, at the World Cup in Japan, Luke was involved in eight games - three of which he refereed including Wales v Georgia, South Africa V Canada, and New Zealand v Italy – and the other five as an assistant referee.

Alongside our trusted partners at ACME Whistles, we were able to speak to Luke to find out more about the man behind the whistle. Click here to find out more.