Who are the referees and officials at the 2025 Masters Snooker event in London?

An elite sporting spectacular such as this requires referees of the same class and calibre, and that’s exactly what we have with three of snooker’s most trusted pairs of hands taking charge of the world’s top 16 ranked players.

There is an international feel to the officials on show with representation from across Europe.

Jan Verhaas

Jan Verhaas is currently professional snooker's most experienced referee having first officiated on the sport's top tier in 1993.

The highly-respected and familiar 6-foot figure initially got involved with snooker whilst refereeing at a local club near his home in the Netherlands, before being encouraged to do his qualifications and go further up the ranks.

In 2003, Verhaas became the first person from outside of Britain to referee a World Snooker Championship final. He has gone on to officiate six world finals at the Crucible in total, with his most recent coming in 2017. Verhaas is part of an elite club to have refereed all three Triple Crown event finals on multiple occasions.

During his time on the professional snooker circuit, Verhaas has been with the white gloves for seven maximum 147 breaks - four of which were made by Ronnie O'Sullivan, including one at the Crucible in 2003. At the World Open in 2010, Verhaas successfully encouraged O'Sullivan to pot the final black of a 147 after 'The Rocket' was not going to, seemingly in protest of there being no bonus prize on offer for the feat of perfection.

At the 2015 UK Championship final, Verhaas officiated Neil Robertson's 147 - the first 147 to be made in a Triple Crown title match.

Darts fan Verhaas also plays a big role behind the scenes with tournament administration, helping develop up-and-coming referees, and helping gatekeep the sport's official playing rules.

Olivier Marteel

Belgium's Olivier Marteel is a qualified nurse away from the green baize, and was working on the frontline at home during the height of the Covid-19 Pandemic.

Nicknamed in the past as 'The Belgian Truffle', Marteel took charge of his first professional match in 2006.

In 2014 at the Crucible Theatre, Marteel refereed within the fabled one-table set-up for the first time, and the following year he officiated his first World Championship final. Seven years on in 2022, he donned the white gloves again for snooker’s biggest fixture, overseeing Ronnie O'Sullivan's record-equalling seventh Crucible crown triumph.

Standard Liege football fan Marteel has refereed all three Triple Crown finals multiple times, joining fellow European counterpart Verhaas in that exclusive membership. Earlier this season, Marteel was responsible for the first Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters final that Judd Trump memorably won on a deciding frame black ball to collect the £500,000 top prize.

Now in his 20th season on the professional tour, Marteel - who himself has a highest break of 133 in practice - has refereed three 147 breaks in official competition.

Desislava Bozhilova

Who is the woman referee at the 2025 Masters Snooker at the Alexandra Palace? That is Desislava Bozhilova, who has enjoyed a rapid rise up the ranks from passing her international referring exams in 2012 to becoming only the second woman ever to officiate one of professional snooker's Triple Crown event finals.

From Sliven in Bulgaria, Bozhilova played cuesports and became interested in snooker refereeing after watching on television. She made her debut as a referee on the World Snooker Tour on home soil at the 2012 Bulgarian Open, and just four years later she took charge of her first ranking event final at the 2016 Riga Masters in Latvia.

Bozhilova - who has a Masters degree in Landscape Architecture - has officiated a plethora of big finals on the professional circuit, including the memorable 2019 Champion of Champions title decider between Judd Trump and Neil Robertson.

In 2019, Bozhilova was selected to referee at the Crucible Theatre for the televised rounds of the World Championship for the first time. She has returned to snooker’s grandest stage several times since.

2022 was a huge year for Bozhilova as she refereed both the Masters and UK Championship finals - two of the three biggest events in snooker - following in the footsteps of Michaela Tabb who was the first woman to officiate at a Triple Crown final. Bozhilova is a serious contender in the immediate future to referee the world final in Sheffield.

At the time of writing, Bozhilova has presided over six maximum 147 breaks; two of these came at last year’s Masters offering at the Alexandra Palace. She also occasionally referees 9-ball pool on the World Nineball Tour.

For further information on the 2025 Masters, visit here for the full draw and match schedule in North London.