The referee appointments for Round #1 of the 2020 Super Rugby season are now confirmed.
The seven-match Round 1 kicks-off in Auckland where Angus Gardner will be in charge of the Blues versus Chiefs New Zealand derby. The same evening AJ Jacobs will be in Canberra taking charge of the Brumbies versus Reds Australian derby while Marius van der Westhuizen will referee the South African derby between the Sharks and Bulls in Cape Town.
There are four matches on Saturday with proceedings starting at the new Super Rugby venue in Fukuoka where the Sunwolves face the Rebels at Level Five Stadium. Ben O'Keeffe will be in charge, while fellow Kiwi referee Paul Williams [pictured] has the whistle for the Trans-Tasman clash between reigning champions Crusaders and the Waratahs at Trafalgar Park, Nelson. Jaco Peyper takes charge of the match at DHL Newlands in Cape Town where the Stormers host the Hurricanes.
The weekend closes in Buenos Aires where last year's losing finalists Jaguares take on the Lions at Amalfitani Stadium. The referee is Rasta Rasivhenge.
| Match | Blues v Chiefs @ Eden Park, Auckland |
| Date | Friday 31 January |
| Kick-off | 19:05 local |
| Referee | Angus Gardner |
| AR1 | Paul Williams |
| AR2 | Dan Waenga |
| TMO | aaron Paterson |
| Match | Brumbies v Reds @ GIO Stadium, Canberra |
| Date | Friday 31 January |
| Kick-off | 19:15 local |
| Referee | AJ Jacobs |
| AR1 | Nic Berry |
| AR2 | Graham Cooper |
| TMO | Ian Smith |
| Match | Sharks v Bulls @ Jonsson Kings Park, Durban |
| Date | Friday 31 January |
| Kick-off | 19:10 local |
| Referee | Marius van der Westhuizen |
| AR1 | Jaco Peyper |
| AR2 | Egon Seconds |
| TMO | Marius Jonker |
| Match | Sunwolves v Rebels @ Level Five Stadium, Fukuoka |
| Date | Saturday 1 February |
| Kick-off | 12:45 local |
| Referee | Ben O'Keeffe |
| AR1 | Shuhei Kubo |
| AR2 | Tasuku Kawahara |
| TMO | Minoru Fuji |
| Match | Crusaders v Waratahs @ Trafalgar Park, Nelson |
| Date | Saturday 1 February |
| Kick-off | 19:45 local |
| Referee | Paul Williams |
| AR1 | Angus Gardner |
| AR2 | Dan Waenga |
| TMO | Shane McDermott |
| Match | Stormers v Hurricanes @ DHL Newlands, Cape Town |
| Date | Saturday 1 February |
| Kick-off | 15:05 local |
| Referee | Jaco Peyper |
| AR1 | Marius van der Westhuizen |
| AR2 | Egon Seconds |
| TMO | Joey Klaaste-Salmans |
| Match | Jaguares v Lions @ Jose Amalfitani Stadium, Buenos Aires |
| Date | Saturday 1 February |
| Kick-off | 20:00 local |
| Referee | Rasta Rasivhenge |
| AR1 | Pablo Deluca |
| AR2 | Martin Cordoba |
| TMO | Santiago Borsani |
Bye: Highlanders
