Darren Bond

Darren Bond (born 1978) is an English football referee who officiates in the Premier League.

Born in Lancashire,^[1] Bond began refereeing when he was 15.^[1] By 2016 he had 20 years of experience, including one year as a assistant referee in the Premier League, and was named on the Select Group Two list of referees for the EFL Championship.^[2]

On 19 September 2017 in the third round of the EFL Cup between Burnley and Leeds United, Bond ruled that the penalty shootout would be held in front of the home fans at Turf Moor, on the safety advice of the Lancashire Constabulary. Burnley lost it 5–3.^[3] In 2018 and 2020 he faced criticism for on-field decisions made against Peterborough United and Cardiff City.^[4][5]

Bond made his Premier League debut on 3 January 2023 in Fulham's 1–0 win away to Leicester City. He refereed four games that season and was promoted to a permanent referee in the league by Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL).^[6][7]

On 14 January 2023, Bond officiated a 2–2 Championship draw between Reading and Queens Park Rangers. He was called a "bottler" by Reading manager Paul Ince^[8] for not giving the Royals a penalty kick when Shane Long went down under pressure from Rob Dickie; former referee Chris Foy defended the decision.^[9]

Bond is barred from refereeing Wigan Athletic matches due to his support for the club.^[10]

As of match played 7 December 2024^[11]

Season	Games	Total	per game	Total	per game
2010–11	6	15	2.50	1	0.17
2011–12	26	66	2.54	6	0.23
2012–13	19	61	3.21	4	0.21
2013–14	26	102	3.92	5	0.19
2014–15	21	55	2.62	1	0.05
2015–16	31	101	3.26	3	0.10
2016–17	36	108	3.00	6	0.17
2017–18	32	112	3.50	7	0.22
2018–19	31	91	2.94	5	0.61
2019–20	33	115	3.48	2	0.06
2020–21	32	106	3.31	6	0.19
2021–22	16	64	4.00	2	0.13
2022–23	33	141	4.27	3	0.09
2023–24	23	102	4.43	3	0.13
2024–25	10	41	4.10	1	0.10