UEFA appoints Slovenian referee David Smajc for Universitatea Craiova vs Getafe CF

UEFA has appointed Slovenian referee David Smajc to officiate the upcoming Conference League match between Universitatea Craiova and Getafe CF. The game is scheduled for 15 October 2026 at 19:45 local time at the Ion Oblemenco Stadium in Craiova.

Smajc will be assisted by fellow Slovenians Manuel Vidali and David Gabrovec. Zan Jazbec has been named as the fourth official for the fixture. The video assistant referee team consists of Aleksandar Matkovic as VAR and Mihael Antic as AVAR.

This appointment marks the first time Smajc has refereed a match involving a Romanian club side. However, he has previous experience with the national team. He served as the fourth official during Romania’s 2-0 victory over Liechtenstein on 14 November 2021.

Smajc also acted as the fourth official for Romania’s 3-1 win against Lithuania on 9 September 2024. His prior involvement with Romanian football includes a role as reserve referee for AS Roma’s 5-0 Europa League victory over CFR Cluj on 5 November 2020 at the Stadio Olimpico.

Universitatea Craiova enters the match in strong domestic form. The club sits second in the SuperLiga table with 23 points after 11 rounds. This position follows a recent 1-0 league victory over Csikszereda Miercurea Ciuc.

Their opponents, Getafe CF, are currently 14th in La Liga. Under coach Jose Bordalas, the Spanish side has accumulated 8 points from their first eight league rounds. Getafe recently suffered a 3-0 defeat to Barcelona in domestic competition.

Former player Gica Craioveanu commented on the upcoming fixture. He stated that Universitatea Craiova could defeat Getafe if they maintain a calm approach. Craioveanu cited the poor recent form of the Spanish visitors as a factor in his assessment.

Statistical analysts from Football Meets Data have provided projections for Craiova’s European campaign. Their models predict the club will finish 21st in the Conference League league phase. This placement would secure qualification for the play-offs.

Further estimates suggest Universitatea Craiova has a 65.2 per cent probability of finishing in the top 24 teams. The specialists calculated an 11.3 per cent chance for the club to end the league phase within the top eight positions.