Mikel Arteta and Arsenal’s quest for FA Cup glory this term continues on Saturday with a fifth-round trip to the One Call Stadium. The Gunners, who all continuing to fight on all fronts, are set to lock horns with League One outfit Mansfield Town.
On the back of their 1-0 win over Brighton & Hove Albion on Wednesday, the Gunners are currently seven points adrift of their nearest challengers in Manchester City in the Premier League – but, for now at least, all eyes are on the FA Cup.
For the English third-tier outfit, it’ll be their first appearance in the fifth round stage in 51 years.
Read More: Mansfield vs Arsenal: TV channel, kick-off time & how to watch
Mansfield last reached this stage of the FA Cup, world football’s oldest-ever competition, in February 1975 when they were beaten by Carlisle United. But who will be in charge when Arsenal, the Premier League’s table-toppers, turn up with eyes set on securing passage?
Who is the referee for Mansfield vs Arsenal?
As Arteta and his silverware-chasing men prepare for a potential banana skin tie against The Stags, the Football Assocation (FA) have officially confirmed that Thomas Bramall will be manning the whistle.
After being promoted to the Select One Group in 2022, Sheffield-born Bramall primarily officiates in the Premier League – and he has taken charge of 24 matches, dishing out 93 yellow cards and three reds.
So far this term, Bramall has taken charge of just one Arsenal match: their 1-0 win over Crystal Palace in the Premier League. That was back in late October when Eberechi Eze scored the only goal of the game.
Thomas Bramall’s record against Arsenal
As mentioned, Bramall has been a referee in the Premier League for coming up to four years. Incredibly, he has one taken charge of the one match involving Arsenal… that narrow victory over Palace.
On that occasion, he managed to keep his cards in his pockets. In other news, he has been the fourth official in 13 matches: they’ve resulted in eight wins, three draws and two losses for the Londoners.
| Matches | Arsenal wins | Draws | Arsenal defeats |
| 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Thomas Bramall’s record against Mansfield Town
Although Bramall has only manned the whistle once when Arsenal have been on the pitch, that isn’t the case for Mansfield as the 36-year-old has taken to the middle on seven separate occasions.
Between 2018/19 and 2020/21, Bramall refereed four League Two matches involving Mansfield and he has only performed the same role in three consecutive seasons between 2023/24 and 2025/26.
Interestingly, Mansfield were knocked out of the League Cup by Everton earlier this season when Bramall was the primary official.
| Matches | Mansfield wins | Draws | Mansfield defeats |
| 7 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
Who are the assistant referees and VAR?
In terms of who will be supporting Bramall making his decisions when Mansfield try to upset the party on Saturday lunchtime, Constantine Hatzidakis and Alistair Nelson have been named as the two assistant referees. Josh Smith will be the fourth official.
The fifth round of the FA Cup will also feature VAR, with Paul Tierney and responsible for looking over the big decisions. James Mainwaring will be on hand to help Tierney as assistant VAR.
