Referee
Istvan Kovacs
- Nationality
- Romania
- Matches
- 125In our archive since
- Liga I44
- UEFA Champions League20
- NB I17
- World Cup - Qualification Europe10
This season (2026)Superliga · Saudi Professional League · UEFA Champions League · Chinese Super League · World Cup
11Matches
4.55Yellow cards per match11 matches
0.73Red cards per match11 matches
0.55Penalties per match11 matches
Career
125Matches
4.86Yellow cards per match86 matches
0.33Red cards per match91 matches
0.48Penalties per match91 matches
24.58Fouls per match
Strictness rankingLiga I
Istvan Kovacs shows 5.32 yellow cards per match, 25% above the league average (4.26): number 4 of 19 referees.
- 1G. Catalin11 matches5.82
- 2Rares George Vidican25 matches5.60
- 3Horatiu Fesnic27 matches5.33
- 4Istvan Kovacs19 matches5.32
- 5Szabolcs Kovacs14 matches4.71
- 6Andrei Moroita9 matches4.56
- 7Marian Barbu25 matches4.40
- 8A. Chivulete11 matches4.36
- 9K. Szabolcs16 matches4.13
- 10Florin Andrei22 matches4.00
- 11S. Coltescu13 matches4.00
- 12Marcel Birsan24 matches3.92
- 13Iulian Calin17 matches3.82
- 14Horia Gabriel Mladinovici12 matches3.67
- 15Gabriel Mihuleac10 matches3.60
- 16George Catalin Gaman11 matches3.55
- 17George Catalin Roman12 matches3.50
- 18Viorel Nicusor Flueran14 matches3.00
- 19Radu Marian Petrescu13 matches2.85
League average 4.26
Cards per matchLast 18 matches with card data
- Yellow cards
- Red cards
Results in his matchesFrom 125 finished matches
- Home win42%
- Draw31%
- Away win26%
Home / awayYellow cards · 86 matches
- Home teams184 yellow cards · 44%
- Away teams234 yellow cards · 56%
Away teams saw 27% more yellow cards.
By competition
| Competition | Matches | Yellow / match | Red cards | Penalties |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liga I | 44 | 4.96 | 9 | 12 |
| UEFA Champions League | 20 | 4.00 | 8 | 9 |
| NB I | 17 | 4.25 | 1 | 4 |
| World Cup - Qualification Europe | 10 | 5.00 | 4 | 4 |
| Euro Championship | 6 | 6.83 | 2 | 0 |
| Pro League | 6 | 4.67 | 1 | 2 |
| UEFA Nations League | 5 | 4.60 | 0 | 3 |
| NB II | 4 | – | – | – |
| UEFA Europa League | 4 | 5.00 | 1 | 3 |
| FIFA Club World Cup | 2 | 9.50 | 2 | 3 |
| Magyar Kupa | 2 | – | – | – |
| Pro League | 2 | 7.00 | 2 | 2 |
Season by season
| Season | Competition | Matches | Yellow cards per match | Red cards per match | Penalties per match |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Superliga | 5 | 6.40 | 1.00 | 0.60 |
| Saudi Professional League | 1 | 2.00 | 0.00 | 1.00 | |
| UEFA Champions League | 2 | 4.50 | 1.50 | 0.00 | |
| Chinese Super League | 1 | 4.00 | 0.00 | 1.00 | |
| World Cup | 2 | 1.50 | 0.00 | 0.50 | |
| 2025 | Superliga | 19 | 4.58 | 0.21 | 0.47 |
| NB I | 9 | 4.25 | 0.11 | 0.44 | |
| UEFA Champions League | 9 | 4.56 | 0.33 | 0.11 | |
| 2024 | World Cup - Qualification Europe | 3 | 5.00 | 0.33 | 0.00 |
| 2025 | UEFA Europa League | 2 | 6.00 | 0.00 | 1.00 |
| Magyar Kupa | 1 | – | – | – | |
| Saudi Professional League | 3 | 5.00 | 0.33 | 0.33 | |
| UAE Pro League | 1 | 10.00 | 1.00 | 0.00 | |
| FIFA Club World Cup | 1 | 9.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | |
| 2024 | UEFA Champions League | 9 | 3.33 | 0.22 | 0.89 |
| Superliga | 20 | – | – | – |
Latest matches
- SuperligaFC Otelul Galati1AFK Csikszereda Miercurea Ciuc17Yellow cards2Red cards
- SuperligaFC Dinamo Bucuresti2FCSB18Yellow cards2Red cards1Penalties
- Saudi Professional LeagueAl Khaleej Saihat1Al Hilal Riyadh52Yellow cards1Penalties
- UEFA Champions LeagueSabah FK5Hapoel Beer Sheva23Yellow cards2Red cards
- SuperligaFC UTA Arad0Corvinul 1921 Hunedoara06Yellow cards
- SuperligaFC Voluntari1Petrolul Ploiesti28Yellow cards1Penalties
- UEFA Champions LeagueFK Bodo/Glimt3Royale Union Saint-Gilloise26Yellow cards1Red cards
- Chinese Super LeagueChengdu Rongcheng FC1Wuhan Three Towns FC14Yellow cards1Penalties
- SuperligaFC Dinamo Bucuresti5Universitatea Craiova13Yellow cards1Red cards1Penalties
- World CupJordan1Argentina33Yellow cards1Penalties
- World CupTunisia0Japan4
- SuperligaFCSB4FC Botosani38Yellow cards2Penalties
- SuperligaCFR Cluj0Universitatea Craiova04Yellow cards
- SuperligaAFC Unirea Slobozia2AFC Hermannstadt24Yellow cards1Penalties
- NB IKazincbarcikai BSC2Kisvarda Master Good1
- SuperligaFC UTA Arad0FCV Farul Constanta03Yellow cards
- NB IZalaegerszeg TE4Kazincbarcikai BSC0
- SuperligaFC Arges0CFR Cluj16Yellow cards
- SuperligaFC Universitatea Cluj4Universitatea Craiova01Yellow cards1Red cards
- UEFA Champions LeagueBarcelona0Atletico Madrid25Yellow cards1Red cards
