Each week we take a close look at the referee assigned to the Swans game and look at their previous record when officiating our beloved Swansea City.
This week’s spotlight for our man in the middle falls on Robert ‘Bobby’ Madley, who was appointed the referee for the Swansea City v Nottingham Forest EFL Carabao Cup 3rd Round game on Wednesday, 17 September 2025.
Referee Madley was assisted by Mark Russell and Matthew Smith, with Ollie Yates the 4th Official for the game.
Name: Robert Madley
DOB: 6 October 1985
Birthplace: Wakefield, Yorkshire.
Interesting Fact: Madley is probably one of the most disliked referees by Swansea City fans thanks to several bewildering decisions that have cost the Swans dearly over recent years.
Cast your mind back to November 2013 when he gave a highly contentious last-gasp penalty to Stoke City, which earned them an unlikely 3-3 draw, and earlier this season when he failed to send off Stoke City goalkeeper Jack Butland for a studs-up challenge on Andre Ayew. Yep he’s up there with Mike Dean in the popularity stakes alright!
Madley quit his role as a referee suddenly in August 2018, when he “decided to relocate due to a change in his personal circumstances”, according to a statement by Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL). He was later officially sacked by PGMOL in December 2018 after sending a video mocking a disabled person to a friend.
Madley subsequently moved to Norway, where he officiated in lower league matches.
Following discussions with PGMOL in February 2020, it was announced that Madley would return to refereeing in English football, initially at grassroots level, before joining the National List of referees, enabling him to officiate League One and League Two matches, from the 2020–21 season.
Here are the all important facts and figures for each game that he has been a referee for a Swansea City game:
| Date | Competition | Home Team | Score | Away Team |
| 17-Sep-25 | Carabao EFL Cup 3rd Round | Swansea City | 3:2 | Nottingham Forest |
| 22-Dec-23 | Championship | Swansea City | 2:1 | Preston North End |
| 04-Nov-23 | Championship | Swansea City | 0:0 | Sunderland |
| 19-Aug-23 | Championship | Swansea City | 1:1 | Coventry City |
| 27-Aug-22 | Championship | Middlesbrough | 2:1 | Swansea City |
| 24-Aug-21 | Carabao EFL Cup 2nd Round | Swansea City | 4:1 | Plymouth Argyle |
31-Mar-18 | Premier League | Manchester United | 2:0 | Swansea City |
| 02-Jan-18 | Premier League | Swansea City | 0:2 | Tottenham Hotspur |
24-Oct-17 | Carabao EFL Cup 4th Round | Swansea City | 0:2 | Manchester United |
02-Apr-17 | Premier League | Swansea City | 0:0 | Middlesbrough |
02-Mar-16 | Premier League | Arsenal | 1:2 | Swansea City |
12-Dec-15 | Premier League | Manchester City | 2:1 | Swansea City |
19-Oct-15 | Premier League | Swansea City | 0:1 | Stoke City |
12-Sep-15 | Premier League | Watford | 1:0 | Swansea City |
21-Mar-15 | Premier League | Aston Villa | 0:1 | Swansea City |
11-Feb-15 | Premier League | West Bromwich Albion | 2:0 | Swansea City |
14-Dec-14 | Premier League | Swansea City | 1:2 | Tottenham Hotspur |
10-Nov-13 | Premier League | Swansea City | 3:3 | Stoke City |
25-Sep-12 | League Cup 3rd Round | Crawley Town | 2:3 | Swansea City |
12-Feb-11 | Championship | Middlesbrough | 3:4 | Swansea City |
In summary, Robert Madley’s record for Swansea City games is as follows:
Home Games
P11 W3 D4 L4
Away Games
P9 W4 D0 L5
Overall Record
P20 W7 D4 L9
This referee has a Swans Love Factor of 55%
Feature Image Credit: Newport County Football Club