Thomas Bramall (born 1990) is an English football referee who primarily officiates in the

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

, having been promoted to Select Group One in 2022. He is a member of the Sheffield & Hallamshire County Football Association.

Early life

Bramall was born in

Sheffield Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, situated south of Leeds and east of Manchester. The city is the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire and some of its so ...

South Yorkshire South Yorkshire is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the north, the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north-east, Lincolnshire ...

in 1990. Prior to becoming a professional referee, he worked as a PE teacher in

Rotherham Rotherham ( ) is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. It lies at the confluence of the River Rother, South Yorkshire, River Rother, from which the town gets its name, and the River Don, Yorkshire, River Don. It is the largest settlement ...

, and as a mathematics teacher at

Outwood Academy Valley Outwood Academy Valley (formerly Valley Comprehensive School) is a mixed secondary school with academy status, located in Worksop in Nottinghamshire, England. It had an enrolment of 1,550 pupils in 2017, with a comprehensive admissions policy ...

Worksop Worksop ( ) is a market town in the Bassetlaw District in Nottinghamshire, England. It is located south of Doncaster, south-east of Sheffield and north of Nottingham. Located close to Nottinghamshire's borders with South Yorkshire and Derbys ...

Career

In 2022, Bramall left education and became a full-time referee. He was initially promoted to the National List, allowing him to take charge of

English Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional association football, football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, it is the oldest football league in Association football around the world, the w ...

matches, ahead of the 2018–19 season. In the summer of 2019, he sustained an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury, which side-lined him from officiating until February 2020. Ahead of the 2021–22 season, Bramall was promoted to Select Group Two, a group of referees who primarily officiate in the

EFL Championship The English Football League Championship, known simply as the Championship and for sponsorship purposes as Sky Bet Championship, is a professional association football league in England and Wales. Contested by 24 clubs, it is the highest divi ...

, following his competition debut overseeing a match between

Preston North End Preston North End Football Club, commonly referred to as Preston, North End or PNE, is a professional association football club in Preston, Lancashire, England. They currently play in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English footbal ...

and

Luton Town Luton Town Football Club is a professional association football, football club from Luton, Bedfordshire, England. The club currently competes in EFL League One, the third level of the English football league system. Nicknamed "The Hatters", L ...

in March. His first

Wembley Wembley () is a large suburbIn British English, "suburb" often refers to the secondary urban centres of a city. Wembley is not a suburb in the American sense, i.e. a single-family residential area outside of the city itself. in the London Borou ...

appearance was on 22 May 2022, when he took charge of the

2022 FA Trophy final The 2022 FA Trophy Final was an association football match played at Wembley Stadium, London, on 22 May 2022. It was contested between National League teams Wrexham and Bromley. The match decided the winners of the 2021–22 FA Trophy, a knockout ...

, between

Wrexham Wrexham ( ; ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in the North East Wales, north-east of Wales. It lies between the Cambrian Mountains, Welsh mountains and the lower River Dee, Wales, Dee Valley, near the England–Wales border, borde ...

and

Bromley Bromley is a large town in Greater London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley. It is southeast of Charing Cross, and had an estimated population of 88,000 as of 2023. Originally part of Kent, Bromley became a market town, charte ...

. He made his Premier League debut on 30 August 2022 when he refereed Fulham's home fixture against

Brighton and Hove Albion Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club, commonly referred to as Brighton, is a professional football club based in Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. Their home gro ...

Domestic finals

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bramall, Thomas 1990 births Living people English football referees Premier League referees Sportspeople from Sheffield