Bournemouth and Fulham kick off Gameweek 7 of the 2025-26 Premier League season, with Simon Hooper the man in the middle.
The Cherries have bounced back from an opening day defeat to go unbeaten in their past five matches, currently sitting sixth. Fulham, meanwhile, are in midtable with points from their 11 matches. They go into this game off the back of defeat last weekend, while Bournemouth have drawn their past two.
This will be Hooper’s sixth game of the season, and he’s a very strict official. Hooper has given 148 fouls so far this season, more than any other Premier League referee. He has also shown two red cards, with no referee showing more.
Hooper has a lot of experience in refereeing both Bournemouth and Fulham. And Bournemouth fans will be quite happy with him. Hooper has awarded the Cherries nine penalties in his 28 games in charge, and only two against.
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Simon Hooper’s Bournemouth record
As mentioned, Hooper has officiated 28 Bournemouth matches across all competitions. His very first Bournemouth game came in the EFL Trophy in 2008, a 3-0 win for the Cherries over Bristol Rovers. Hooper has taken charge of Bournemouth games across six competitions, adding League Two, League One, the Championship, Carabao Cup and Premier League to that EFL Trophy match.
| Category | Total |
|---|---|
| Matches | 28 |
| Wins | 15 |
| Draws | 4 |
| Defeats | 9 |
| League points | 40 |
| Penalties per game | 0.32 |
| Yellow cards per game | 1.5 |
| Red cards per game | 0.07 |
What happened the last time Simon Hooper refereed Bournemouth?
Hooper has already taken charge of one Bournemouth game this season, officiating their 0-1 away win over Tottenham Hotspur. In fact, the past three Bournemouth matches he has overseen have all come against Tottenham.
During the game at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium earlier this season, Hooper showed Bournemouth four yellow cards to the hosts’ two. And two of those yellows were for timewasting in the second half, as Bournemouth looked to see out the win.
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Simon Hooper’s Fulham record
This will be Hooper’s 22nd game in charge of Fulham, and they have a good record with him in charge. The Cottagers have won 13 games with Hooper in the middle, only losing four. But they aren’t safe from yellows, receiving 36 across 21 matches so far. Fulham have also been awarded three penalties by Hooper, with two against them. But this is Hooper’s first Fulham game since March 2024.
| Category | Total |
|---|---|
| Matches | 21 |
| Wins | 13 |
| Draws | 4 |
| Defeats | 4 |
| League points | 36 |
| Penalties per game | 0.14 |
| Yellow cards per game | 1.71 |
| Red cards per game | 0.05 |
What happened the last time Simon Hooper refereed Fulham?
It’s been a long time since Hooper officiated a Fulham game. But that appears to be pure coincidence, rather than him being kept from the Cottagers. He last refereed a Fulham game in March 2024, overseeing their 3-0 home win over Brighton and Hove Albion. There was just one yellow card for Fulham, coming in the dying stages as Bobby De Cordova-Reid was booked for time wasting.
What should we expect from Simon Hooper?
Hooper is yet to award a penalty in the Premier League this season. He’s the referee with the most games without awarding a penalty. But, Hooper’s penalty record for Bournemouth could mean a spot-kick comes this weekend. There will also be a lot free-kicks given for fouls, though Hooper’s fouls per card of 4.6 is among the lower returns for referees this season.