**Jarred Gillett will referee Chelsea vs Leeds United in Wednesday night’s Carabao Cup third-round tie at Stamford Bridge, with VAR not in operation.**
The Australian has been appointed for the 8pm BST clash as Xabi Alonso’s Chelsea look to respond to Sunday’s 2-1 Premier League defeat at Arsenal.
Neil Davies and Steven Meredith will serve as assistant referees, while Robert Madley has been named fourth official.
Gillett will take charge of his third match of the 2026/27 season.
The 39-year-old has already refereed Manchester City’s opening-day victory over Bournemouth and Arsenal’s 1-0 win away to Aston Villa.
He has shown **seven yellow cards across those two matches**, without producing a red.
[Leeds United’s official match-official announcement](https://www.leedsunited.com/en/news/match-officials-appointed-chelsea-a?utm_source=chatgpt.com) confirms the full team for Wednesday’s game and also provides an encouraging recent record for Chelsea under Gillett.
Chelsea have won **seven of the 13 matches** he has refereed, losing only two.
Gillett also has recent experience of this exact fixture.
The last Chelsea vs Leeds match officiated by Gillett came only a few months ago.
He took charge at Wembley as Chelsea beat Leeds **1-0 in April’s FA Cup semi-final**.
Chelsea’s own official statistics from that fixture also confirmed Gillett as referee, with the Blues going on to secure their place in the final.
That was one of several successful Chelsea results under the Australian last season.
He also oversaw the Blues’ 4-1 victory away to Aston Villa and 3-1 win at Wolves during the 2025/26 campaign.
**No. There will be no VAR at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday night.**
Leeds’ official announcement confirms video technology is **not in use at this stage of the Carabao Cup**.
That means all major decisions will rest with Gillett and his on-field officiating team, without the possibility of a VAR review.
It is a notable change for Chelsea after Sunday’s Premier League defeat at Arsenal featured several video reviews.
The Blues will now switch their attention to knockout football as Alonso prepares for his second Carabao Cup tie as Chelsea manager.