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Ref that sent off Connor Roberts to officiate Burnley v West Ham opener Everything you need to know about Burnley v West Ham referee Burnley’s 2026/27 Championship campaign officially kicks off this weekend with the visit of West Ham. The two relegated sides do battle against one another at Turf Moor on Sunday (4pm kick off) as new boss Nicky Hayen takes charge of his first competitive league game. The Clarets will be aiming to end their long wait for a home league win, which now stretches to over 300 days. The Hammers come into the season as title favourites, having finished 17 and 19 points ahead of Burnley and Wolves respectively. Who is the referee for Burnley v West Ham? Josh Smith, of Peterborough. He took charge of Lincoln City’s 2-1 Carabao Cup first round win over Derby County on Saturday, dishing out three yellow cards. Looking back to last season, Smith took charge of 33 games, handing out 115 yellow cards - at an average of 3.4 per game - and eight reds. He took charge of the League One play-off final at the end of last season as Bolton Wanderers clinched promotion with a 4-1 win over Stockport County at Wembley. Smith dismissed Stockport’s Josh Dacres-Cogley in the final minute, having also handed out two bookings. Smith started refereeing in 2006, aged 14, following in the footsteps of his dad and his grandfather who refereed football and rugby league respectively. In 2015, Smith was promoted to the EFL assistant referee list before opting to specialise as a referee three years later. On the final day of the 2022/23 season, Smith oversaw his first Premier League fixture as Fulham took on Crystal Palace at Craven Cottage. Subscribe now for HALF PRICE and catch every minute of our Clarets coverage this season - from pre-season to the final whistle. Click here What history does he have with Burnley? This will be the first Burnley game Smith has taken charge of since January 2025, when he oversaw the goalless draw with Leeds United at Turf Moor. That was one of three Burnley games he officiated that season as Scott Parker’s side were automatically promoted from the Championship. He was also the man in the middle for another stalemate at Middlesbrough just a few days after Christmas. At the beginning of that campaign, meanwhile, he took charge of Burnley’s 2-0 defeat to Wolves in the Carabao Cup. Going back to 2023, Smith sent off Connor Roberts for two bookable offences as Burnley lost 3-0 to Brentford at the Gtech. Who are the other officials? Shaun Hudson and Jonathon Bickerdike will run the line, while Tom Nield is fourth official.