PRO crew for MLS is Back Tournament Final announced

Ismail Elfath will referee the MLS is Back Tournament Final, with Kathryn Nesbitt making history as the first female official to work the final of an MLS competition.

The final will be contested on Tuesday, August 11 (8:30PM ET) between Portland Timbers and Orlando City at the Disney ESPN Wide World of Sports.

Elfath has been involved in 11 games throughout the MLS is Back Tournament, with this assignment being his fourth in the center having also served as fourth official and VAR in Orlando.

The 38-year-old will again team up with Kyle Atkins, who has supported Elfath on four occasions at MLS is Back as an assistant referee and AVAR. The duo also worked the 2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup Final together.

Nesbitt will run the opposite touchline, and in doing so, becomes the first woman to officiate an MLS final, having been the reserve assistant referee for the 2018 MLS Cup Final. After working as an assistant referee and AVAR throughout the MLS is Back Tournament, this milestone assignment takes her game tally for the competition into double figures.

Joe Dickerson will complete his 11th assignment of the tournament as the fourth official, a role he has already done four times.

For two-time MLS Referee of the Year Allen Chapman, this will be his 13th game of MLS is Back and sixth as VAR – the same role he performed on the opening day of the tournament. Meanwhile, 2019 MLS All-Star assistant referee Logan Brown will add to his four AVAR assignments in Orlando, in addition to his four on the touchline, by supporting Chapman in the booth.

The crew unite as Portland Timbers and Orlando City go head to head in the MLS is Back Tournament showdown. Timbers saw off Philadelphia Union to reach the final, while Óscar Pareja’s side successfully defeated Minnesota United.

Portland Timbers vs Orlando City
ESPN Wide World of Sports (8:30PM ET)
REF: Ismail Elfath
AR1: Kathryn Nesbitt
AR2: Kyle Atkins
4TH: Joe Dickerson
VAR: Allen Chapman
AVAR: Logan Brown