Kevin Bonacina

Kevin Bonacina is an Italian football referee born on November 11, 1993 in Bergamo, Italy. Affiliated to the Italian Referees Association (AIA) section of Bergamo, he started his refereeing career in 2012, officiating matches in youth categories. 

In 2018, Bonacina was promoted to Serie D, where he remained for three seasons before moving up to Serie C in 2021. During the 2022-2023 season, he refereed 27 matches in Serie C, including the first leg of the playoffs between Foggia and Lecco, a match that sparked controversy due to disputed referee decisions made by the home team.

On July 3, 2023, the AIA announced his promotion to the National Referees Commission (CAN), enabling him to officiate matches in Serie A and B. His Serie B debut took place on August 26, 2023, while his first appearance in Serie A was on December 3, 2024, in a match between Torino and Empoli, which ended in a 1-0 victory for Torino. 

A notable anecdote in his career happened during the aforementioned Serie C playoffs first leg between Foggia and Lecco. After the match, some Foggia fans directed online criticism towards a namesake of Bonacina, a metallurgical worker unrelated to refereeing, due to a case of mistaken identity. 

With a career on a steady rise, Kevin Bonacina continues to establish himself as one of the promising referees in Italian football, known for his professionalism and dedication to the sport.