Rugby World Cup referee had heart restarted mid-tournament before taking charge of final

Rugby World Cup final referee Wayne Barnes has revealed that he secretly had his heart restarted midway through last year.

Barnes, 45, took charge of at the Stade de France in Paris on October 28, 2023. Weeks prior, though, Barnes had returned home to London on the quiet to undergo a heart procedure.

The acclaimed rugby union referee, who was diagnosed with atrial fibrillation in 2009, recalled his heart rate reaching 230 beats per minute during a running session in Paris. In his new book, Barnes says that his legs felt like 'wet spaghetti' as he struggled to breathe.

Four days later, the 45-year-old refereed ' 40-6 win against in the pool stage and had another scare. "Three minutes into the game, Wales executed a move off a lineout and scrum-half went flying over for a try. It was a start I could have done without, seeing as it required me to run about 50 metres," Barnes explained.

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"I thought, 'Oh s***, I'm in trouble here'. I limited my running as much as possible for the rest of the first half, which both teams made easier for me by giving loads of penalties away, but I knew I had to tell my fellow referees during the break."

Barnes admitted that although he told his colleagues about his increased heart rate, he played down the issue so as not to worry them at half-time. He phoned his cardiologist the next morning and booked a flight home 24 hours later without telling his refereeing bosses.

"When I called to tell him what was going on, he replied saying he thought I'd looked fine. When I told him I hadn't felt fine, he told me to get hold of an Apple watch and send him an ECG reading," he continued. " I did so and he replied saying my heart was in tachycardia again, but that he could see me in London the following day.

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"He made it sound as if it was nothing more than a cold, which put my mind at rest. As luck would have it, Wednesday was our day off, so I booked myself a 6am flight and was back in London before breakfast."

In a simple procedure, Barnes had his heart restarted and returned to France as if nothing had changed. After beat to retain the trophy, Barnes announced his retirement to end a record-breaking career which spanned 17 years and saw him become rugby union's most experienced referee.

He made the decision to spend more time with his family and progress his career as a law firm partner at Squire Patton Boggs.