The 21-year-old will be the man in charge when hosts Zebre Parma host Emirate Lions in the fifth round of the championship.
Ireland’s Sean Gallager has held the record since 2013 when as a 23-year-old his first game in the Guinness PRO14 was when Zebre met Edinburgh
Wales now has its biggest representation of referees in the URC with Connor joining Craig Evans, Adam Jones, Ben Whitehouse and Ben Breakspear.
“I am over the moon to see Ben become the youngest referee ever in the URC,” beamed WRU national elite performance referee manager, Ian Davies.
“I remember my predecessor Paul Adams asking me to coach four up and coming referees back in October 2021. Of the four referee’s I cast my eye over on a flight to Edinburgh, Ben was not in my top three!
“However, credit where credit is due, he has worked incredibly hard on his game. He is very self-critical, which is a characteristic which will serve him well.
“There won’t be many referees across the globe who would be entrusted to referee in a pro league at such a young age, but I have little doubt in saying that this will be the beginning of a very long journey ahead for Ben.”
It’s not the first time Connor, who is the son of Wales Women assistant coach Sean Connor, has created history.
Last year he received the honour of becoming the first overseas referee since 1964 to take charge of the prestigious feature match of the famous Craven Week in the 58thedition of the event at Outeniqua Park in George, South Africa.
