FIFA has appointed Slovenian referee Slavko Vincic to officiate Sunday’s World Cup final between Argentina and Spain, making him the second straight European referee handed the assignment for a final featuring Argentina.
FIFA confirmed the officiating team Thursday for the July 19 match at New York New Jersey Stadium, known widely as MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, where capacity exceeds 80,000 and kickoff is set for 3:00 p.m. local time. Fellow Slovenians Tomaz Klancnik and Andraz Kovacic will serve as assistant referees, Jordan’s Adham Makhadmeh takes the fourth official role, and Qatar’s Mohammad Alkalaf will act as reserve assistant.
Vincic, 46, called the appointment the product of years of work with his team rather than a personal achievement.
“So, first of all, a shock. Then happiness,” he said, describing his reaction when FIFA’s chief refereeing officer, Pierluigi Collina, told him he had been chosen.
The final will be Vincic’s fourth match of this tournament and sixth World Cup appointment overall, following two group stage games between Brazil and Morocco and Jordan and Algeria, plus a Round of 32 meeting between Mexico and Ecuador where he sent off Ecuadorian defender Piero Hincapie under FIFA’s anti discrimination protocol. He earned his FIFA badge in 2010 and has since taken charge of the 2024 UEFA Champions League final and the 2022 UEFA Europa League final, along with two matches at the 2022 Qatar World Cup, one of which saw his only previous encounter with Argentina end in a defeat to Saudi Arabia that snapped Lionel Messi’s side’s 36 match unbeaten run.
His selection continues a pattern FIFA has followed for the last two finals involving Argentina, both times assigning a European official for a matchup against European opposition. The pick comes as some coaches at this tournament have questioned the consistency of officiating decisions involving Argentina, pointing to a first half incident in which Messi avoided a red card for a rough challenge on an Algerian opponent. FIFA has not commented on those claims beyond confirming the final’s officiating assignments.
