FIFA has set the refereeing map for the 2026 World Cup final, which brings together the Spanish and Argentine national teams, next Sunday.
The Spanish national team faces its counterpart, Argentina, at ten in the evening the day after tomorrow, Sunday, at MetLife Stadium, in New Jersey, USA, for the 2026 World Cup final.
The FIFA Referees Committee decided to assign the 2026 World Cup final match to a Slovenian refereeing crew, led by Slavko Vinčić, assisted by the duo of assistants, Tomaž Klančnik, and Andraž Kovačič.
A Jordanian duo will be present in the 2026 World Cup final refereeing crew: Adham Makhadmeh as fourth official, and Mohammed Al-Khalf as fifth official, while the German Bastian Dankert will be in the video technology, assisted by the Qatari Khamis Al-Mari, the Colombian Nicolás Gallo, the Mexican Guillermo Pacheco, and Tatiana Guzmán from Nicaragua.
Vinčić, who is 46 years old, was born on November 25, 1979, in Maribor, in Yugoslavia, and holds Slovenian nationality, and this may be his last World Cup participations, as he participated in the 2022 World Cup previously.
European finals
Slavko began his refereeing career in 2000, but he officiated his first match in the first division of the Slovenian league in May 2007, before obtaining the international badge in 2010, which allowed him to participate in international tournaments.
Vinčić previously officiated the 2023-2024 UEFA Champions League final, in which Spanish Real Madrid defeated German Borussia Dortmund by two goals to nil.
The Slovenian referee officiated the 2021-2022 UEFA Europa League final, in which German Eintracht Frankfurt defeated Scottish Rangers on penalties, and also officiated the European playoff final qualifying for the 2026 World Cup, in which the Swedish national team defeated Poland by three goals to two.
Egyptian League Summit
Vinčić was at the head of the refereeing crew in the summit match between Al-Ahly and Zamalek in the Egyptian League in the 2022-2023 season, in which the Reds won by a clean three goals, when Mahmoud Kahraba scored the first goal.
Although that match did not witness any controversial refereeing incidents, the actions that followed it from the fans towards the player, Mahmoud Kahraba, led to the imposition of severe penalties by the football association.
World Cup Participation
The 2026 World Cup final will represent Vinčić's sixth match in the World Cup, as he previously officiated two matches in the 2022 edition, and three matches in the current edition.
The most prominent matches officiated by Slavko Vinčić in World Cup history is the match in which the Saudi national team defeated Argentina, by two goals to one, in the 2022 World Cup, in Qatar.
The United States of America is hosting the 2026 World Cup, along with Mexico and Canada, with the participation of 48 teams, for the first time in the history of the tournament, during the period from June 11 last to July 19 of the current month.
