FIFA published the list of approved referees for the 2026 edition of the World Cup, including Romanian referees Istvan Kovacs and assistant referees Mihai Marica and Ferencz Tunyogi.
A total of 52 referees, 88 assistant referees, and 30 VAR officials have been selected to officiate the 104 matches of the FIFA World Cup final tournament, set to begin on Thursday, July 11. Each referee will reportedly earn USD 100,000 from FIFA, in addition to USD 3,000 for each group-stage match and USD 10,000 for every knockout-stage match, including the final.
Romanian referee Istvan Kovacs, 41, will attend the World Cup for the second time, following his experience at Qatar 2022, where he did not officiate any matches, while assistants Mihai Marica and Ferencz Tunyogi will work on the sidelines.
Appointed by UEFA to referee last year’s Champions League final, Kovacs is expected to officiate at least one World Cup match this time, considering the large number of games at this year’s edition, which features 48 teams.
The 2026 edition of the World Cup brings a novelty. All referees officiating at the World Cup hosted by the United States, Mexico, and Canada will wear a video camera attached to their ear, providing viewers with unique footage from the perspective of the person holding the whistle. Viewers will be able to understand the referee’s decisions better. The device has been tested at other competitions, but this body camera will be used at the World Cup for the first time.
The 2026 FIFA World Cup referee list, without assistants, is led by Argentina and Brazil, with three referees each. England, France, Mexico, Slovenia, and the United States each have two representatives. The remaining countries have one referee apiece, including Romania.
By confederation, Europe (UEFA) has the largest representation with 19 referees, followed by South America (CONMEBOL) with 11, North and Central America (CONCACAF) and Asia (AFC) with 8 each, Africa (CAF) with 6, and Oceania (OFC) with 1. Romania is represented by one referee and two assistant referees, giving it a full officiating team at the tournament.
Earlier this week, Somali official Omar Abdulkadir Artan was not allowed entry to the United States, as his country is subject to a travel ban. FIFA announced that it will not intervene in this matter, and there is a strong possibility that the referee will be unable to officiate at the final tournament.
(Phot osource: Inquam Photos/Alex Nicodim)
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