Slovenia’s Slavko Vinčić will be the man in the middle after FIFA announced on Thursday that the 46-year-old will officiate Sunday’s World Cup final between Argentina and Spain.
Vinčić will be joined by countrymen Tomaž Klančnik and Andraž Kovačič, who will serve as his assistants. Jordan‘s Adham Makhadmeh has been selected to work as the fourth official for the match at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.
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On Thursday, in front of other World Cup officials, Vinčić learned that he would take charge of the match from FIFA chief refereeing officer and chairman of the FIFA referees committee Pierluigi Collina.
“So, first of all, a shock. Then happiness. I was shaking, so it’s an incredible honor to get the World Cup final,” said Vinčić, who will be the first Slovenian to officiate the final. “It’s something that… it’s only a dream for a referee, for a young referee when they start. So, I’m very proud, very proud of myself, my team.”
Vinčić has experience as a big-match official. He has worked at Euro 2020, Euro 2024, the 2022 World Cup, plus the finals of the 2022 Europa League and 2024 Champions League. Last summer, he was one of the officials who refereed games at the Club World Cup, which was also held in the United States.
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During this World Cup, Vinčić has worked three games: Brazil vs. Morocco and Jordan vs. Algeria during the group stage, as well as the Round of 32 match between Mexico and Ecuador.
“First of all, it’s very difficult to put everything into words, but I’m very proud to represent my country, Slovenia, in the biggest sporting event in the world,” Vinčić said. “So, yeah, I’m very proud. My team is very proud and we will do our best.”
Referees are graded on their performance during each match. The best crews end up taking on games in the knockout rounds before a decision is made on who will work the final.
