FIFA has unveiled its list of match officials for the 2026 World Cup, naming 52 referees – including six women – for the tournament, which will run from 11 June to 19 July across the United States, Canada and Mexico.
Football’s global governing body will also deploy 88 assistant referees and 30 video match officials, drawn from all six confederations and 50 member associations.
“The selected match officials are the very best in the world,” said Pierluigi Collina, FIFA’s chief refereeing officer.
“They were part of a wider pool of officials that was identified and monitored over the past three years. They have attended seminars and officiated at FIFA tournaments. In addition, their performances in domestic and international matches were regularly assessed.”
The 2026 World Cup will be the largest in history, featuring a 48-team lineup and 104 matches. Consequently, there are 41 more match officials than at the 2022 tournament in Qatar, where 32 teams played 64 matches.
Collina noted the continued progress of women’s representation in officiating. “The fact that six women match officials have been selected continues a trend that was started four years ago in Qatar, as we aim to further develop women’s refereeing,” he said.
Six women referees officiated at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar – a first for the tournament.
