Slovenian referee Slavko Vincic will officiate the World Cup final between Spain and Argentina on Sunday.
Vincic will be joined by compatriot assistants Tomaz Klancnik and Andraz Kovacic, making history as the first ever referee from Slovenia to take charge of the landmark fixture.
“So, first of all, a shock. Then happiness. I was shaking, so it’s an incredible honour to get the World Cup final,” said Vincic, who was in tears upon hearing the news. “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.
“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. So, yeah, I’m very proud. My team is very proud and we will do our best.”
Vincic is no stranger to the elite game and is highly experienced at the very top level of European football.
He officiated the 2024 Champions League final between Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund at Wembley, two years after taking charge of the Europa League final that pitted Rangers and Eintracht Frankfurt against each other.
The 46-year-old has refereed at two European Championships, overseeing Spain’s Euro 2024 semi-final win over France on their journey to becoming champions.
Vincic made his World Cup debut in Qatar in 2022, with his first match bringing back bad memories for Argentina. He took charge of their shock opening loss to Saudi Arabia, something Lionel Scaloni’s side managed to of course bounce back from as they went on to win the tournament.
Sunday’s finale will mark his sixth career World Cup match overall and his fourth assignment of the current campaign, which kicked off during the group stage with Brazil’s 1-1 draw with Morocco.
He also officiated Algeria’s group-stage win over Jordan before overseeing co-hosts Mexico’s last-32 triumph against fellow dark horses Ecuador.
