FIFA has named the match officials for World Cup matches 77, 78, and 79, the latest in a rolling series of referee appointments leading into what will be the largest tournament in the competition’s history. The three fixtures, all scheduled for June 30, 2026, pit France against Sweden at MetLife Stadium in New York/New Jersey, Côte d’Ivoire against Norway at AT&T Stadium in Dallas, and Mexico against Ecuador in Mexico City.
The appointments are part of an officiating operation that dwarfs anything FIFA has assembled before. On April 9, 2026, the governing body revealed a cohort of 52 referees, 88 assistant referees, and 30 video match officials, all tasked with covering a record 104 matches across the tournament’s three host nations: Canada, Mexico, and the United States.
A World Cup built for scale
The 2026 edition is the first World Cup to feature 48 teams, up from 32 in previous cycles. That expansion from 64 matches to 104 is roughly a 63% increase in game volume, which explains the need for a referee roster that reads more like a small army than a panel.
The tournament runs from June 11 to July 19, 2026, spanning five weeks across stadiums in three countries.
