Washington, USA – FIFA has announced that the match between Tunisia and Japan, scheduled for next Sunday as part of Group F of the 2026 World Cup, will be the 1000th match in the tournament’s history.
Romanian referee Kovac will officiate the historic match
FIFA has appointed Romanian referee Istvan Kovac to officiate the match, which will be held at the Monterrey Stadium in Nuevo León, Mexico.
He will be assisted by his compatriots Ferenc Tunyugi and Mihai Marica, while Costa Rican Juan Calderón will serve as the fourth official.
Pierluigi Collina, chairman of FIFA’s Referees Committee, confirmed that Kovac’s selection was based on standard technical criteria.
He noted that officiating the 1000th match adds a special historical dimension to the event.
He added that officiating any World Cup match is a great honor for referees,
but participating in the 1000th match gives the occasion exceptional significance in the tournament’s history.
A special refereeing team to celebrate the occasion
FIFA explained that it decided to celebrate the historic match by designing
a special refereeing kit featuring gold details and a badge incorporating the World Cup trophy and the number 1000.
This was done to commemorate this significant milestone in the tournament’s history.
Istvan Kovac, 41, is one of the most prominent European referees in recent years.
The Tunisia-Japan match marked his first appearance as a referee in a World Cup finals match,
having previously served as part of the refereeing team for the 2022 World Cup.
