Referee Slavko Vincic officiated the shocking 1-2 defeat to Argentina against Saudi Arabia at the 2022 World Cup - Photo: Reuters
Referee Slavko Vincic has been a FIFA referee since 2010 and has experience officiating many major matches in the UEFA Champions League, Euro 2020, and the 2025 Club World Cup. He gained notoriety for issuing 9 yellow cards and 1 red card in the match between Monterrey and River Plate at the 2025 Club World Cup.
However, what fans noticed most was that he officiated the match between Argentina and Saudi Arabia at the Lusail Stadium on November 22nd during the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
In that match, Argentina unexpectedly lost 1-2 despite taking the lead thanks to a penalty goal from Messi. This is considered the biggest shock in the history of modern Argentinian football.
That defeat put Argentina at risk of early elimination, and Messi might have retired without ever reaching the "throne" of world football. Fortunately, after that defeat, Argentina won all their remaining matches thanks to Messi's outstanding performance, ultimately winning the 2022 World Cup.
However, the name of referee Slavko Vincic remains a haunting memory for Messi in particular and the people of Argentina in general. As for the Spanish national team, Slavko Vincic has officiated three of their matches, and La Roja has not lost a single game.
Now he will referee the 2026 World Cup final between Argentina and Spain, causing many to worry that it will bring bad luck to Messi and Argentina.
The team of referees assigned to the 2026 World Cup final.
Referee: Slavko Vincic (Slovenia).
The assistant referees are Tomaz Klancnik and Andraz Kovacic, both from Slovenia, serving as first and second assistant referees. Jordanian referee Adham Makhadmeh is the fourth official, and Mohammad Alkalaf (Jordan) is the reserve assistant referee.