By Rishabh Jaiswal
Brazilian referee Wilton Sampaio will take charge of the opening match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup between Mexico and Bafana Bafana, leading a three-man Brazil team for the curtain-raiser in Mexico City.
Compatriots Bruno Pires and Bruno Boschilia will be Sampaio’s assistants in Thursday’s Group A inaugural clash at Estadio Azteca (1pm in Mexico City, 9pm SA time).
Sampaio also officiated matches at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar and was part of the video assistant referee (VAR) team when it was introduced at the 2018 edition in Russia.
FIFA has assembled a record pool of match officials — 52 referees and 88 assistant referees — for the expanded 48-team tournament. The US has denied entry to one referee, however — Omar Abdulkadir Artan of Somalia — who had been expected to be the first Somali to officiate at a match in the World Cup.
Referee appointments for each game are typically announced two to three days in advance.
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