Slavko Vincic, who officiated FIFA WC final, announces retirement

NEW DELHI: Slovenian referee Slavko Vincic, who officiated the FIFA World Cup 2026 final between Spain and Argentina, has announced his retirement from refereeing.

As the crowning glory of his farewell season, the International Federation of Football History and Statistics (IFFHS) declared him the best referee of the World Cup, and in Italy he received the prestigious Giulio Campanati Award.

Vincic, 46, made his World Cup debut in Qatar, where he was assigned to two matches, and has added another three assignments to his tally during the 2026 tournament. FIFA 2026 final marked his sixth career World Cup match, and his fourth of this edition.

Among the highlights of his career is the 2024 UEFA Champions League final between Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund at Wembley Stadium, one of the most prestigious appointments a European referee can receive. He has also officiated at the UEFA European Championship, World Cup qualifiers, the UEFA Europa League, UEFA Nations League and the FIFA Club World Cup.

Born in Maribor on November 25, 1979, Vincic worked as the sixth referee at the 2012 European Championship and, together with the Slovenian team, reached the quarter-finals of the European Championship between Greece and Germany.

In 2013, he refereed the final tournament of the European Under-17 Championship in Slovakia and reached the semi-finals, and in 2015 he refereed for the first time in the knockout stages of European competitions, when he refereed the Europa League round of 16 match between Guingamp and Dynamo Kiev.

At EURO 2016, he assisted the Slovenian team led by Damir Skomina as the sixth referee, and in the final round of the 2016 Champions League group stage, he made his debut in the most elite club competition as a referee in a match between Manchester City and Celtic. Since then, he has regularly refereed Champions League matches, and at the end of 2019 he was included in the elite group of European referees.

His experience extended across every level of the international game. He worked at the FIFA U-17 World Cup in India in 2017, the UEFA Under-21 European Championship in Poland and the FIFA U-20 World Cup in 2019 before making his senior FIFA World Cup debut in Qatar in 2022. There, he officiated Argentina's surprise group-stage defeat to Saudi Arabia, beginning a World Cup journey that culminated in the honour of refereeing the 2026 final.

In club football's premier competition, he made his UEFA Champions League refereeing debut during the 2016 group stage and went on to oversee 72 matches across UEFA's top two club competitions. His biggest assignment came in 2024 when he refereed the Champions League final between Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund.