Three UAE match officials appointed for 2026 FIFA World Cup
The trio are among 52 referees, 88 assistant referees, and 30 video officials selected
Dubai: Referee Omar Al Ali, assistant referee Mohamed Al Hammadi and video match official Mohammed Obaid Khadim will represent the UAE at the World Cup this summer.
The trio will feature at the World Cup scheduled to kick-off on June 11 across the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
FIFA confirmed that 52 referees, 88 assistant referees and 30 video assistant referees (VARs) have been chosen from across all six continental confederations. The officials represent 54 member national associations and will have the opportunity to take charge of matches at the world’s biggest football tournament.
The selections were made in line with FIFA’s long-standing “quality first” principle, with officials assessed on the consistency of their performances at FIFA tournaments, as well as in recent international and domestic competitions.
Pierluigi Collina, FIFA’s Chief Refereeing Officer and chairman of the FIFA Referees Committee, said: “The selected match officials are the very best in the world. They were part of a wider pool of officials that was identified and monitored over the past three years.
“They have attended seminars and officiated at FIFA tournaments. In addition, their performances in domestic and international matches were regularly assessed.
“The selected officials have received, and will continue to receive, comprehensive support from our fitness coaches and medical staff, including physiotherapists and a mental specialist.
“Our goal is to ensure that they’re in optimal physical and mental condition when they arrive in Miami on 31 May.
“This year’s FIFA World Cup will be the biggest in history, with a 48-team line-up and 104 matches to be contested across the most extensive geographical footprint in the tournament’s history,” Collina continued.
“It’ll be the largest FIFA Team One ever, with 41 more match officials than at Qatar 2022. Each of them must be ready to be appointed for a match and to contribute actively to ensuring that the refereeing at the World Cup is a success.”
Ali Bujsaim was the first UAE match official to appear at a FIFA World Cup, officiating at the 1994 tournament in the United States. He also went on to referee at the 1998 World Cup and later at the 2002 World Cup, further strengthening UAE representation on football’s biggest stage.
More recently, an all-Emirati officiating team took charge of a group-stage match between France and Peru at the 2022 World Cup, with Mohammed Abdullah Hassan as the referee, assisted by Mohammed Ahmed Al Hammadi and Hassan Al Mahry.
