Ismail Elfath appointed to referee Argentina v England World Cup semi-final | OneFootball

FIFA has appointed American Ismail Elfath to referee the World Cup semi-final between Argentina and England on Wednesday, 21:00 in France. The 44-year-old will take charge of his fourth match at this tournament.

According to L'Équipe, Elfath will be assisted by compatriots Corey Parker and Kyle Atkins, with Italian Maurizio Mariani as fourth official. FIFA earlier assigned Salvadoran Ivan Barton to France v Spain, the other semi-final. Elfath has faced Argentina only once, in a 2018 friendly, and has never refereed England.

This is Elfath’s second World Cup after Qatar in 2022. At this edition he has refereed Netherlands v Japan 2-2, Uruguay v Spain 0-1, and the Brazil v Norway last-16 tie, 1-2.

Earlier this season he also officiated the Intercontinental Cup final between PSG and Flamengo, and the Concacaf Champions Cup final.

This appointment rules Elfath out of the final, as FIFA generally avoids giving the showpiece to a referee who has already handled a semi-final. Following this decision, 11 central referees remain in contention to take charge of the final.

Source: L'Équipe