Who is the referee for Bosnia and Herzegovina vs. Italy play-off final? | OneFootball

An almost entirely French officiating team led by referee Clement Turpin will take charge of the upcoming World Cup play-off final between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Italy coming up on Tuesday evening.

The Azzurri will take on Bosnia and Herzegovina in Zenica at 19.45 BST on Tuesday evening for a spot at the final 2026 World Cup tournament.

Gennaro Gattuso’s side beat Northern Ireland 2-0 thanks to second-half goals from Sandro Tonali and Moise Kean in order to qualify, while Bosnia and Herzegovina required penalties to get past Wales in Cardiff on Thursday night.

Referees appointed for Italy’s World Cup play-off final

43-year-old Turpin will be the man with the whistle for Italy’s World Cup play-off final against Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Turpin will be joined by assistant referees Nicolas Dagos and Benjamin Pages, also from France, plus fourth official Jose Maria Sanchez from Spain. Frenchmen Jerom Brisard and Willy Delajod will assist from the VAR booth.

In a slightly alarming precedent for Italy, Turpin was also the referee for their infamous 1-0 loss against North Macedonia during the World Cup play-off semi-final in 2022, which cost the Azzurri their place at the final tournament later that year.

PALERMO, ITALY – MARCH 24: Alessandro Bastoni and Joao Pedro Galvao of Italy look dejected during the 2022 FIFA World Cup Qualifier knockout round play-off match between Italy and North Macedonia at Renzo Barbera Stadium in Palermo, Italy. (Photo by Tullio M. Puglia/Getty Images)

The North Macedonia match was one of five previous Italy matches that Turpin has been involved in. He also took charge of a 3-0 win against Uruguay in a 2017 friendly, a 2-0 win over Poland in the Nations League in 2020, a 3-1 loss against England in qualification for EURO 2024, and the 3-0 win over Israel in World Cup qualifying earlier this season.

Turpin has refereed 12 matches in Ligue 1 so far this season, plus six in the Champions League, two in Champions League qualification, 2 in the UAE Pro League, one in the Saudi Pro League and one in the Coupe De France.

Napoli’s 3-2 Champions League defeat against Chelsea is Turpin’s only match involving an Italian side so far this season.

NAPLES, ITALY – JANUARY 28: Rasmus Hojlund and Giovanni Di Lorenzo of SSC Napoli react as teammate Juan Jesus (not pictured) is shown a yellow card by Referee Clement Turpin during the UEFA Champions League 2025/26 League Phase MD8 match between SSC Napoli and Chelsea FC at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona on January 28, 2026 in Naples, Italy. (Photo by Tullio M. Puglia/Getty Images)