World Cup Final referee has never worked a Spain loss or an Argentina win

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It's an immense honor for a referee to be chosen to officiate the World Cup Final.

For the 2026 championship match between Argentina and Spain, Slavko Vincic will be the man in the middle.

"So, first of all, a shock," Vincic said in a video posted by FIFA. "Then happiness. I was shaking, so it's an incredible honor to get the World Cup final. It's something that ... it's only a dream for a referee, for a young referee when they start. So, I'm very proud, very proud of myself, my team. It's very difficult to put everything into words, but I'm very proud to represent my country, Slovenia, in the biggest sporting event in the world. So, yeah, I'm very proud. My team is very proud and we will do our best."

Vincic has a lot of experience refereeing in Europe and also at World Cups.

He also has very different records in charge of matches involving Spain and Argentina.

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How do Spain and Argentina do with Slavko Vincic as ref?

Spain has never lost with Vincic in charge of their matches. That's a total of four occasions.

Argentina has only had Vincic once, and it was a historic loss.

Vincic had the whistle when Argentina lost 3-2 to Saudi Arabia to open the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. Of course, it all worked out for Argentina in the end, as they went on to hoist the trophy at that tournament.

He had two games at this World Cup in the group stage: Brazil vs. Morocco, and Algeria vs. Jordan.

Vincic also had Mexico's 2-0 win over Ecuador in the Round of 32 in which Piero Hincapie was given a red card for speaking to an opponent with his mouth covered.