Former English referee Mark Clattenburg has revealed the identity of the referee who will officiate the 2026 World Cup final in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, a full nine days before the tournament kicks off.

The World Cup final will take place on Sunday, July 19, at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, USA.

Clattenburg said in remarks reported by the British newspaper Daily Mail that the referee for the World Cup final will be Italian.

Clattenburg did not explicitly name the referee, but there is only one Italian referee in the tournament: Maurizio Mariani, aged 44.

Mariani has officiated three matches in the 2026 World Cup so far: Saudi Arabia vs. Uruguay, Colombia vs. Congo in the group stage, and Brazil vs. Japan in the round of 32.

Clattenburg justified this choice by the Italian influence within FIFA, led by its president Gianni Infantino, a Swiss of Italian descent, as well as Pierluigi Collina, head of the referees committee.

The English referee said: 'I've heard that the referee might be Italian again. Infantino is Italian, Collina is Italian, and most of the influence in refereeing and football overall is Italian.'

He added: 'If you look at it, in 2010 the referee was English, in 2014 Italian, in 2018 Argentine, in 2022 Polish. If we choose an Italian referee again, does that mean there are no other referees besides Italians?'

He continued: 'If an Italian referee gets the opportunity again this year, and considering what happened with FIFA in this tournament, it would be a big shock to me.'

He concluded: 'It would be upsetting for many people if another Italian referee officiates the match. I'm not saying the Italian referee doesn't deserve it, but there are many talented referees who could manage that match.'

It is worth noting that Italy did not qualify for the 2026 World Cup, marking the third consecutive absence after missing the 2018 and 2022 editions.