Number 1000.. What has FIFA prepared for the historic Tunisia-Japan match? | sports

The FIFA Referees Committee announced the appointment of Romanian referee Istvan Kovac to officiate the 1,000th match in the history of the World Cup finals, which will bring together the Tunisian national team and the Japanese national team on June 20 at Monterrey Stadium.

This match is considered a historic event in the tournament’s record, which prompted FIFA to allocate a distinguished refereeing team, as Kovac will be assisted by his compatriots Ferenc Tonoje and Mihai Marica, while Costa Ricans Juan Calderon and Juan Carlos Moura will serve as the fourth official and reserve assistant referee.

FIFA also confirmed that the selection of Kovac is not related to the symbolic coincidence of the 1000th match, but rather was based on his high refereeing competence, as he is one of the best referees in Europe in recent years.

For his part, Chairman of the FIFA Referees Committee, Pierluigi Collina, explained that this appointment represents a special honor, pointing out that the Romanian referee will lead the match according to the same strict standards that the committee adopts in all matches, far from the ceremonial nature of the occasion.

A special T-shirt for this match was presented to the referee and his assistant crew, featuring golden stripes and a commemorative badge reading Match No. 1000, in a symbolic initiative from the company sponsoring the tournament.

Kovac is 41 years old, and is considered one of the most prominent referees on the European continent, as he previously officiated important matches in the Champions League, and also participated in the Qatar World Cup in 2022 as a fourth referee, before he now gets the opportunity to lead his first match in the World Cup as a main referee, in an event that will remain engraved in the history of the tournament.