Lionel Messi maintains unblemished record with referee Ismail Elfath ahead of Argentina vs England 2026 World Cup semi-final

Lionel Messi he finds himself looking at history again, just one win away from the lead In Argentina to another World Cup lastly, with the powerhouse In England a team that acts as a major obstacle in this 2026 semi-final. While the pre-match news dominates the airwaves, the official tournament assignment is the American referee Ismail Elfath it generated significant buzz given Messi’s clean and great record.

Born in Casablanca, Morocco, Elfath moved to the United States and broke into Major League Soccer in 2012, quickly establishing himself as one of the league’s top umpires before being named a second consecutive umpire. World Cup. The much-anticipated match on Wednesday July 15 will mark the first time Elfath has taken charge of a game alongside Messi on the international stage, although the two share plenty of history at club level.

Since Messi joined Inter Miami in July 2023, Elfath has played four games for the Herons. Surprisingly, The Argentine star went on to win all of those matchesnone more important than the historic final of the Leagues Cup 2023, where the Fort Lauderdale-based club beat Nashville SC in a marathon penalty shootout following a 1-1 draw (a game in which Messi scored in regulation time and converted his first-place kick).

Three more matchups took place during MLS regular season play: a 3-1 win over Nashville in 2024 (where Messi added a goal and an assist), a 4-1 thrashing of the New England Revolution (where he got three assists), and most recently, a thrilling 4-2 win over Orlando City in the Florida Derby in March 2026, including a spectacular kick from Messi. In those four games, This famous striker scored four amazing goals and four assists.

Rodrigo de Paul #7 and Lionel Messi #10 of Inter Miami chat with referee Ismail Elfath.

Although Wednesday’s game will be Elfath’s first time as a referee In England national team, he is familiar with Argentina. The American officer was the man in the middle scoreless friendly between Albiceleste and Colombia back in September 2018 at MetLife Stadium, although Messi did not appear in that game as he was taking a break from international duty under a mutual agreement with newly hired coach Lionel Scaloni.

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A look back at Elfath’s World Cup

Elfath served as the fourth official during the 2022 World Cup finals between In Argentina and France, although he had rebuilt an impressive tournament as the leading referee in Qatar. In that tournament, he officiated some of the top group stage matches including Portugal vs. Ghana and Cameroon vs. Brazil, before officiating a tense Round of 16 match between Japan and Croatia.

During the current 2026 campaign, he has managed three top level gamesincluding the group stage matches between the Netherlands and Japan, and Uruguay and Spain, as well as the amazing Round of 16 between Brazil and Norway. Faced with the task of managing what promises to be one of the most emotional and dangerous rivalries in world football history, Elfath’s performance as manager will undoubtedly come under intense scrutiny.

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