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Published : 10 Jul 2026, 01:10 AM
Portuguese referee João Pinheiro has been appointed by FIFA to officiate Argentina’s World Cup quarter-final against Switzerland in Kansas City, according to TyC Sports.
The 38-year-old is a regular in European competitions and is taking part in his first World Cup.
Pinheiro has already refereed Switzerland at the tournament, taking charge of their 4-1 group-stage win over Bosnia and Herzegovina, where he showed three yellow cards and sent off Tarik Muharemovic.
He also refereed Canada's 1-0 Round-of-32 win over South Africa, where he rejected a late first-half penalty appeal after Richie Laryea went down in the box.
VAR reviewed the incident but did not advise an on-field review, allowing play to continue.
The decision drew protests from Canadian players and head coach Jesse Marsch at halftime, although the result stood unchanged.
Pinheiro showed two yellow cards in that match, both to Canadian players.
Saturday’s match will be his first involving Argentina.
Pinheiro has been a top-flight referee in Portugal since 2015 and made his Champions League debut in the 2022-23 season.
His recent profile rose after controversy in the Champions League semi-final second leg between Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain, when Bayern appealed for a penalty over a João Neves handball but neither Pinheiro nor VAR awarded it.
For Argentina-Switzerland, Pinheiro will be assisted by fellow Portuguese officials Bruno Jesus and Luciano Maia. Canada’s Drew Fischer will be the fourth official.
