Adham Makhadmeh to referee Belgium vs New Zealand in crucial World Cup Group G clash

Jordanian referee Adham Makhadmeh has been appointed to oversee Belgium vs New Zealand at BC Place in Vancouver, a Group G match at the 2026 World Cup with knockout-stage qualification on the line for both sides.

Makhadmeh, 39, will be assisted by fellow Jordanians Mohammad Alkalaf and Ahmad Alroalle. Canada’s Kevin Ortega has been named fourth official, with Michael Orue serving as reserve assistant referee.

The 2026 tournament marks Makhadmeh’s first World Cup as a referee, though he arrives with over a decade of FIFA experience and a background in the AFC Champions League, FIFA Arab Cup, and AFC Asian Cup — where he handled three group-stage matches and a quarter-final.

At this edition of the World Cup, Makhadmeh has already overseen Spain’s draw against Cape Verde, a result widely described as one of the tournament’s biggest upsets, during which he issued two cards. Across 18 matches in the 2025/26 season, he has averaged 4.7 cards per game.

That disciplinary record carries added significance in Group G, where the standings remain exceptionally tight. Bookings count as a tiebreaker metric in table positioning, meaning both Belgium and New Zealand will be mindful of accumulating unnecessary cautions.

Belgium enter the fixture as the higher-ranked side, representing a slightly older iteration of the generation that reached the World Cup semi-finals in 2018. New Zealand, the lowest-ranked team in the group, have nonetheless kept themselves in contention throughout the group stage, setting up what promises to be a high-stakes encounter.