Ivan Barton, the 35-year-old Salvadoran referee appointed for France-Spain in Dallas

FIFA has appointed Salvadoran Ivan Barton to referee the 2026 World Cup semi-final between France and Spain, scheduled for Tuesday in Dallas. The choice has surprised: at 35, Barton is one of the youngest referees to inherit such a high-stakes match in the competition.

A chemistry teacher at the University of El Salvador, Barton has already officiated three matches at this World Cup: the group stage matches Turkey-Paraguay and Sweden-Japan, then the round of 16 Switzerland-Colombia. It was during the Turkey-Paraguay match that he made an impression by sending off Miguel Almirón for covering his mouth while addressing an opponent — an absolute first in football history, applying FIFA’s new directive to the letter.

This sanction is based on paragraph 4 of Law 12 of the IFAB, which provides for the expulsion of any player who “covers his mouth (with his hand, arm or shirt) when addressing an opponent in a provocative, mocking or offensive manner”.

Despite his young age, Barton is no stranger to the big stage: he had already officiated at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, where he notably refereed the group stage clash between Switzerland and Brazil as well as the round of 16 England-Senegal. The France-Spain semi-final is nevertheless by far the most important match of his career.