FIFA's referees committee announces match officials for Club World Cup

The 15th edition of the competition will be held in the United Arab Emirates from December 12 to 22 this year.

Referee Wilton Sampaio (right) from CONMEBOL Federation for the forthcoming edition of FIFA Club World Cup.

FIFA’s Referees Committee has announced the match officials for the forthcoming FIFA Club World Cup, to be played in the UAE from December 12 to 22.

Six refereeing trios, one from each confederation — Asian Football Confederation, Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football, Confederation of African Football, South American Football Confederation, Oceania Football Confederation and UEFA — will officiate the matches. FIFA has selected six more referees to operate as video assistant referees (VARs) for the tournament.

The match officials will arrive in Abu Dhabi on December 6 to complete their final preparations.

The Club World Cup is an annual football competition organised by FIFA. It involves club teams from the six Confederations, which have won their continental competitions, and the winner of the host nation's league championship.

Real Madrid (UEFA), Team Wellington (OFC), CD Guadalajara (CONCACAF), and Al-Ain (tournament host) are the confirmed participants, with two more teams — that is, the winner of Copa Libertadores and Confederation of African Football — set to join.

Real Madrid will enter the tournament as the defending champion, having won the competition under Zinedine Zidane for the second consecutive season in 2017, beating CONMEBOL's Gremio in the final.