World Cup referee shares his view of red cards, hydration breaks and soccer history

Iván Barton says he learned he would referee the 2026 World Cup semifinal—France vs. Spain—while he was still in an assignment meeting, after being told “Barton, your match is France vs. Spain.” He described the moment as shock “but a good kind of shock,” and recalled how he had already started packing for a return flight to El Salvador the next day. For the tournament, it marked the first time both World Cup semifinals were officiated by referees from CONCACAF: Barton for France-Spain, and American Ismail Elfath for England-Argentina. Barton said Qatar 2022 gave him a dream and that reaching 2026 required meeting high expectations with humility. He also referenced a historic red card incident involving Turkey-Paraguay.