2026 World Cup: VAR familiar to Benfica to officiate Portugal's opener

The VAR for Portugal and DR Congo's opening match at the 2026 World Cup will be Qatar's Khamis Al Marri. He previously served in the same capacity during this World Cup, overseeing the goalless draw between Spain and Cape Verde.

The officiating team for the Portuguese national side's game will thus be predominantly Qatari: Abdulrahman Al-Jassim is set to be the head referee, assisted by his compatriots Taleb Al Marri and Saoud Almaqaleh.

Al Marri also brings recent experience officiating matches involving Portuguese teams. Last year, he was the VAR during Benfica's dominant 6-0 victory over New Zealand's Auckland City in the Club World Cup.

Head Referee: Abdulrahman Al Jassim;

Assistant Referees: Taleb Al Marri and Saoud Almaqaleh;

4th Official: Abongile Tom (South Africa);

Reserve Assistant Referee: Zakhele Siwela (South Africa);

VAR: Khamis Al Marri (Qatar);

AVAR 1: Juan Soto (Venezuela);

AVAR 2: Hernan Mastrangelo (Argentina).