Englishman Wayne Barnes will referee the World Cup final between New Zealand and South Africa this Saturday (9 p.m.) at the Stade de France. The most successful referee on the international circuit will officiate in a World Cup final for the first time.
Barnes, who becomes the second Englishman to lead a final after Ed Morrison in 1995 between… the All Blacks and the Springboks, will be associated with his compatriots Karl Dickson and Matthew Carley on the sidelines while Tom Foley will be on video.
The 44-year-old referee will break a record on this occasion since he will officiate his 27th match in five editions! This final will be his sixth whistle at France 2023. He will thus equal his own record, established during the 2019 Rugby World Cup, where he refereed the bronze final won by New Zealand against Wales at Tokyo.
“Wayne Barnes embodies the passion, professionalism and devotion that drives this superb team of match officials at this Rugby World Cup,” responded Joël Jutdge, head of match officials and high performance. “This designation is worthy of what he has shown not only during this competition but also throughout his storied career,” approved Bill Beaumont, president of World Rugby.
For the small final between Argentina and England on Friday evening, also at the Stade de France, Nic Berry was appointed main referee. He will be assisted by Nika Amashukeli (Georgia) and Andrew Brace (Ireland). Ben Whitehouse (Wales) will be the video referee. The Frenchman Mathieu Raynal will therefore no longer referee in the competition.
Final referees: 1987: Kerry Fitzgerald (Australia) 1991: Derek Bevan (Wales) 1999: Andre Watson (South Africa) 2003: Andre Watson (South Africa) 2007: Alain Rolland (Ireland) 2011: Craig Joubert (South Africa)2015: Nigel Owens (Wales)2019: Jérôme Garcès (France)
