The Emirati whistle led the match between Egypt and New Zealand without any influential errors

The former international referee and refereeing expert, Abdullah Al-Ajel, confirmed that the refereeing crew for the match between the Egyptian and New Zealand national teams, led by Emirati referee Omar Al Ali, managed the match without any refereeing errors affecting the outcome of the match, which ended with the Egyptian team winning 3-1, within the second round of Group Seven competitions in the group stage of the 2026 World Cup.

Al-Ajel told Emirates Today: “Although this match represents the first appearance of Omar Al Ali in this global event, he led it with strength and stability as if he was experienced in managing World Cup matches,” describing his appearance as “he was a supervisor of Arab and Emirati arbitration in the largest football event in the world.”

He added, “The experience of international assistant referee Mohamed Ahmed Youssef, who is participating in the World Cup for the third time in a row, helped Al Ali lead the match to safety,” pointing out that the Egyptian team was able to overturn the result of the match after it was trailing by an empty goal in the first half, scored by New Zealand player Finn Surman in the 15th minute.

Al-Ajel explained: “Omar Al Ali started the match confident of himself, and his strong personality inside the green rectangle and his high refereeing experience helped him finish the match without influential refereeing errors, despite the sensitivity of the match for the two teams.”

In response to a question about the validity of the four goals witnessed in the match, Al-Ajel confirmed that “all the goals of the match were correct.”

Omar Al Ali is the third Emirati field referee to participate in the World Cup, after the two previous World Cup referees, Ali Bujasim, who participated in three editions of the tournament in 1994, 1998, and 2002, and Muhammad Abdullah Hassan, who appeared in the 2018 and 2022 editions.

Al-Ajel pointed out that “the distinguished refereeing level that Omar Al Ali showed in his first match in the tournament enhances his chances of officiating matches during the next rounds of the World Cup.”

Al-Ajel considered that Omar Al Ali’s experience helped him lead an important and sensitive match such as the confrontation between Egypt and New Zealand.

It is noteworthy that the Emirati refereeing team currently present at the World Cup includes, in addition to the arena referee Omar Al Ali, both the assistant referee Muhammad Ahmed Youssef, and the video referee Muhammad Obaid Khadem, who in turn participated in managing the matches between Argentina and Algeria within the tenth group, and South Africa and Mexico within the first group, in addition to the match between Egypt and New Zealand within the seventh group.

• Omar Al Ali led the match with strength and stability, as if he was experienced in managing World Cup matches.

• All the goals of the match were correct.. Al Ali’s excellence will enhance his chances of managing matches in advanced roles.