France and Argentina are set to face off in the final of the FIFA World Cup 2022 on Sunday, December 18. They became the finalists as 30 other teams were ousted from the competition after four levels of contest in the group stage, round of 16, quarter-finals and semi-finals.During their campaign, Argentina shockingly lost 1-2 to Saudi Arabia in their opening match of the group stage but bounced back with determination to win all the other matches that they played. France met a similar fate as they lost 0-1 to Tunisia in the first round but qualified for the final after winning all their matches on the way.
FIFA have announced that Poland’s Szymon Marciniak will be the referee in the final match between France and Argentina. He is the first man from his country to get the opportunity. He will be assisted by compatriots Paweł Sokolnicki and Tomasz Listkiewicz for the hotly-anticipated contest to crown the new World Champions. In the FIFA World Cup 2022, he officiated as referee in France’s group-stage victory over Denmark and Argentina’s round of 16 win over Australia.
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A seasoned campaigner, Marciniak has extensive UEFA Champions League experience and was in the middle for Liverpool’s first-leg semi-final victory over Villarreal last season. He additionally refereed three matches at the 2016 UEFA EURO.
Meanwhile, Argentina’s Lionel Messi has announced that he would hang up his boots for his national team after the final on Sunday. In his last hurrah, Messi would look to win the coveted trophy for the first time which has eluded him in his illustrious career. As captain, he would lead the South American team in their sixth final in the history of the tournament. Argentina have won the trophy two times before in 1978 and 1986 and are one of the favourites to lift it for the third time.
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