Wilton Sampaio
Brazilian football referee (born 1981)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Wilton Pereira Sampaio (born 28 December 1981) is a Brazilian football referee. He has been on FIFA's list of international referees since 2013.[1] His younger brother Sávio Pereira Sampaio is also a referee and on FIFA's list since 2022.[2][1]
| Full name | Wilton Pereira Sampaio | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Born |
28 December 1981 Teresina de Goiás, Brazil | ||
| International | |||
| Years | League | Role | |
| 2013– | FIFA | Referee | |
| CONMEBOL | Referee | ||
Professional
Sampaio began refereeing at age 15, qualified in Brasília in 2000 and currently represents the Federação Goiana de Futebol and FIFA.[3][4] He was elected as one of the best referees in the 2012 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A championships.[5]
Sampaio was considered too short by Brazilian referee head, Armando Marques, but after Marques left in 2005, Sampaio was given more high profile games.[4]
Sampaio was part of the video assistant referee (VAR) team when it was introduced in the 2018 FIFA World Cup. He also refereed in both the 2021 FIFA Arab Cup and 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.[6][7]
In June 2026, Sampaio was selected by FIFA as the referee of the inaugural match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City between Mexico and South Africa.[8][9]
Selected performances
| 2022 FIFA World Cup | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Match | Venue | Round | Attendance |
| 21 November 2022 | Senegal vs Netherlands | Al Thumama Stadium, Doha | Group stage | 41,721[10] |
| 26 November 2022 | Poland vs Saudi Arabia | Education City Stadium, Al Khor | Group stage | 44,259[11] |
| 3 December 2022 | Netherlands vs United States | Khalifa International Stadium, Al Rayyan | Round of 16 | 44,846[12] |
| 10 December 2022 | England vs France | Al Bayt Stadium, Al Khor | Quarter-finals | 68,895[13] |
