FIFA Referee Once Caught in a Drug Raid — He'll Be Officiating the World Cup Final on Sunday

Here's what it's all about

• Referee Slavko Vincic will officiate Sunday's World Cup final in East Rutherford between Spain and Argentina.
• Six years ago, the Slovenian referee's career was still hanging by a thread.
• In 2020, the man, who was 40 at the time, was apprehended by police during a raid in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
• However, since he is not accused of any crime, the Slovenian Referees' Association is standing behind him.

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May 2020. In the midst of the first wave of COVID-19, a strange incident occurs at a ranch near Bijeljina in Bosnia and Herzegovina. As part of Operation “Kristal,” a heavily armed police special forces unit storms a gathering of 36 people.

A video released later shows weapons left behind. Alcohol is on the tables, and a credit card is covered in white powder. Media reports describe a “debauched sex and drug party.” The police seized 14 packets of cocaine, ten handguns, three bulletproof vests, and over 10,000 euros in various currencies. Sixteen people were arrested on charges of drug and weapons trafficking as well as prostitution.

Inside the house, the police also came across the Slovenian soccer referee Slavko Vincic.

"I was sitting at a table with some people when suddenly the police showed up."

The man, who was 40 at the time, was not arrested. However, the officers took him to the police station for questioning. There, Vincic insisted that he had nothing to do with the criminal activities. He said he didn’t know most of the people at the ranch. After the interrogation, he was allowed to go home.

Later, Vincic described the incident to the Slovenian newspaper “Vecer”: “I ended up at this ranch purely by chance. I have my own company and was in Bosnia and Herzegovina for a business meeting. I accepted an invitation to lunch, which turned out to be my biggest mistake. I regret that.”

“I was sitting at the table with my people when suddenly the police showed up, and what happened, happened. I have nothing to do with the group that was arrested and taken into custody, and neither do my business partners,” Vincic emphasizes.

He says he is deeply shaken by the incident and describes it as a nightmare. “I’m going through a very difficult time right now; I just want to sleep—I long for peace and privacy.” His career as a referee hangs by a thread.

However, the Slovenian association is standing behind Vincic. He is not accused of any crime. He is neither a suspect nor has he been charged. “He is not to blame for anything,” states the president of the Slovenian Soccer Referees’ Association. Vincic was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Tears at the FIFA Announcement

And so the Slovenian is able to continue his successful career, refereeing the 2024 Champions League Final between Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund and officiating three matches at the 2026 World Cup. Then, on Thursday, comes the big moment—captured in a video released by FIFA.

Vincic will referee the World Cup final between Spain and Argentina on Sunday in East Rutherford. When he hears the news, he bursts into tears and, deeply moved, hugs his assistants, Tomaz Klancnik and Andraz Kovacic.