Chinese Referees Make History at 2026 World Cup

Three Chinese football referees — Ma Ning, Fu Ming, and Zhou Fei — departed Beijing on May 30 to officiate at the 2026 FIFA World Cup in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, marking a historic milestone for Chinese football officiating. For the first time, China has a full officiating team — comprising a main referee, a video assistant referee (VAR), and an assistant referee — selected for the world’s premier football tournament.

A Historic First for Chinese Officiating

According to Xinhua News Agency, the trio will travel via San Francisco to Miami, the World Cup referee team base camp, where they will undergo approximately 8 to 10 days of training including physical fitness tests, simulated match training, and theoretical sessions on new rule interpretations.

Ma Ning, who previously served as a fourth official at the 2022 Qatar World Cup officiating six matches, becomes the first Chinese referee to be selected for two World Cups. Fu Ming and Zhou Fei are first-time World Cup selections, taking on the roles of VAR and assistant referee respectively.

“We have been working hard all these years, wanting to let everyone know that Chinese referees are capable of standing on the highest stage of world football,” Ma Ning said at the departure ceremony organized by the Chinese Football Association (CFA), as reported by Xinhua.

The Referees and Their Roles

Ma Ning (born 1979, Liaoning Province) is a faculty member at Nanjing Sport Institute Football College and winner of the 2023 Chinese Super League Golden Whistle Award. His elevation from fourth official in 2022 to main referee in 2026 reflects growing international trust in his officiating capabilities.

Fu Ming (born 1983, Jiangsu Province) brings extensive international experience, having officiated at the AFC Asian Cup, U-20 World Cup, Tokyo Olympics, and the FIFA Club World Cup. As a VAR official, he will also travel to Dallas for specialized preparation at the Video Match Operations (VMO) base camp, according to the Beijing Youth Daily report.

Zhou Fei (born 1986, Shanghai), an associate professor at Shanghai University of Sport, has officiated the 2023 AFC Asian Cup final and the 2022 FIFA Club World Cup final. He emphasized the importance of teamwork in his role as assistant referee, noting he has over 40 notes on his phone detailing communication protocols with the main referee.

Broader Context and Significance

The selection comes at a time when the Chinese men’s national team did not qualify for the 2026 World Cup, making the referees the primary Chinese representation at the tournament. This achievement follows a series of milestones: the Chinese referee team officiated the AFC Asian Cup final for the first time, and Ma Ning and Fu Ming participated in the 2025 inaugural FIFA Club World Cup.

Xu Jiren, Vice Chairman of the Chinese Football Association, told Guancha.cn that the three referees “represent not only themselves, but also the overall image of Chinese football refereeing and the overall image of Chinese football.”

AI Technology at the Tournament

The 2026 World Cup will also feature cutting-edge technology. Lenovo will provide FIFA AI Pro, an AI-powered video enhancement system for referee perspectives, and a “hair separation technology” algorithm for more precise offside calls. Ma Ning commented that “the介入 of AI technology makes referee decisions more efficient, and makes the game fairer and more just.”

What’s Next

The referees must pass physical fitness tests during the pre-tournament training camp to secure their match assignments. The 2026 World Cup, the first to feature 48 teams, runs from June 11 to July 19 across 16 host cities in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. After the tournament, the trio plans to return to China with valuable experience to share with the Chinese football community, contributing to the development of refereeing standards at home.