Sweden’s Glenn Nyberg will referee Spain’s round of 32 game against Austria at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, his third appointment since the tournament began.

The 37-year-old will be assisted by compatriots Mahbod Beigi and Andreas Söderkvist. Dahane Beida of Mauritius will act as the fourth official.

Nyberg, who UEFA Champions League fans are likely to be familiar with, was the man in the middle for Ghana’s 1-0 victory over Panama in Group L before taking charge of Ivory Coast’s 2-0 triumph over Curaçao in Group E.

Who is Spain vs. Austria referee Glenn Nyberg?

Nyberg, who made his debut in Sweden’s top flight in 2013, is officiating at his first World Cup, although he has plenty of experience elsewhere.

The Swede has been a Champions League referee since the 2022-23 campaign and has overseen 17 games in the competition, including the first leg of the quarterfinal between Arsenal and Bayern Munich in April 2024.

In that match, which ended in a 2-2 draw, Nyberg made headlines with a penalty decision that attracted Bayern’s ire. In the second half in North London, Arsenal defender Gabriel Magalhães picked up the ball in the box, not realizing play had already restarted. However, the referee opted against punishing the Brazilian over the misunderstanding.

“[Nyberg] made a huge mistake not giving the handball penalty,” then-Bayern boss Thomas Tuchel fumed after the match.

Tuchel added: “What makes us really angry is the explanation on the field. He told our players that it is a ‘kid’s mistake’ and he will not give a penalty like this in a quarterfinal. This is a horrible, horrible explanation. He is judging handballs. Kid’s mistake, adult’s mistake.”

The Olympic “circus”

In the international game, Nyberg was on the roster of referees at both the European Championship and the men’s Olympic soccer tournament in 2024. He was handed three games at Euro 2024, most notably France’s round of 16 win over Belgium, while his four matches in Paris included the tournament’s controversial opening game between Argentina and Morocco.

When Cristian Medina scored for Argentina deep into stoppage time, he appeared to have rescued a 2-2 draw. A fan invasion then led Nyberg to take the players off the field for two hours. When the teams re-emerged in an empty stadium, Medina’s equalizer was ruled out for offside after a video assistant referee (VAR) review by Paolo Valeri.

Then-Argentina head coach Javier Mascherano branded the chaotic scenes in Saint-Étienne a “circus.”

More recently, Nyberg was selected to officiate at last summer’s FIFA Club World Cup, taking charge of two group-stage games, Botafogo vs. Seattle Sounders and Auckland City vs. Boca Juniors.

Spain favorites to advance to round of 16: who could they play?

Spain are firm favorites to progress from the clash at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles against an Austrian side that was something of a mixed bag in the group stage.

The winner will face either Portugal or Croatia in the round of 16, with that round of 32 matchup taking place later on Thursday.

Spain vs. Austria: Start time, how to watch in the U.S.

The round of 32 game between Spain and Austria will be played at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles on Thursday, July 2, with kickoff at 3 p.m. ET / 12 p.m. PT.

Viewers in the United States can watch all the action on FOX, FOX One, Telemundo, and Telemundo Deportes En Vivo.

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