2026 World Cup: Danny Makkelie to referee United States vs Paraguay

12.06.26 FT World Cup

USA

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:

Paraguay

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A Dutch refereeing team will take charge of the Group D clash at the 2026 World Cup between the United States and Paraguay. Kick-off is set for June 13 at 2 a.m. GMT in Los Angeles.

Danny Makkelie will oversee proceedings, assisted by Hassel Steegstra and Jan De Vries. Japan’s Yusuke Araki has been appointed as the fourth official.

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This season, Danny Makkelie has officiated 42 matches, most of them in the Eredivisie (24). He has also blown the whistle in 8 Champions League games, including the Atlético Madrid vs Arsenal semi-final. Makkelie also refereed the World Cup play-off between Italy and Northern Ireland.

The two teams recently met in a friendly on November 15, 2025, with Team USA claiming a 2-1 victory.

Here is the full refereeing crew selected for this match:

Referee: Danny Makkelie (Netherlands)

Assistant 1: Hassel Steegstra (Netherlands)

Assistant 2: Jan De Vries (Netherlands)

Fourth official: Yusuke Araki (Japan)

Reserve assistant referee: Jun Mihara (Japan)

VAR referee: Carlos Del Cerro Grande (Spain)

VAR assistant: Dennis Higler (Netherlands)

VAR support: Khamis Almarri (Qatar)

Imed Ben Amara |

Editorar, fr

Imed Ben Amara - bilingual sports writer and web editor with experience in football content creation. Since 2021, he has contributed to Foot Africa, providing news coverage and analysis.

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