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Venezuelan referee Jesus Valenzuela will take charge of Türkiye's opening match against Australia in Group D of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, after the full officiating team for the fixture was announced.
The match will mark Türkiye's first game in the group stage, where the national team will begin its World Cup campaign against Australia.
Valenzuela, representing the Venezuelan Football Federation, will be the main referee for the match. He will be assisted by Jorge Urrego and Tulio Moreno, while Michael Orue of Peru will serve as the Video Assistant Referee, known as VAR.
VAR is the system used to review key match incidents, including goals, penalties, red cards and cases of mistaken identity, with the aim of helping the referee make more accurate decisions.
Jesus Noel Valenzuela Saez was born on Nov. 24, 1983, in Portuguesa, Venezuela. He has worked as a referee in the Venezuelan Primera Division since 2011 and has been listed as an international FIFA referee since 2013.
Valenzuela has also officiated under CONMEBOL, the governing body for football in South America. In 2021, he was named CONMEBOL's best referee by the International Federation of Football History and Statistics.
His assignment confirms the officiating team for Türkiye's first Group D match as the national side gets ready to open its 2026 World Cup campaign against Australia.
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