Adham Makhadmeh

Adham Makhadmeh
Makhadmeh 2026 World Cup Final
Full name Adham Mohammad Tumah Makhadmeh[1]
Born (1987-02-13) 13 February 1987[1]
Irbid, Jordan[1]
International
Years League Role
2013– FIFA Referee
AFC Referee

Adham Mohammad Tumah Makhadmeh (Arabic: أدهم المخادمة; born 13 February 1987) is a Jordanian football referee who has been a full international referee for FIFA since 2013.[2] He refereed the first leg of the 2017 AFC Champions League final, and was the 4th official for the 2026 World Cup Final.

As of 2026, in addition to his refereeing career, he also works as Resident Engineer at the West Irbid Wastewater Network Project with Jordanian consulting company Engicon.[3]

Early life

Adham Makhadmeh was born in Irbid, in 1987, to a Jordanian father and a Bosnian mother. His parents met while his father was studying in Sarajevo, before moving to Jordan in 1974.[4] His father was a civil engineer, and his mother a gymnastics athlete. Makhadmeh also holds a Bosnian passport,[5] and has eight siblings–five brothers and three sisters.[6]

In his hometown of Irbid in the 1990s, Adham had been committed to Islamic prayer since a young age, calling the adhan for worshippers at his local mosque, and even leading them in prayer.[6] His maternal grandfather had likewise served as the Sheikh of a Sarajevo mosque, who was killed during the Bosnian War in 1992 when a shell hit his mosque.[6]

When one of Adham's sisters, Nuhad, started studying sport's education at the Yarmouk University in 2002, he accompanied her during her travel to Amman to attend refereeing courses for five months. After her accreditation in November 2002, she started participating in tournaments such as the Amman Club, the Orthodox Club, and the Jordan Youth Club, during which Adham would accompany her as well. Nuhad attributes Adham's early interest in refereeing due to his recurring trips with her. Adham then enrolled in a refereeing course in 2004, after which he was accredited as a referee by the Jordan Football Association in 2005 at the age of 18.[6]

In addition to his refereeing career, Makhadmeh graduated from the Jordan University of Science and Technology with a bachelor's degree in civil engineering in 2010.[6] As of 2026, he also works as a Resident Engineer at the West Irbid Wastewater Network Project with Engicon, an Amman-based engineering firm.[7][3]

Career

Makhadmeh at the 2018 AFC Champions League

Makhadmeh started his sports career as an assistant referee for the Jordan Football Association in 2007, and afterwards served as a main referee for the first time in a match between Wehdat and Yarmouk football clubs.[8] Since then, he had aspired to join the FIFA World Cup as a referee, accordingly joining several referee training courses.[6] Makhadmeh was awarded a FIFA international refereeing badge in 2013, upon reaching the minimum eligible age of 25.[6]

By 2014, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) had designated him as an elite referee, which later allowed him to referee the first leg of the 2017 AFC Champions League final between Al Hilal SFC and Urawa Red Diamonds.[6] Makhadmeh and a Jordanian refereeing team competed for one of Asia's six refereeing spots for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, but came in seventh place.[6] He then refereed the opening match of the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, and some matches of the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup.[6]

In April 2026, Makhadmeh was appointed to the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North America, serving alongside two fellow Jordanian assistant referees.[9] He oversaw his first game in the tournament on 15 June in the Group H match between Spain and Cape Verde.[10][11] He was selected as the 4th official for the final.[12]

Personal life

Makhadmeh is married and has three sons and a daughter.[6] He enjoys being in nature, and hunting as a sport.[6]

Notable appointments

2023 AFC Asian Cup
Date Match Venue Round
16 January 2024 Thailand  2–0  Kyrgyzstan Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium, Doha Group F
2025 FIFA Arab Cup
Date Match Venue Round
2 December 2025 Saudi Arabia  2–1  Oman Education City Stadium, Al Rayyan Group B
6 December 2025 Sudan  0–2  Iraq Stadium 974, Doha Group D
12 December 2025 Algeria  1–1 (a.e.t)  United Arab Emirates
6–7 (PK)		 Al Bayt Stadium, Al Khor Quarter-finals
2026 FIFA World Cup
Date Match Venue Round
15 June 2026 Spain  0–0  Cape Verde Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta Group H
26 June 2026 New Zealand  1–5  Belgium BC Place, Vancouver Group G
1 July 2026 England  2–1  DR Congo Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta Round of 32
6 July 2026 United States  1–4  Belgium Lumen Field, Seattle Round of 16

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Jordan – Adham Makhadmeh – Profile with news, career statistics and history". soccerway.com. Retrieved 26 March 2024.
  2. ↑ FIFA. "Jordan: Referees" Archived 2018-01-10 at the Wayback Machine.
  3. 1 2 "دخل التحكيم بسبب شقيقته.. من هو الأردني مخادمة المرشح لقيادة نهائي المونديال؟". Arabi21 (in Arabic). Retrieved 17 July 2026.
  4. ↑ H. H. (16 June 2026). "S ponosom nosi bosanski pasoš i govori bosanski: Ko je sudija utakmice između Španije i Zelenortskih Ostrva" (in Bosnian). Klix.ba. Retrieved 16 June 2026.
  5. ↑ "FIFA-in sudija s bh. korijenima: Adham Makhadmeh ima bh. pasoš, braća mu žive u Sarajevu". crna-hronika.info (in Bosnian). 16 June 2026. Retrieved 16 June 2026.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 "أدهم مخادمة.. مهندس أردني قادته صافرة التحكيم إلى كأس العالم" (in Arabic=work=Al Jazeera). Retrieved 17 July 2026.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link)
  7. ↑ "Engicon". Engicon. Retrieved 17 July 2026.
  8. ↑ "صافرة أردنية في المونديال.. كيف أصبح المخادمة حكما دوليا؟". Al Mamlaka (in Arabic). Retrieved 17 July 2026.
  9. ↑ "FIFA World Cup 2026 spotlight: Adham Makhadmeh – AFC Referee". the-AFC. Retrieved 2026-06-15.
  10. ↑ Moreno Mena, Miguel (2026-06-13). "El mal recuerdo de De la Fuente con España del árbitro que dirigirá el debut contra Cabo Verde: la lesión de Dani Ceballos y la falta de "suerte"". infobae (in European Spanish). Retrieved 2026-06-15.
  11. ↑ "Adham Makhadmeh arbitrará el debut de España en la Copa del Mundo 2026 | www.rfef.es". rfef.es (in Spanish). Retrieved 2026-06-15.
  12. ↑ "Who Are The Referees For The 2026 World Cup Final?". www.foxsports.com. Retrieved 2026-07-21.
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