Argentina's Nestor Pitana to referee World Cup final

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Having been officiated by Horacio Elizondo back in the 2006 final, France will once more see an Argentine take control of a World Cup decider

FIFA have named Argentinian Nestor Pitana as the referee for Sunday's World Cup final between France and Croatia.

The 43-year-old officiated the tournament's opening game between Russia and Saudi Arabia and was in charge for France's quarter-final victory over Uruguay, as well as Croatia's last-16 clash with Denmark.

He is joined by assistant referees Hernan Maidana and Juan Belatti, as well as fourth official Bjorn Kuipers.

France booked their spot in the final in Moscow with a slender win over Belgium, while Croatia edged past England to seal their place in a World Cup final for the first time in their history.

Curiously, an Argentine was also in charge of officiating duties the last time that France made the World Cup final. 

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In 2006, Horacio Elizondo was chosen alongside compatriots Dario Garcia and Rodolfo Otero to oversee Les Bleus' clash with Italy

Elizondo became an infamous figure in France due to his decision to send off captain Zinedine Zidane in his final international match for a headbutt on Marco Materazzi. 

Without their star, France fell to a penalty shoot-out defeat, handing Marcello Lippi's Azzurri their fourth World Cup title.