​France-Spain ref Ivan Barton already gave a controversial World Cup red card and has storied CONCACAF history originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.France and Spain don’t need any additional help making their World Cup semifinal a compelling one.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementBut when FIFA named Ivan Barton as the head referee, they got some help anyway.Barton is from El Salvador, a CONCACAF official with a history of quirky calls in games played by the United States and other teams in that region.Now, he gets the biggest day of his refereeing life.MORE: Christian Pulisic gives a terrible answer after World Cup-ending lossThings got a bit complicated for FIFA when France, Spain and England all made semifinals, as well as Argentina.Referees who are at the tournament from the semifinal countries cannot officiate again.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementSince some of the world’s best refs hail from those countries, it limits the pool of options a bit for the remaining matches.That gave Barton the gig. He certainly warranted selection to this World Cup, but he’s going to have to work hard to live up to this stage.MORE: Actor who played Dani Rojas in Ted Lasso makes pro soccer debutBarton had a big call early in this tournament when he sent off Miguel Almiron for speaking to an opponent with his mouth covered — an automatic red card by the new rules designed to prevent abuse:You’ll surely be watching France take on Spain either way. But yeah, this makes it even more interesting.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementErling Haaland brought a wild $750 gift home from the World CupAn on-brand finish to Neymar’s Brazil careerLionel Messi makes announcer lose his mind in 35-second goal callJordan Henderson got injured celebrating England’s win over Mexico