In many aspects, the 2022 FIFA World Cup surpassed the previous tournaments. For instance, this season’s referee panel has shocked the football world. For the first time in history, women will be seen refereeing men’s football in a global event. In an article published in The Guardian, journalist Christy Dowell called the initiative a positive step for women. Let's take a look at 6 Female Referees who will be seen at the 2022 Football World Cup in Qatar.

Why Did Qatar Take Female Referees?

FIFA is trying to emphasize women separately on the world football map. FIFA’s main aim is to bring women to the forefront. And for that purpose, this novel decision is taken. FIFA has announced the names of three female referees and three female assistant referees.

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According to FIFA Referee Committee Chairman Pierluigi Collin, when choosing the referees, the committee focused on quality, not gender. And female referees will not get any special benefits because of their gender. FIFA is working towards gender equality.

FIFA has been working for a long time on the issue of the appointment of women referees. They were entrusted with match management in various FIFA boy's tournaments and various senior tournaments. This is how they clearly emphasize quality regardless of gender.

These 6 female referees had to pass the same fitness test as the male referees. Their performance is also taken into account like that of their male counterparts.

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Female Referees to Create History in Qatar World Cup

The three women who became the main referee of the World Cup are - Yamashita Yoshimi of Japan, Stephanie Frappart of France, and Salima Mukansanga of Rwanda. Also serving as assistant referees will be Brazil’s Neuza Back, USA’s Kathryn Nesbitt, and Mexico’s Karen Diaz Medina.

Stephanie Frappart

France’s 38-year-old referee Fraparte has served as a FIFA international referee since 2011. She is the most experienced among women referees. She has experience officiating high-profile international matches, including the Women’s World Cup.

Stephanie Frappart started her career as a referee in the women’s league of France football. In 2011, she became the first female referee to officiate a match in the men’s third-division league of French football. Frappart then wrote his name in history by officiating matches in the boys’ second division and French Ligue One in 2019. She was one of the referees of the 2015 and 2019 Women’s World Cup.

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She was the first female referee to officiate a UEFA Super Cup match between Liverpool and Chelsea in 2019. Also managed the 2020 Champions League match between Juventus and Dynamo Kyiv. She was also the first woman to officiate a Champions League match. She also officiates matches at UEFA Women’s Euro 2022.

She was also the referee in the match between Real Madrid and Celtic in the Champions League last October 2. As a reward for managing the regular boys’ matches efficiently, the opportunity has come on a big stage like the World Cup.

Yamashita Yoshimi

The girl who doesn’t want to be a referee has got the important responsibility of managing the match in this year’s World Cup in Qatar! Yamashita Yoshimi once worked as a part-time fitness trainer. He left that job and enrolled in refereeing. A friend forcibly took her to the field to act as a referee at a university match. From then on, Yamashita enjoyed working as a referee.

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In 2019, the 36-year-old female referee officiated a match in the Asian Champions League as the first female referee. She also refereed the United States vs Sweden match at the 2020 Summer Olympics. She also served in the highest league of men’s football in Japan. As a result, she got the opportunity to manage the match in the World Cup 2022.

Salima Mukansanga

34-year-old Salima Mukansanga made history at the beginning of this year. She officiated a match as a female referee for the first time in the men’s African Nations Cup. She has been listed as an international referee for FIFA since 2012.

Like Frappart and Yamashita, she refereed at the 2019 Women’s World Cup in France. She was then found at the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games. She was also an official at CAF Women’s Champions League.

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Salima has been fond of football since childhood. She used to play football in the boys’ team as well as the girls in her area. From there, she became interested in becoming a referee. She once dreamed of becoming a basketball player, but as there were not many opportunities in basketball in Rwanda, she later focused on refereeing.

This 34-year-old woman has been managing matches in various leagues in Rwanda since the age of 20 after taking a referee course.

Neuza Back

Neuza has been a FIFA referee since 2012. Besides she is also affiliated with FPF, CBF, and CONMEBOL. Back took a referee course in 2008, and she started her referee career briefly in 2009. Over the years, she referred several local matches in Brazil until she was listed in FIFA in 2012.

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In 2018, she officiated Copa America Feminina. At Qatar World Cup, Neuza will play her role as an assistant referee.

Kathryn Nesbitt

By refereeing an MLS match between Columbus Crew and Seattle Sounders, Kathryn Nesbitt became the first woman to referee a championship football match in North America. Now she is at the biggest event on the earth. She was a chemist professionally but had a passion for football from childhood. She debuted in 2013 in the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL).

Karen Diaz Medina

Karen Diaz got FIFA assistant referee certification in 2018 and served in several Concacaf tournaments, which include the Women’s U-17 Championship in Managua, Nicaragua, and the Scotiabank Concacaf League. She also played a role as assistant referee at the Men’s Under-20 Championship in Bradenton, Florida.

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In 2020, she was also on the referring team for Women’s Olympic Qualifying in Houston, Texas. Now, Medina is on the big stage. It is a great success for her to reach such a stage in a few years of her career.

Final Words

With these six female referees, FIFA has introduced a new era which is an initiative for women's empowerment in men’s football. Ultimately, FIFA is working on bringing equality to football. As a result, women from around the world will certainly get inspiration to involve more in sports. Not to mention, this encouraging initiative makes the Qatar World Cup unique.