Stéphanie Frappart will become the first woman to officiate a game at a men’s FIFA World Cup in the competition’s 92-year history.
The 38-year old French referee will take charge of Friday’s (AEDT) Group E game between Germany and Costa Rica.
Frappart will be joined by two assistant referees who are also women– Neuza Back of Brazil and Karen Diaz Medina of Mexico.
This historic trio of women referees is especially significant considering the 2022 World Cup has been surrounded by controversy ever since 2010 when Qatar – known for its horrific human rights record – was chosen as the host.
Before the tournament, Frappart had said she hoped the inclusion of women referees in Qatar would “make things happen” on a broader level.
“It’s a strong sign from FIFA and the authorities to have women referees in that country,” she said.
Achieving this milestone isn’t the first barrier Frappart has broken in her career. She was also the first woman to referee a men’s World Cup qualifier in March, a men’s Champions League game in 2020, the 2019 Women’s World Cup final for FIFA and this year’s French Cup final match.
“The men’s World Cup is the most important sporting competition in the world. I was the first [female] referee in France and in Europe, so I know how to deal with it,” said Frappart, referring to the 2020 Champions League and French Cup matches.
Roughly a week ago, FIFA announced its historic selections of three female referees for the competition in Qatar. While Frappart is set to be the first to officiate a game, the two other women in the pool of referees are Rwandan Salima Mukansanga and Japanese Yoshimi Yamashita.
Chairman of the FIFA Referees Committee has said that the three referees, “were not selected because they are women, but as FIFA referees” and that “they could officiate any game”.
The upcoming match to be refereed by Frappart at Al Bayt Stadium is an important one as four-time World Cup winner Germany is at the bottom of Group E and needs to beat Costa Rica to have any chance of advancing to the round of 16.