FIVE THINGS TO KNOW
For the first time in history, a woman will officiate a meeting of Ligue 1. Stephanie Frappart, 35, was appointed to officiate at the meeting between Amiens and Strasbourg on Saturday. Little known to the general public, it has already been in the spotlight for nearly five years. Europe 1 paints the portrait of Stéphanie Frappart.
Referee in Ligue 2 since 2014
Saturday, she will referee for the first time in Ligue 1. But Stephanie Frappart will not discover the professional world so far. For almost five seasons, she has officiated at many Ligue 2 matches as a central referee. Initially, the whistle was out of the ordinary, but now a classic. This season, she has already refereed fourteen matches of Ligue 2. Since a famous Niort-Brest in August 2014, his presence is no longer surprising. Respected, she will now know the Ligue 1, much more publicized than the lower division.
Not the first woman in Ligue 1
Pioneering whistle, Stephanie Frappart will not be the first woman to wear the referee tunic on the lawns of Ligue 1. In 1996, Nelly Viennot officiated as assistant referee in a first division match. In 2000, during the derby between Strasbourg and Metz, she received a firecracker on the edge of the lawn, from the Strasbourg stands, and was evacuated on a stretcher. The match, stopped, will be finally lost 3-0 by Strasbourg, on green carpet, before being finally replayed behind closed doors, then lost by Strasbourg (1-0). This incident will not prevent him from continuing a long career on the sidelines, completed in 2007, after more than ten years in the elite.
Whistle at the 2019 Women's World Cup
In the spotlight Saturday, Stéphanie Frappart has not finished talking about her. This summer, at the 2019 Women's World Cup, which will be held in France, she will also be the central referee. Last summer, she refereed the finals of the U-20 Women's World Cup in Brittany.
Only woman to be able to live from her functions of referee
In an interview given to AFP , Pascal Garibian, the boss of the referees, explained that Stéphanie Frappart was the only woman to be able to live from her refereeing duties, in "a sort of semi-professionalism with a fixed monthly and match allowances ". According to AFP , the 35-year-old referee still works three days a week, as head of the activities department within the Sports and Gymnastics Federation.
Referee video in Ligue 1, central referee in Coupe de France
For the first time, Stephanie Frappart will be the main referee in Ligue 1. But the meetings of the elite, she already knows. On eight occasions this season, she was named video referee, and officiated in the box office. It will not be the first time that Stephanie Frappart referee players of the elite. Last January, in the Coupe de France, she refereed the 32nd round of AS Saint-Etienne, traveling to an amateur club, Olympique de Strasbourg (6-0). The central referee of a Ligue 1 match was then logical. It's done now.