French Stephanie Frappart will become the first female referee to lead a men's match in the history of the FIFA World Cup, after she was appointed to officiate the Germany-Costa Rica match, Thursday, in the third and final round of Group E in the World Cup in Qatar, according to what the International Federation "FIFA" announced.

Frappar, Rwandan Salima Mukansanga, and Japanese Yoshimi Yamashita were included in the list of 36 referees selected by FIFA for the Qatar World Cup, while 3 other women participated as assistant referees.

The three arena referees were chosen in addition to the assistant referees, and they are: Brazilian Noiza Pak, Mexican Karen Dias Medina, and American Kathryn Nesbitt, in a historical precedent whose goal was to throw them into men's competitions and steal the limelight more than benefit from their competence in managing World Cup matches, with evidence that their use On the field, I was delayed until the 44th match in the World Cup.

The role of the referees who were used by the FIFA Referees Committee during the previous 43 matches was limited to being present in abundance as a fourth referee or a backup referee for the assistants, a task that any novice referee can perform to the fullest, because it did not cross the borders into the green rectangle except to take memorial photos at the beginning the match.

Note that the women’s tournaments in FIFA do not seek the help of any referee from men, although they are the most competent of course, but this is because the presence of men in the women’s stadiums will not have any display, on the contrary, they will steal the lights from the referees and impose themselves to manage the most difficult matches, which is something he does not like. FIFA Women's Referee Department.

Collina, head of the FIFA Referees Committee, speaks to Infantino (communication sites)

Fulfill the wish of the FIFA Women's Referee Director

Al-Jazeera Net had an interview with American Carrie Seitz, director of women's arbitration in FIFA, during one of the women's referee camps in Doha, and she said that she "dreams that women referees run men's matches in major tournaments and the World Cup."

Indeed, part of her dream came true by appointing the 38-year-old Frenchwoman, Frappar, with a female staff to manage the European Super Cup final in 2019 between Liverpool and Chelsea, before leading matches in the Champions League in 2020, and then the French Cup final last season.

Being selected for the World Cup in Qatar seemed like the logical next step, after her rapid rise in refereeing at the highest level in Europe.

She was the first woman to officiate a Ligue 1 match in France in 2019, and the same year she officiated the Women's World Cup final in her home country.

Frappar appointed a fourth referee during the World Cup in Qatar in the matches between Mexico and Poland, Portugal and Ghana in the group stage competitions.

"It is a real pleasure and honor for us women to work with men for the success of the World Cup," Mukansanga said before the start of the Qatar World Cup.

For his part, Pierluigi Collina, head of the Referees Committee at the Italian FIFA, said, "We clearly affirm that it is quality that matters to us, not gender."

But it responds to Collina's statement that as long as quality was the most important, why were they not used during the first 43 matches in the World Cup in Qatar, despite the repeated appointment of many referees, including his compatriot who managed the opening match?

Will they be used in the playoffs?

Are they better than the male referees who run the strong matches in the European Championships and were not even chosen among the World Cup referees?

The answers to these questions may indicate that the matter does not go beyond the desire of the FIFA Referees Committee to simply show off and satisfy the women's associations and the FIFA Women's Arbitration Director, except in one case: to hold the flag and the whistle in the elimination rounds from the final price round until the final match.

  • Former international referee