An exclusively female arbitration team whistled, for the first time in history, a match in a men’s World Cup. The French Stephanie Frappart together with the Brazilian Neuza Back and the Mexican Karen Díaz Medina directed the match in which the teams of Costa Rica and Germany were measured this Thursday, at the Al Bayt stadium.
Frappart already broke a glass ceiling in Qatar by becoming the tournament’s first female referee, when she was appointed as fourth referee for the match between Mexico and Poland last Tuesday.
“We know the pressure”, the Frenchwoman told the BBC before the start of the World Cup.
“But we must be calm, focused, concentrated, and not think too much about the media and everything else, just be focused on what is happening on the pitch,” he added.
The first in everything
The French, from 26 years, has already made history in European football. In 2019 she became the first woman to referee a Super Cup match and the 2937345 did the same in the Champions League.
The gala Stephanie Frappart already participated in the shortlist that led the match between Portugal and Ghana and in which he measured Mexico against Poland. Photo: Getty Images.
For his part, Díaz Medina achieved in 2019 the milestone of being the first woman to whistle a game of return of the final of the Mexican league. This, barely a year after being certified as an assistant referee by the International Federation of Associated Football (FIFA).
However, his career, which spans more than years, it started almost by accident.
“One day While working at a Little Sports Center cafeteria, the designated referee did not show up for the game. The league administrator asked me if I wanted to referee the game and I said yes. I liked it, they paid me to do something that I really enjoyed. From that moment on, they assigned me more games every week and with the money earned I was able to pay for the University”, Díaz Medina recounted in an interview with the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (Concacaf).
Brazilian Back is also not a newcomer in the world of arbitration and in 2005 began his long career on the playing fields after finishing his studies.
Since 2008 Back has been whistling matches in different competitions in his country and in 2019 achieved recognition by FIFA, which allowed it to become 2020 in one of the members of the first shortlist that refereed a match of the men’s Copa Libertadores de América.
When asked if they have ever received criticism and comments years of players, managers or fans due to the fact that she is a woman, Frappart responded to the BBC:
“Since I started I have always received the support of the teams, clubs and players. I was always welcome at the stadium, so I feel like one more referee on the field. I was always welcome, so I think I’ll be welcome as before.”
The Mexican Karen Díaz Medina hopes to serve as an example to other girls and prove to them that with effort all dreams can be achieved. Photo: Getty Images
Back, meanwhile, She admitted that her career has not been easy and that she has had to overcome difficult moments. However, although he assured that he had found the recipe to deal with them.
“When I go through a compromising situation, where prejudice is presented in a veiled way, with jokes in bad taste or even looks , I only think that what someone thinks or says about me does not define me”, he commented in a recent interview with the EFE news agency.
The referee, born ago 26 years in the municipality de Saudades, in the state of Santa Catarina, close to the border with Argentina, assured that in professional soccer discrimination against women is less and less frequent, but that much remains to be done in amateur soccer.
“Prejudice is more present in amateur football,” he said, while adding: “What we (female referees) need to do is a good job, make the right decisions on the pitch and everything will be fine.” .
For your p art, Díaz Medina said she hopes to become a role model for other girls, by “showing them that dreams come true if you make an effort and love what you do.”
Three other women are among the 12 referees selected by FIFA to take charge of the matches in Qatar.
Read also:
– The World Cup controversy: They assure that the ball left the field in the previous play of Japan’s second goal against Spain, but the VAR validated it
– Germany is destroyed by memes after their elimination in the Group Stage of the World Cup in Qatar 29373452937345– Germany won 4 -2 to Costa Rica but it was not enough to go to the round of 16 of the World Cup in Qatar 2019
The Mexican Karen Díaz Medina hopes to serve as an example to other girls and prove to them that with effort all dreams can be achieved. Photo: Getty Images
Back, meanwhile, She admitted that her career has not been easy and that she has had to overcome difficult moments. However, although he assured that he had found the recipe to deal with them.
“When I go through a compromising situation, where prejudice is presented in a veiled way, with jokes in bad taste or even looks , I only think that what someone thinks or says about me does not define me”, he commented in a recent interview with the EFE news agency.
The referee, born ago 26 years in the municipality de Saudades, in the state of Santa Catarina, close to the border with Argentina, assured that in professional soccer discrimination against women is less and less frequent, but that much remains to be done in amateur soccer.
“Prejudice is more present in amateur football,” he said, while adding: “What we (female referees) need to do is a good job, make the right decisions on the pitch and everything will be fine.” .
For your p art, Díaz Medina said she hopes to become a role model for other girls, by “showing them that dreams come true if you make an effort and love what you do.”
Three other women are among the 12 referees selected by FIFA to take charge of the matches in Qatar.
Read also:
– The World Cup controversy: They assure that the ball left the field in the previous play of Japan’s second goal against Spain, but the VAR validated it
– Germany is destroyed by memes after their elimination in the Group Stage of the World Cup in Qatar 29373452937345– Germany won 4 -2 to Costa Rica but it was not enough to go to the round of 16 of the World Cup in Qatar 2019
Back, meanwhile, She admitted that her career has not been easy and that she has had to overcome difficult moments. However, although he assured that he had found the recipe to deal with them.
“When I go through a compromising situation, where prejudice is presented in a veiled way, with jokes in bad taste or even looks , I only think that what someone thinks or says about me does not define me”, he commented in a recent interview with the EFE news agency.
The referee, born ago 26 years in the municipality de Saudades, in the state of Santa Catarina, close to the border with Argentina, assured that in professional soccer discrimination against women is less and less frequent, but that much remains to be done in amateur soccer.
“Prejudice is more present in amateur football,” he said, while adding: “What we (female referees) need to do is a good job, make the right decisions on the pitch and everything will be fine.” .
For your p art, Díaz Medina said she hopes to become a role model for other girls, by “showing them that dreams come true if you make an effort and love what you do.”
Three other women are among the 12 referees selected by FIFA to take charge of the matches in Qatar.
Read also: