Olubunmi Odejimi
The Fifa world cup 2022 came with so many shockers from host nation Qatars strict rules to an upgraded VAR. One major highlight of the game is Stephanie Frappart who made history by being the first-ever female referee to officiate at a Men’s football tournament.
In the last four decades , the world has seen the emergence of the female gender breaking records, taking up men-dominated roles in vast areas of life known only by society to be male suitable .
The FIFA world cup dates far back as 1930 and never in its history had a female referee officiate the prestigious male tournament until 2022.
The host Nation Qatar has a very strict and conservative government that restricts Qatari women from doing a lot of things without the guardianship or permission of a father , brother husband or uncle and being a French(white) female referee in such atmosphere comes with immence pressure and scrutiny .
Stéphanie Frappart (born 14 December 1983) is a French football referee. She has been on the FIFA International Referees List since 2009, and has refereed several high-profile matches.
Prior to Qatar 2022, Frappart was also the first woman to referee a major mens European match and a French Ligue 1 match , both in 2019 . She is also the first woman to officiate a UEFA Champions League match in 2020. In 2021 during the qualifying stages of the world cup , Stephanie was the first woman to also take charge of a mens World Cup qualifying match that saw Netherlands beat Latvia 2-0 in Amsterdam.
When a referee generates column inches, it is normally some indictment of their performance; the result of an uproar after a controversial decision. In Stéphanie Frappart’s case, traditional anonymity has been broken for a different reason after making this historic breakthrough alongside two other assistant female referees.
If you are a football enthusiast you should know that at the World Cup, on football’s biggest stage, the pressure of refereeing a game is at its most intense.
A referee might make 245 decisions in a single game, as estimated, and if just one is wrong, it will be analyzed in microscopic detail.
