Who is the referee for Costa Rica vs Germany in the World Cup? First ever all-female ref team

You can follow the live action of the crucial game between Costa Rica and Germany on As.com.

For the first time in history, an all-female team will oversee a match at the Men’s World Cup finals, when Costa Rica and Germany play out their third and final group game at Qatar 2022. Last week, FIFA announced that French match official Stéphanie Frappart had been selected to referee the match; she will be joined by line officials Neuza Back (Brazil) and Karen Díaz (Mexico). The trio will be accompanied by fourth official, Honduran referee Saíd Martínez.

Pioneer in football

Frappart is one of the most experienced female referees in the game, and a true pioneer - the Costa Rica-Germany game represents another first in her career. A mainstay in France’s Ligue 2, she became the first female referee to officiate a Ligue 1 game when she took charge of the Week 34 fixture between Amiens and Strasbourg in April 2019. A few months later, in August 2019, she was designated to oversee the UEFA Super Cup final between Liverpool and Chelsea.

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In March 2021, she refereed the Netherlands meeting with Latvia, becoming the first female to officiate in a Men’s World Cup qualifying match. She was selected again a few months later for Lithuania’s group stage qualifier against Northern Ireland in September.

The 38-year-old has experience in both of UEFA’s top club competitions (Champions League and Europa League) as well as the Nations League, having supervised three matches this year (Belarus-Slovakia, Turkey -Lithuania and Moldova-Liechtenstein). In November 2020, she set another landmark, as the first female ref to take charge of a Men’s Champions League match, overseeing the clash between Juventus and Dynamo Kyiv in Turin.

“A step forward for women”

Both coaches were in favour of Frappart’s appointment to oversee today’s match. Costa Rica coach Luis Fernando Suárez hailed it as a step forward for women in what sometimes has been seens as “sexist sport” and “speaks volumes” for the French match official’s commitment to reach the top level in her chosen profession - one which is dominated by men. “I am a great admirer of everything women have conquered and I like the fact they want to keep on conquering things,” he said in his pre-match press conference, adding, “This is another step forward. This speaks volumes for this woman, of her commitment, especially in this sport which is a very sexist one. It’s very difficult to reach the point that she has reached, I think it’s good for football and a positive step for football, to show that it’s opening up for everyone.”

Germany coach Hansi Flick agreed, telling reporters, “She deserves to be here based on her performance. I hope she is equally looking forward to the game just like we are, and I hope she can deliver a good performance,” he said.

Last week, Frappart became the first female official on duty during the final stage at a Men’s World Cup when she was designated fourth official for Poland’s clash with Mexico in Group C. She is not the only female referee serving at Qatar 2022 - as well as Neuza Back and Karen Díaz, Salima Mukansanga of Rwanda and Yamashita Yoshimi of Japan are also taking part at the tournament.