Female referees at the World Cup will not face restrictions based on cultural or religious grounds in matches involving conservative nations such as Iran, Saudi Arabia or Qatar, referees chief Pierluigi Collina said on Friday.
The Qatar World Cup, which begins on Sunday, will have female referees officiating at a menโs World Cup for the first time.
Rwandaโs Salima Mukansanga, Yamashita Yoshimi of Japan and Frenchwoman Stephanie Frappart along with three female assistant referees have been selected for the global showpiece event.
โIt (presence of female referees) is something new, itโs something that attracts attention, it attracts interest,โ Collina, chairman of the FIFA Referees Committee, told reporters.
โFor us, they are referees, they are match officials. This is the message I gave them. โYou are here not because you are women, you are here because you are FIFA match officialsโ.
โAll match officials can be appointed for all matches. If there are restrictions, because there are restrictions, they are restrictions concerning their role here.
โWe have some restrictions due to neutrality, for instance. But they are here as FIFA World Cup 2022 match officials and they are ready to officiate any kind of match, depending on their performances โฆ depending on our thoughts,โ he added.
Mukansanga said the female referees have been chosen not simply based on their gender but because they deserve the chance.
โWe are here because we deserve to be here. Back at our confederation, or back at home it is another level, so this is the biggest level of football,โ Mukansanga said.
โSo being here means we deserve to be here, itโs not a change or because we are women.โ
Assistant referee Kathryn Nesbitt of the United States said they feel welcome.
โWe feel like we are one referee team here, no difference man or woman,โ she said.
