Rwanda’s Salima Mukansanga Makes History as First Black Woman Referee for FIFA World Cup 2022

By Stacy Jackson

▲Salima Mukansanga of Rwanda in action as she becomes the first woman to referee a match at the fi nals of the Africa Cup of Nations during the Group B Africa Cup of Nations (CAN) 2021 match between Zimbabwe and Guinea at Stade Ahmadou Ahidjo in Yaounde on January 18, 2022. (Photo by Visionhaus/ Getty Images)

THIS BLACK REFEREE is celebrating a lot of fi rsts in her offi ciating career.

Salima Mukansanga, a 34-year-old international football referee from Rwanda, made history in Qatar by becoming the fi rst African woman to offi ciate a Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) World Cup match.

According to Republic World, among the 36 FIFA offi cials, Mukansanga was the fourth offi cial during the France vs. Australia match. Mukansanga offi ciated the Zimbabwe vs Guinea match in AFCON prior to refereeing the FIFA World Cup 2022. In the AFCON Cup Nation’s 65-year history, Mukansanga became the fi rst female referee to offi ciate a match.

BBC Sport Africa reported that this year was the fi rst time women were selected to referee at the men’s World Cup in 92 years of the competition.

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In a recent interview with the outlet, Mukansanga shared her journey as a referee and how honored she was to be selected, despite facing much rejection during the early days.

“It’s an honor and a privilege because it's never happened before ," Mukansanga told

BBC.

“It means you’re going to be the fi rst one and going to open the door for other women, especially in Africa,” she added.

“I didn't know there is a lot to do - laws to follow, a mentality to follow, professionalism inside - but I started to learn step-by-step,"

Mukansanga said.

“It was very diffi cult. When you are reading the laws of the game, it’s easy to understand but inside the fi eld of play, it needs some time to have a smell for the job.”

Mukansanga is one of the fi rst six pioneering women to offi ciate in a men’s global tournament, alongside Stephanie Frappart, Yoshimi Yamashita, and three other assistant referees.

“We are going to work together for the success of women. If a woman is supporting another woman, of course, you are going to see fruits. There are barriers, obstacles, and challenges. There is nothing to do about them than for us to fi ght with a strong mentality, commitment and full engagement – then we will overcome,” Mukansanga said.

Mukansanga also offi ciated the Olympic games in Tokyo. https://www.blackenterprise.com/rwandassalima-mukansanga-makes-history-as-fi rst-blackwoman-referee-for-fi fa-world-cup-2022 Twitter feed: https://twitter.com/ESPNFC/ status/1595726420449562625?ref_ src=twsrc%5Etfw Image credit: Twitter