The 48th edition of the Copa América clinched by Argentina and hosted by the United States witnessed women referees breaking through the barriers and creating history. Copa América 2024 became the first edition in the history of the oldest national team tournament to be officiated by female referees. The 2024 Copa América included a total of 101 match officials, eight out of which were female. The revolutionary decision of South America’s football ruling body CONMEBOL  to include women as official referees in the 2024 Copa América edition served as a leading example to encourage women’s participation in such male-dominated sports. 

In this article, we will take a look at the top five female referees who created history at the Copa América 2024. 

• Edina Alves Batista

Brazilian association female football referee, Edina Alves Batista, has officiated numerous high-stakes soccer tournaments, including the 2018 Copa América Femenina, the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup in France and the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Australia. Edina Alves Batista was one of the eight women referees to officiate the recently concluded 2024 Copa América tournament. The Brazilian female football referee undoubtedly made history by solidifying her place as one of the top five female referees to officiate at the 48th edition of the Copa América. Ahead of the Paris Olympics 2024, Edina Alves Batista has also been picked up by FIFA as a crucial member of the officiating pool, speaking volumes about her inspiring officiating journey. 

• Tori Penso

Mary Victoria Penso, popularly referred to as “Mary Victoria” and “Tori Penso”, is the second on our list of top five female referees who made history at the Copa América 2024. Mary Victoria officiated the match between Bolivia and Panama on July 2, 2024, and solidified herself as the first woman referee to officiate a high-action match in the history of Copa América. Earlier, Mary Victoria Penso also smashed the record for being the first American woman referee to officiate a FIFA World Cup match at the 2023 FIFA World Cup Final. Additionally, Mary Victoria also officiated the opening match of the 2023 FIFA Club World Cup in Saudi Arabia. Furthermore, the American referee Mary Victoria will also be officiating for FIFA at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.

• Tatiana Guzmán

Nicaraguan Association football referee and former football player, Tatiana Auxiliadora Guzmán Alguera, popularly referred to as “Tatiana Guzman”, was also a part of the officiating pool at the 2024 Copa América, revolutionizing the history of the oldest continental football tournament. Tatiana Guzman was picked by South America’s football ruling body CONMEBOL to officiate the 2024 Copa América as a video assistant referee, which happened for the first time in the history of the Copa América tournament, garnering immense praise and acknowledgement from the football aficionados and global sports fraternity at large. Tatiana Guzman did an incredible job as a video assistant referee (VAR) and established herself as one of the top five female referees to make history at the 2024 Copa América.

• Migdalía Rodriguez

Migdalía Rodriguez served as a leading example for women referees at the 2024 Copa América to thrive and achieve exemplary milestones. Migdalía Rodriguez officiated the 48th edition of Copa América as an assistant referee and successfully solidified her place as one of the top five female referees to make history at the Copa América 2024. Apart from her formidable feat at the 2024 Copa América, Migdalía Rodriguez has also achieved numerous other phenomenal milestones as a female referee. Migdalía Rodriguez was the first woman referee to officiate a Caribbean series game that took place in Jalisco, Mexico on February 3, 2018. Additionally, Migdalía Rodriguez also became the first female referee ever to officiate a World Baseball Classic Game in 2023. 

• Kathryn Nesbitt

Kathryn Nesbitt has been a prominent name in the world of football, officiating in numerous high-stakes football leagues and tournaments. American female referee Kathryn Nesbitt made highlights for being the first female referee ever to officiate FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar. Additionally, Kathryn Nesbitt also created history after being selected as the first female referee to officiate in the Major League Soccer (MLS) playoffs in 2020. The 48th edition of Copa América proved to be yet another game changer for the trailblazer as she was officially selected by the CONMEBOL to officiate the 2024 Copa América as a video assistant referee (VAR), making her way gracefully into our list of top five female referees to make history at the 2024 Copa América.

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Over the past few decades, football as a sport has transitioned towards gender equality and has uplifted the integrity of the game with an active inclusion of women in all spheres. Although the sport of football has been predominantly dominated by men since its inception, the past few decades have witnessed active participation from women, like prominent football players, as well as the best female referees. 

The leading governing bodies of football from around the world have laid their focus on gender inclusion in the game of football, providing women athletes and officiating personnel with a plethora of glitzy career opportunities. Although in the initial phases of women’s inclusion in football’s officiating arena was highly underrated, the prominent female referees, including Kate Jacewicz, Maria Rebello, Casey Reibelt, Yoshimi Yamashita and many others proved their dominance on the field and, as a consequence of their unwavering passion, courage and skill set, currently women referees are successfully officiating the high-profile football tournaments, such as the FIFA Women’s World Cup and domestic leagues. 

Let’s have a look at the top five best female referees in the history of football

1. Stephanie Frappart

Professional French football female referee, Stephanie Frappart, has officiated numerous high-profile football tournaments in her officiating career. Stephanie Frappart’s name has been an active inclusion in the FIFA International Referees List since 2009. Frappart created history in 2019 as she became the first female referee in the history of football to officiate a major men’s European match and a French Ligue 1 match. Additionally, Frappart also established herself as the first-ever female referee to officiate a UEFA Champions League match in the year 2020.

Moreover, Frappart is also widely revered as the first female referee to take charge of a men’s World Cup qualifying match in the same year. Frappart’s fair and prompt decision-making skills also made her serve as the first female referee in the history of football to officiate a men’s World Cup match in 2022. Furthermore, Stephanie Frappart was also a part of the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup’s officiating team, in Australia and New Zealand.

2. Salima Mukansanga

Salima Mukansanga has been passionate about football and basketball since her childhood days. Although Mukansanga couldn’t pursue her professional career in basketball due to her young age, she undertook a professional football officiating course at the Rwanda Football Federation and officiated men’s local amateur football matches and women’s national second division matches in Rwanda after completing her nursing and midwifery degree from the University of Gitwe.

Salima Mukansanga has been a stable inclusion in the list of international referees for FIFA since 2012. Additionally, Mukansanga also officiated the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup which was held in France. As of 2024, Salima Mukansanga has officiated at numerous high-profile tournaments, including the Olympics, FIFA Women’s World Cup, Africa Women’s Cup of Nations and CAF Women’s Champions League. Moreover, Salima Mukansanga was felicitated as one of the BBC 100 Women in December 2022 for her significant contributions to the game of football.

3. Yoshimi Yamashita

Born on 20th February 1986, the 38-year-old professional Japanese female referee, Yohsimi Yamashita,  has established herself as one of the most influential women in football. Yohsimi Yamashita has officiated numerous prestigious football tournaments, including the FIFA World Cup, Olympics and league matches. Yoshimi Yamashita nailed her role as a referee at the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup held in France and at the spine-chilling match between the United States and Sweden at the 2020 Summer Olympics.

Additionally, Yoshimi established herself as the first Japanese female referee to ever officiate a men’s 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. Furthermore, Yoshimi Yamashita is also globally acknowledged for being the first female football referee to officiate both the men’s AFC Champions League and the J1 League. Yoshimi Yamashita’s revolutionary officiating career also included a record-breaking review during the match between Norway and New Zealand at the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, where the Japanese referee became the first female referee to deliver an in-stadium explanation of a video-reviewed decision in the history of women’s international football. 

4. Kate Jacewicz 

Professional football referee Katherine Margaret Jacewicz was listed on FIFA’s list of international referees in 2011 and, since then, she has witnessed active inclusion in high-profile international football tournaments.

Kate Jacewiz made her FIFA breakthrough with the Final match of the 2016 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup which was held in Jordan. Later, Kate was also selected as one of the twenty-seven polished referees for the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup. Although Kate officiated only a total of two matches in the entire 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup, her presence was felt by millions of fans and supporters throughout the world.

Moreover, Kate Jacewiz officiated the A-League match between Melbourne City and Newcastle Jets in the 2019–20 A-League season and established herself as the first female football referee to achieve the feat in such a brief span of time. Furthermore, the Australian female referee, Katherine Margaret Jacewicz, also officiated a total of two matches at the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup which took place in Australia.

5. Bibiana Steinhaus

Bibiana Steinhaus, from Germany, is one of the top female referees in football. She started her career in 1999 and quickly became well-known for her fair and accurate decisions. In 2007, she made history by being the first woman to referee a men’s professional match in Germany’s 2. Bundesliga.

Steinhaus has been on FIFA’s list of international referees since 2005. She has officiated at major events like the 2011 and 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cups. In 2017, she broke new ground by becoming the first woman to referee a match in Germany’s top league, the Bundesliga.

Her career includes officiating at the UEFA Women’s Champions League and the UEFA Women’s Euro. In 2012, she was chosen to referee the gold medal match at the Olympic Games in London. Steinhaus’s achievements have set a high standard and opened doors for more women to become referees in football.

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