Rwanda’s Salima Mukansanga made history in Qatar by becoming the first Female African Referee to officiate in a Men’s FIFA World Cup.
Mukansanga was on duty as the fourth official in a Group D match involving defending Champions France and Australia.
The game saw defending champions France, begin their title defense with a convincing victory over Australia thanks to goals from Olivier Giroud who scored twice to surpass Thierry Henry as the team’s all-time leading scorer, Adrien Rabiot, and Kylian Mbappe.
The 34-year-old, Mukansanga, who hit the headlines in January when she became the first woman to officiate at the men’s 33rd edition of the Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon, was selected with other women referees Stephanie Frappart from France and Japan’s Yoshimi Yamashita.
Mukansanga made history at the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations when she was appointed as the center Referee for the game involving Zimbabwe and Guinea.
Mukansanga has a Bachelor’s degree in nursing and is the youngest of the three selected women referee.
