This Sunday, February 7, Sarah Thomas is about to make history! She is the first woman to officiate the biggest game in the NFL, the Super Bowl.
The Kansas City Chiefs will face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers this Sunday, February 7 in the Super Bowl. If this is the most anticipated game of the year, it promises to mark a turning point in the history of the National Football League, the professional league of American football. Indeed, for the very first time, a woman will umpire the game!
Sarah Thomas prepares to make history in her black and white striped jersey. "When I get on the pitch, I know that tears will probably come to my eyes ", admitted the 47-year-old American.
The young woman has been an American football referee since 1996 but feared she would never advance to college after an official assured her he would never assign her to a game because of her gender. Spotted by NFL recruiter Joe Haynes, she joined Conference USA, an inter-university group based in the southern United States, before shining in training camps with the New Orleans Saints and Indianapolis Colts. The year 2015 marks a real turning point for her when she becomes the first full-time female referee in the NFL as a linesman and then the first to officiate in a 2019 play-offs. Sarah Thomas continues her ascent today by becoming the first female referee in the Super Bowl. "When I started refereeing, there were very few women in American football … The other day, I received an email from some referees from abroad, you can see the impact at worldwide. My message to them is: 'Do it, because you like it, not because you want to be recognized'"she said.
More women officiating at the highest levels in men's sports
Like Sarah Thomas, more and more women are asserting themselves at the highest levels in so-called "men's" sports in the United States. Last December, Kathryn Nesbitt became the first woman to referee a championship game in the MLS Cup of soccer.
Recently, two of the three referees in the NBA game between the Orlando Magic and the Charlotte Hornets were for the first time ever women, Nathalie Sago and Jenna Schroeder. The American Basketball League now has five full-time female referees. While that number may seem small, it is a record. Seven years ago when Lauren Holtkamp-Sterling started officiating on the basketball courts, she was the only woman. Now she is delighted to see more and more female referees in different sports.
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