Welch makes history as first woman to referee in Premier League

Rebecca Welch etched her name in history on Saturday as the first woman to officiate a Premier League match.

The 40-year-old officiated the Fulham vs. Burnley match at Craven Cottage, which kicked off at 15:00 GMT.

Welch entered refereeing in 2010 while balancing a job in the NHS, transitioning to a full-time official in 2019. In January, she achieved the historic milestone of becoming the first woman to referee a men’s fixture in the Championship.

Returning to Craven Cottage a month after serving as the fourth official during Fulham’s 1-0 Premier League defeat against Manchester United, Welch continued to break barriers.

In 2022, she became the first woman to officiate a match in the FA Cup third-round, having been added to the EFL’s national list for men’s football, overseeing both League One and League Two fixtures.

Hailing from Washington in Tyne and Wear, Welch has been a prominent figure among English officials in the Women’s Super League.

Her contributions were acknowledged on the global stage, earning a spot on FIFA’s elite list of international match officials in December 2020. She went on to referee at the Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand during the summer.

We have not seen a female take charge of a Premier League game ever before,” referees’ chief Howard Webb told BBC Sport.

“We have some really talented officials in the men’s and women’s game. Rebecca is leading that.

“She went to the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand. She has been exposed to some big games and is a really good model for women and girls to think refereeing is for them when previously they didn’t.”