BURNLEY (Reuters) – Rebecca Welch’s appointment as the first female referee to take charge of a Premier League game represents a milestone moment for soccer, Burnley manager Vincent Kompany said on Thursday.
Welch, 40, will have the whistle when Burnley face Fulham at Craven Cottage on Saturday.
“It is a milestone,” Kompany told reporters. “I think she will take great pride in having done it herself. A lot of women, in general, and within the game as well, specifically, will see this as a way to achieve at the highest level.”
Welch, who is a regular referee in the Women’s Super League, was the fourth official for Fulham against Manchester United last month, becoming the first female to fulfil that role in England’s Premier League.
“I am always pro any kind of extension anyway because it just widens the pool of talent and I do think we need access to all the available talent, so we have the best referees in the best league in the world,” Kompany said.
Kompany said he also welcomed the appointment of Sam Allison for the Sheffield United versus Luton Town match on Dec. 26. Allison will be the first Black referee to be selected for a Premier League match since Uriah Rennie in 2008.
“What you have to look at is not necessarily what it means for the person themselves. Behind it there are a lot of people who don’t think it is possible, who don’t think they can achieve it,” Kompany said. “By seeing those examples they will say ‘I could be the next one, maybe I could do something positive'”.
(Reporting by Martyn Herman; Editing by Alexander Smith)
