Icon: enlarge
Stéphanie Frappart in action at a men's first division game in France: The men's Champions League is now waiting for them
Photo:
Michel Spingler / AP
The French soccer referee Stéphanie Frappart will make history on Wednesday.
The 36-year-old will be the first woman to lead a men's Champions League game at the match between Juventus and Dynamo Kiev from 9 p.m. (live ticker SPIEGEL.de, TV: DAZN).
Frappart has been whistling games in the French men's first division since April 2019.
In the past year, she was attracted by the fact that she was appointed as referee for the Uefa Supercup between Liverpool and Chelsea.
This made her the first woman to play in a major UEFA men's competitive game.
The Uefa's chief referee, Roberto Rosetti, had certified that she had the “tools” to “survive on the big stage”.
Frappart had "shown over the years that she is one of the best referees in the world," Rosetti said.
Since this season Frappart has also been whistling for Europa League games.
Last month she was the referee for the game between Leicester City and Sorja Luhansk, and last week for the game between Granada and Omonia Nicosia.
Frappart's calling for a game in the premier league, as the Champions League is called, is another milestone in her career.
Frappart used to be an active soccer player herself, but she decided early on for a career as a referee.
As a 19-year-old she was used not only in women's but also in men's games in the seventh French division.
Her main job is for the French Workers' Sports Federation.
Icon: The mirror
hba / dpa
