Fulham's home match against Burnley on December 23 will produce a piece of Premier League history when Rebecca Welch becomes the first woman to referee an English top flight match. GB News provides an insight into who Welch is and her journey to becoming a Premier League official.
Welch previously worked in the support services for the NHS before taking the steps into football refereeing in 2010 at the age of 27 after being challenged to do by a friend.
She continued working for the health service until 2019, but was beginning to make waves on the refereeing circuit.
The Tyne and Wear-born official began progressing up the tiers of the FA’s referee pathway to the point she felt confident enough to take a break from her NHS job and concentrate on the game.
Rebecca Welch will make Premier League history
PA
After building a wealth of experience at the top of the women's game, including refereeing at international level and the 2020 women's FA Cup final, she made history by becoming the first woman appointed to officiate an EFL match in 2021.
More history was made a few months later when she became the first female referee to take charge of an FA Cup third-round tie in January 2022.
She was subsequently added to the EFL's national list for men's football and took charge of 19 matches up and down the English football league ladder last season.
But like other women officials, Welch has had to contend with misogynistic chants from football fans.
Two teenagers were arrested for abusive chants aimed at Welch during Birmingham City's match against Sheffield Wednesday last month.
English football has also been behind other leading nations in picking female officials for the top division with Bibiana Steinhaus first officiating in the Bundesliga six years ago.
French referee Stephanie Frappart has also been refereeing in Ligue 1 since 2019 as well as taking charge of a men's World Cup match last year.
But the Premier League has finally made the step up to appointing Welch as the first female referee for England's top flight.
PGMOL chief Howard Webb called Welch's appointment "significant" with the 40-year-old taking charge of Fulham's game against Burnley.
And former Premier League official Mark Clattenburg is relieved to see the English top flight catch up with other leagues.
Rebecca Welch took charge of an FA Cup third round match last year
PA
"This news is long overdue, and having known Rebecca Welch for close to a decade, this could not happen to a more deserving referee," he told the Daily Mail.
"The Premier League have lagged behind others in making this move. Stephanie Frappart has been used in France’s Ligue 1. Maria Sole Ferrieri Caputi has been used in Italy’s Serie A.
"Howard Webb was in charge of the MLS in the United States when the whistle was handed to Tori Penso.
"It is good to see Webb bringing this inclusion to the Premier League now that he is head of the PGMOL. But this is no token gesture. Welch has earned it.
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"Like all of us who officiated in the world’s most elite league, she worked her way up from the very bottom by putting in the hard yards."
He added: "When it comes to making decisions in a match, from as minor as a throw-in to as major as a last-minute penalty, it should not matter if you are male or female.
"All that matters is if you are accurate or inaccurate, and having seen Welch in action, she is someone who keeps controversy at a minimum."
