September 11 – Footballing history was written on Sunday when Bibiana Steinhaus became the first ever female referee to take charge of a top flight match in Germany or any of Europe’s five major leagues.
The 38-year-old police officer took charge of the Hertha Berlin versus Werder Bremen match which ended 1-1 and was largely free of controversy, with Steinhaus only having to go into her pocket once to show a yellow card.
She has refereed in Germany’s second tier for six years and also officiated Bayern Munich’s first round German Cup victory over Chemnitze last month. Highly experienced she also refereed the Women’s Champions League final earlier this year and took charge of matches at Euro 2017.
Werder Bremen head coach Alexander Nouri praised her after Sunday’s game. “She has earned it through very good performances – and in the end that is the most important thing.”
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