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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
Sport
George Flood

Rebecca Welch to make history as first female to referee Premier League game

Rebecca Welch is set to become the first female referee ever to take charge of a Premier League fixture this month, while Sam Allison will be the first black official to referee in the English top-flight for 15 years.

Welch will be the main official on December 23 when Fulham host Burnley in a 3pm GMT pre-Christmas kick-off at Craven Cottage.

Meanwhile, Allison will be the referee on Boxing Day when Sheffield United entertain Luton at Bramall Lane.

Welch has already made plenty of history as the first woman ever to referee an EFL match back in November 2021, when she took charge of Harrogate vs Port Vale in League Two.

Sam Allison has been refereeing in the Championship this season (Getty Images)

She was also the first female referee to oversee a men's FA Cup match in January 2022 in the game between Birmingham and Plymouth.

Trailblazer Welch, who turned professional in 2019, is also vastly experienced in the women's game, having refereed at the Women's World Cup this year and in the Women's Super League (WSL) and Women's FA Cup finals.

Allison, meanwhile, will be the first black official to referee a Premier League game since the retirement of Uriah Rennie in 2008 following his 11-year career.

Since 2020, the former non-league player and fireman has been just the third black referee to take charge of EFL matches, after Rennie and Trevor Parkes.

This season he has been refereeing at Championship level.

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