Women's World Cup 2023 Referees & Officials

The referees for the 2023 Women’s World Cup were announced several months before the tournament kicks off in Auckland.

New Zealand and Australia are hosting this summer’s showpiece, leading to some tricky kick-off times for fans in Europe.

The competition comes just 12 months after the Lionesses’ glorious run at the Euros, and Sarina Wiegman’s team are one of the football betting online favourites for the World Cup.

Every confederation has refereeing representation at this tournament. Being involved in the pinnacle of women’s football online betting is a highlight in any career.

Just as players can become a part of football history at the World Cup, the same goes for officials, though there is also the risk of becoming infamous (just ask Graham Poll).

So, let’s take a look at the referees set to be involved in this summer’s World Cup. 

How Were Referees Selected?

Referees for the 2023 Women’s World Cup were selected by FIFA. The worldwide governing body worked closely with the six federations.

The consistency and quality of officials was important, and performances at past FIFA tournaments was paramount. How they have fared in other international and domestic tournaments was also considered.

Pierluigi Collina, an iconic referee turned chairman of the FIFA Referees Committee, said, “As always, the criteria we have used is ‘quality first’ and the selected on-field match officials represent the highest level of refereeing worldwide.

“We all remember the very successful FIFA Women’s World Cup 2019 in France. The high standard of refereeing contributed significantly to that success.

“The aim for the FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023 is to repeat that success and to convince again with excellent referees’ performances.”

Preparation for this tournament begun in 2020, with over 150 officials going through intense training and testing. 

Collina continued, “As we did for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, we are announcing these selections well in advance to be able to work in a purposeful and focused manner with all those who have been appointed for the FIFA Women’s World Cup, monitoring them over the coming months. 

“From the selected referees, we expect a rigorous and focused preparation for the Women’s World Cup, a competition that FIFA and its president hold in the highest of regards.”

The under-17 and under-20 World Cups have been part of the training and preparation process for these officials. 

Kari Seitz, FIFA’s Head of Women Refereeing, discussed the program, “We developed some new programmes to accelerate our referee development, such as our very effective Tracking & Support programme, where each referee candidate was assigned a FIFA coach who provided feedback on their matches each month.

“This programme will continue to be critical in the final phase of preparation for the FIFA Women’s World Cup.”

In the first couple of months of 2023, the officials were involved in seminars in Montevideo and Doha, which involved training sessions with players and reviewing video clips. 

After VAR had a positive impact on the 2019 World Cup, the controversial video system will be used again in Australia and New Zealand. 

Collina noted, “The development of female VARs has been vital for FIFA as part of the Road to Australia & New Zealand project, and we are pleased to have achieved this result. 

“With only a few women’s competitions using VARs, the role of FIFA has been to provide international game experience to women in the U-17 and U-20 Women’s World Cups as well as to encourage member associations using VARs to certify their women referees in this role and appoint them for matches as often as possible.

“While significant progress has been made, more work is still necessary.”

British Officials At The 2023 Women’s World Cup

Five referees from England, Wales and Ireland are featuring at the 2023 Women’s World Cup.

Rebecca Welch, Sian Massey-Ellis, Natalie Aspinall, Cheryl Foster and Michelle O'Neill are all set to appear at the competition in a variety of roles. 

Massey-Ellis is the highest-profile of the quintet, having been a Premier League official for over a decade. Welch has refereed multiple Women’s FA Cup finals, and was added to UEFA elite women’s list in 2020. 

Will VAR be used at the 2023 Women’s World Cup?

Yes, VAR will be used at the 2023 Women’s World Cup. 

VAR at this World Cup will be a bit different from what football fans are accustomed to. This is a trial run of referees explaining their decisions not only to the players on the field, but to the fans watching the match. 

Referees will talk into a microphone, hopefully making it clearer what they have seen on the monitor and giving fans better insight into their process. 

Collina has admitted to some teething problems with this new system, but it will be fascinating to see how effective this is in the intense environement of World Cup contests. 

Women's World Cup Referees List

• Kate Jacewicz

• Kim Yu-jeong

• Oh Hyeon-jeong

• Casey Reibelt

• Yoshimi Yamashita

• Vincentia Amedome

• Bouchra Karboubi

• Akhona Makalima

• Salima Mukansanga

• Marianela Araya

• Marie-Soleil Beaudoin

• Melissa Borjas

• Katia Garcia

• Katja Koroleva

• Myriam Marcotte 

• Tori Penso

• Edina Alves Batista

• Emikar Calderas Barrera

• Maria Carvajal

• Anahi Fernandez

• Laura Fortunato

• Anna-Marie Keighley

• Iuliana Demetrescu

• Maria Sole Ferrieri Caputi

• Cheryl Foster

• Stephanie Frappart

• Marta Huerta de Aza

• Lina Lehtovaara

• Ivana Martincic

• Kateryna Monzul

• Tess Olofsson

• Esther Staubli  

• Rebecca Welch

Women's World Cup Assistant Referees

• Sarah Ho May Yee

• Makoto Bozono

• Joanna Charaktis

• Kim Kyoung-min

• Lee Seul-gi

• Park Misuk

• Heba Saadia

• Naomi Teshirogi

• Ramina Tsoi

• Xie Lijun

• Carine Atezambong Fomo

• Diana Chikotesha

• Soukaina Hamdi

• Fatiha Jermoumi

• Fanta Kone

• Mary Njoroge

• Queency Victorie

• Chantal Boudreau

• Enedina Caudillo

• Karen Diaz Medina

• Felisha Mariscal

• Brooke Mayo

• Kathryn Nesbitt

• Shirley Perello

• Sandra Ramirez

• Mijensa Rensch

• Stephanie Yee Sing

• Monica Amboya

• Neuza Back

• Mary Blanco Bolivar

• Mariana de Almeida

• Daiana Milone

• Liele Moreira de Cruz

• Migdalia Rodriguez Chirino

• Loreto Toloza

• Leslie Vasquez

• Sarah Jones

• Maria Salamasina

• Natalie Aspinall

• Paulina Baranowska

• Elodie Coppola

• Francesca Di Monta

• Polyxeni Iorodotu

• Karolin Kaivoja

• Chrysoula Kourompylia

• Susanne Kung

• Manuela Nicolosi

• Michelle O’Neill

• Franca Overtoom

• Guadalupe Porras Ayuso

• Katrin Rafalski

• Lucie Ratajova

• Sanja Rodak-Karsic

• Maryna Striletska

• Mihaela Tepusa

• Anita Vad

Women's World Cup Video Assistant Referees

• Abdulla Al-Marri

• Chris Beath

• Muhammad Taqi

• Carol Anne Chenard

• Drew Fischer

• Tatiana Guzman

• Armando Villarreal

• Salome Di lorio

• Nicolas Gallo

• Daiane Muniz dos Santos

• Juan Soto

• Ella De Fries

• Marco Fritz

• Alejandro Hernandez Hernandez

• Massimiliano Irrati

• Juan Martinez Munuera

• Sian Massey-Ellis

• Pol van Boekel