Woman tapped to referee Dutch professional men's football for the first time

Shona Shukrula will become the first female head referee to run a men's professional football match in the Netherlands, Dutch football association KNVB announced on Monday. The 33-year-old Alkmaar woman will referee the match between TOP Oss and ADO Den Haag in the Keuken Kampioen Divisie on Friday.

The football division, also known as the Eerste Divisie, is the second highest in the Netherlands. Shukrula was promoted to the group of professional football referees in May.

The referee has been running football matches for the KNVB since the 2009-2010 season. In recent seasons, she was active calling matches for the highest amateur division, the Tweede Divisie.

Shukrula has also participated as the fourth official in the Keuken Kampioen Divisie since 2020. She has already been in charge of women's Champions League matches, as well as European Championships and World Cup qualifying matches.

Three other women have worked as assistant referees in professional football, including Sjoukje de Jong, who was the first in 2001. Nicolet Bakker and Franca Overtoom also made their debut in professional football in 2011 and 2018, respectively. Overtoom has also been on the sideline in the Eredivisie, the top professional football division, since 2020.

She was the only female assistant referee at the highest Dutch football level last season. In recent years, female referees have made their debuts in professional football in countries including France, Germany and England.

TOP Oss is currently in 16th place out of 20 teams in the Keuken Kampioen Divisie, while ADO is in 14th place. The match in Oss will start on Friday at 8 p.m.