It’s Super Michelle!
Wexford referee in key role at historic UEFA tie tonight
IRISH referee Michelle O’Neill will make history tonight as part of the first all-female refereeing team to take charge of a major Uefa men’s competition.
French referee Stéphanie Frappart will lead the officiating team during tonight’s Super Cup final between Liverpool and Chelsea in Istanbul, Turkey.
Ms O’Neill will be assistant referee for the match at Besiktas Park along with Manuela Nicolosi of France. All three were also part of the women’s World Cup final refereeing team in July. The fourth official tonight will be Turkey’s Cuneyt Cakir.
Speaking to the BBC, Ms O’Neill said that it was ‘pretty nice to inspire young girls’ and to ‘open up the pathways for kids coming up. That’s pretty special’.
‘But this is not our first time on the big stage,’ said Ms O’Neill, ‘I am one of the first Irish officials in a World Cup final, man or woman, so I already know how to react to all the emotions and keep focus on the task on hand, which is the two teams on Wednesday.’
Ms O’Neill made her first women’s World Cup appearance as an assistant referee in 2015 when the tournament was in Canada – making her the first female Irish referee to officiate in the historic tournament.
Ms Frappart was also recently appointed to be a referee in France’s Ligue One men’s league.
During a pre-game press conference, Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp said that he was really happy to be part of a historic moment. ‘I think it’s time that it happens. I’ve had a lot of experience with women referees. I am really happy we can be part of the historical moment,’ said the affable German.
The Uefa Super Cup is a match between the winners of the Champions League, this year Liverpool, and the winners of the Europa League, Chelsea. The game will kick off at 8pm tonight and will be live on Virgin Media One. ronan.smyth@dailymail.ie
‘I’m really happy we can be part of it’