Rwanda referee Salima Mukansanga has stepped down at the age of 36 after an impressive 12-year career. In an interview on 22 October 2024, she explained that the decision to retire was her own. She will, however, continue as Video Assistant Referee.
Mukansanga, an international football referee from Rwanda since 2012, originally began in basketball before transitioning to football, where she made her mark and made history. Salima has officiated at the Olympics, FIFA Women's World Cup, Africa Women Cup of Nations and CAF Women's Champions League. In 2022 she was one of three women referees selected to officiate at the FIFA World Cup to be hosted in Qatar, making her among the first women to officiate at the Men's World Cup and the first female African to officiate at the men's top football event on 22 November 2022. She was the fourth official when France, the defending champions, defeated Australia 4–1.
In 2022, Mukansanga also became the first woman to referee at the African Cup of Nations, leading out an all-woman officiating team of Fatiha Jermoumi (Morocco), Carine Atemzabong (Cameroon), and Bouchra Karboubi (Morocco) as VAR. She was recognized by BBC as one of the 100 most influential women in December 2022 and in 2023 FIFA appointed her to the officiating pool for the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.
Source: Spoorts
