The Super Bowl’s First Female Referee

The 2021 55th Super Bowl created history by having the first female referee. Sarah Thomas was the first woman to officiate a Super Bowl game. Sarah Thomas is a 47 year old married American woman and she was born in Pascagoula, Mississippi. She was also the first woman to officiate a college football game.

Thomas wears number 53. Pro Football Network has described her, “Sarah Thomas, An NFL official, has defied the odds throughout her professional career, competing for positions in the male-dominated industry of football officiating.” She had first started her career in football at high school football games. Her position comes with overloading amounts of pressure and stress, considering that she makes the decisions of the game that lead to the winner. 

Lori Locust was another female who coached the Tampa Bay Buccaneers who made history. She is a mom of two kids who was able to achieve her career in football in her 50s as an assistant line coach. She worked very hard to get to where she was considering that “She lost her job, and the bills kept coming. She had the choice to either fully commit to coaching, or go back into the workforce.” Locust had to take a big chance on her future and be sure to make the right decision. She decided to continue going towards football since her kids were older and she had more time on her hands. She worked her way up to where she was through all the time she spent with other teams trying to be successful. 

These women have participated in creating an equal opportunity for each gender to participate in sport careers and defeat stereotypes against women. They are leading the path for other women to pursue careers that are typically dominated by men.