AIFF Media Team

NEW DELHI: All India Football Federation launched India’s first-ever Referee’s Academy for Women Referees in Gopiballavpur in West Midnapore, West Bengal on Monday (January 17, 2017).

The Academy which was inaugurated by Mr. Churamani Mahato, Minister of Backwards class welfare, Government of West Bengal, aims to “develop Indian women footballers interested in refereeing to top world class referees.”

Speaking to www.the-aiff.com, Col. Goutam Kar, Head of Referees Department, AIFF admitted it was “dream come true.”

“This is the first-ever kind of Academy exclusive for Women Referees in India. I am not aware if there is any similar project anywhere in Asia,” he stated. “Our aim is to continue producing more referees of Uvena’s (Fernandes) calibre and see some of them supervising World Cup matches,” he added.

Uvena is the first Indian Woman Assistant Referee to have officiated in a FIFA U-17 World Cup final match when she officiated in the final of the 2016 U-17 Women’s World Cup in Jordan.

Col. Kar added: “A lot of efforts have been put in place for refereeing development for men and now similar efforts are being made for Women referees development -- more so in the backdrop of the development of women’s football in India, especially with the introduction of Indian Women League. We require more women referees now.”