{"id":88129,"date":"2024-10-24T13:18:19","date_gmt":"2024-10-24T13:18:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/football-fraternity-pays-tribute-to-retiring-referee-mukasanga"},"modified":"2024-10-24T13:38:57","modified_gmt":"2024-10-24T13:38:57","slug":"football-fraternity-pays-tribute-to-retiring-referee-mukasanga","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/sport\/football-fraternity-pays-tribute-to-retiring-referee-mukasanga","title":{"rendered":"Football fraternity pays tribute to retiring referee Mukasanga"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Rwanda. <\/strong><\/span>Tribute continue to pour in for veteran international referee Salima Mukansanga who announced her retirement from international refereeing at the age of 36.<\/p>\n

Mukansanga confirmed her retirement to local sports station B&B Kigali FM although she is yet to inform the Rwanda FA\u2019s referee committee about her decision.<\/p>\n

She will remain active until her current license expires on December 31. However, Times Sport understands that she gave her refereeing career a new direction as she looks to focus on using the Video Assistant Referee(VAR) after attending a series of VAR courses.<\/p>\n

“I was so excited to know her as one of the best referees in country,\u201d said Rayon Sports Women FC striker Florence Imanizabayo. \u201cShe has become an inspiration to the young generation, especially women in football.”<\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s a great achievement for her career when she became the first woman referee to officiate at all the tournaments she has been to. I think history will always remember her as an inspiration,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n

Mukansanga has enjoyed a successful refereeing career spanning a period of 12 years. She acquired her FIFA Badge in 2012.<\/p>\n

She retires as one of Rwanda\u2019s greatest match officials, having officiated big tournaments including men and women\u2019s Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON\/ WAFCON), the men and women\u2019s World Cup and the Olympic Games.<\/p>\n

Mukansanga made history on January 18, 2022 when she became the first woman to officiate at the Africa Cup of National held in Cameroon when she officiated the Group B game between Guinea and Zimbabwe. 2022 was arguably the referee\u2019s golden year during which she was also selected to officiate at the men\u2019s FIFA World Cup which took place in Qatar.<\/p>\n

She officially became the first African woman to handle a men\u2019s World Cup match when France defeated Australia in their opening Group D encounter.<\/p>\n

“It means a lot to everyone who saw her doing her work and she has done something big in in this sport. People believe in her and she has shown good character, attitude and hard work,\u201d Rwandan international refetree Sandrine Murangwa Usenga said of her former colleague.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are convinced that she can do something even bigger. I believe and I know she is capable and hopefully she will be here to inspire the young generation aspiring to follow this profession,” she added<\/p>\n

Usenga has worked with Mukansanga while officiating different matches especially in the topflight league.<\/p>\n

She said, \u201cShe is good an example for everyone who is seeking to be a professional referee. She has a lot inside her and I believe we will learn from her and I hope she will be good instructor because she has a lot to share with others.\u201d<\/p>\n

Born in Rusizi District in the Western Province of Rwanda, Mukansanga did not have an easy debut in refereeing.<\/p>\n

She defied all odds starting in the national football space after being certified by FIFA in 2012 before she took up international match officiating roles in 2014 during the Afcon qualifier match between Zambia and Tanzania.<\/p>\n

Among other achievements, she officiated at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, Women\u2019s AFCON, Women\u2019s FIFA World Cup and Women CAF Champions League among other major football competitions.<\/p>\n

According to female sports journalist Clarisse Uwimana, Mukansanga has left a legacy that the young generation will cherish.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe has been an inspiration to young women who want to pursue sports. She opened doors to so many young women who aspire to become referees,\u201d Uwimana said.<\/p>\n

In December 2022, she was recognized as one of BBC’s 100 most influential women in the world.<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Rwanda Follow Africa-Press<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Rwanda. Tribute continue to pour in for veteran international referee Salima Mukansanga who announced her retirement from international refereeing at the age of 36. Mukansanga confirmed her retirement to local sports station B&B Kigali FM although she is yet to inform the Rwanda FA\u2019s referee committee about her decision. She will remain active […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":88128,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,18],"tags":[3762,758,3190],"class_list":["post-88129","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-sport","tag-referees","tag-rwanda","tag-salma-mukansanga"],"yoast_head":"\nFootball fraternity pays tribute to retiring referee Mukasanga - Rwanda<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Tribute continue to pour in for veteran international referee Salima Mukansanga who announced her retirement from intern ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/sport\/football-fraternity-pays-tribute-to-retiring-referee-mukasanga\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Football fraternity pays tribute to retiring referee Mukasanga\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Tribute continue to pour in for veteran international referee Salima Mukansanga who announced her retirement from intern ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/sport\/football-fraternity-pays-tribute-to-retiring-referee-mukasanga\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Rwanda\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-10-24T13:18:19+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-10-24T13:38:57+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/sites\/23\/2024\/10\/sm_1729764516.602894.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1000\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"560\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/sport\/football-fraternity-pays-tribute-to-retiring-referee-mukasanga#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/sport\/football-fraternity-pays-tribute-to-retiring-referee-mukasanga\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"Football fraternity pays tribute to retiring referee Mukasanga\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-10-24T13:18:19+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-10-24T13:38:57+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/sport\/football-fraternity-pays-tribute-to-retiring-referee-mukasanga\"},\"wordCount\":612,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/sport\/football-fraternity-pays-tribute-to-retiring-referee-mukasanga#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/sites\/23\/2024\/10\/sm_1729764516.602894.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Referees\",\"Rwanda\",\"Salma Mukansanga\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"Sport\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/sport\/football-fraternity-pays-tribute-to-retiring-referee-mukasanga#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/sport\/football-fraternity-pays-tribute-to-retiring-referee-mukasanga\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/sport\/football-fraternity-pays-tribute-to-retiring-referee-mukasanga\",\"name\":\"Football fraternity pays tribute to retiring referee Mukasanga - 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