AFCON 2023: Meet the Five Female Referees Set to Officiate at Ivory Coast Tournament

• Five female referees have been selected to officiate at the AFCON 2023
• The list includes 26 referees, 30 assistant referees and 12 VAR referees
• Accomplished names like Salima Mukansanga feature on the list

The Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) 2023, set to kick off on January 13, will showcase match officials representing over 30 African countries.

The lineup includes 26 referees, 30 assistant referees, and 12 VAR referees, notably featuring five accomplished female referees.

Here are the five female referees set to take charge of matches at the prestigious tournament in the Ivory Coast.

Karboubi Bouchra (Morocco)

Karboubi Bouchra (Morocco) stands out as the sole female lead referee listed by the tournament organizers. Bouchra made history in 2022 as the first Arab female referee to officiate a professional men’s tournament final, the Moroccan Throne Cup. Her journey began at 19, refereeing in the first and second Moroccan women's divisions, and she achieved international referee status in 2016, as reported by TRT Afrika.

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Athletics

Salima Mukansanga (Rwanda)

Salima Mukansanga (Rwanda), a certified match official, previously officiated in a men’s FIFA World Cup. In 2022, she led an all-woman officiating team at the African Cup of Nations. Her extensive experience includes officiating at the Olympics, FIFA World Cup, Africa Women's Cup of Nations and the CAF Women's Champions League.

Akhona Makalima (South Africa)

Akhona Makalima (South Africa) will serve as a VAR official at the 2023 men’s AFCON in Cote d’Ivoire. As an international FIFA referee since 2014, Makalima has significant experience leading Premier Soccer League matches and officiating at the FIFA Women’s World Cup.

As reported by Pulse Sports, she possesses a national diploma in human resource management.

Rivet Maria Pakuita Cinquela (Mauritius)

Rivet Maria Pakuita Cinquela (Mauritius) will be among the three female referees operating in the VAR room alongside Mukansanga and Makalima. Pakuita Rivet was the fourth official for the 2022 Women’s AFCON final and was selected to officiate women's football matches at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

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Football

Diana Chikotesha (Zambia)

Diana Chikotesha (Zambia) is set to make history as the first Zambian female referee to participate in the men’s Africa Cup of Nations. She will contribute as an assistant referee after featuring in the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.

Mukansanga World Cup call-up

Sports Brief in May 2022 was on point to report when Rwandan referee Salima Mukansanga was named among 36 referees to officiate at the FIFA World Cup.

Salima, who became the first female referee to officiate at the Africa Cup of Nations, was included in the list of officials named for the tournament in Qatar.

She was among six female match officials appointed for the global showpiece, the first time in the history of the World Cup.