BERLIN: Bibiana Steinhaus will make history in Germany on Sunday when she becomes the first woman to referee a Bundesliga game.
The German football federation announced on Thursday that the 38-year-old police officer is to take charge of Hertha Berlin’s home game against Werder Bremen, confirming her place among the league’s elite group of 24 referees.
“She deserves it through her great performances,” Bremen coach Alexander Nouri said.
Hoffenheim’s Julian Nagelsmann added, “I’m happy. It’s all the same to me if a man or a woman is refereeing — the main thing is that they do the job well.”
Steinhaus has already spent a decade refereeing in Germany’s second division and she has plenty of experience with many of the country’s top stars from taking charge of German Cup games, too.
Bayern Munich winger Franck Ribery has already showed she may be treated differently to her male colleagues when he played a trick on her during the side’s cup tie at Chemnitzer FC in August.
Ribery untied one of her bootlaces as he pretended to put the ball in place for a free kick. Steinhaus passed it off by giving Ribery a couple of playful punches in response, but it is debatable whether the French forward would have attempted the same trick had he been dealing with a male referee.
The daughter of a referee, Steinhaus began by officiating women’s games for the DFB in 1999. Steinhaus then became a FIFA referee in 2005 and earned her place in the second division in 2007, as the first female ref in German professional football.
Steinhaus has handled women’s World Cups and European Championships, along with the 2012 Olympic women’s final between the US and Japan. Last June, she took charge of the women’s Champions League final between Lyon and Paris Saint-Germain.
Male players have mostly treated Steinhaus with respect, but any incidents involving her receive greater attention.
Defender Peter Niemeyer, who was playing for Hertha at the time, accidentally swiped her breast when he meant to pat her on the shoulder during a game in 2010.
In 2015, after Steinhaus sent off Kerem Demirbay, the then-Fortuna Duesseldorf midfielder reportedly told her: “Women have no place in men’s football.”
Demirbay was roundly criticized for the remark and handed a three-game ban with two further games suspended. Duesseldorf also made Demirbay referee a girls’ game to ensure he understood the message.
Demirbay apologized both publicly and to Steinhaus directly for his comment, and said he was “very happy that she accepted my apology.”
The two will likely meet again this season if Steinhaus takes charge of any games involving his current club, Hoffenheim.
Steinhaus making history as Bundesliga’s first female referee
Steinhaus making history as Bundesliga’s first female referee
Muchova beats Mboko in Qatar final to end title drought
- Her title run in Doha will lift her from 19 to 11 in the world rankings
DOHA: Karolina Muchova captured her first WTA 1000 crown and her first title since 2019 with an impressive 6-4, 7-5 victory over Canadian teen sensation Victoria Mboko in the Qatar Open final on Saturday.
After battling back from a set and a break down in the semifinals against Maria Sakkari the previous night, Muchova, 29, was in fierce form against Mboko to clinch the biggest title of her career.
“It’s been a while since I won a tournament, so it’s nice to get that feeling again, to be reminded of that victory feeling again,” said Muchova during the trophy ceremony.
“I’d like to congratulate Victoria; you’re still a teenager but you play with so much maturity. I’m sure you have many titles ahead of you.”
A former French Open finalist, Muchova’s career has been hampered by injuries but she has started 2026 in fine fashion, amassing a 12-2 win-loss record over the past six weeks.
Her title run in Doha will lift her from 19 to 11 in the world rankings, while Mboko guaranteed herself a top-10 debut on Monday by making the final.
Muchova put together a clean opening set, landing an impressive 75 percent of her first serves, and dropping just three points behind that first delivery.
The Czech faced zero break points across the 43-minute set and showcased her prowess at the net to take a solid step toward the title.
Mboko made adjustments on return in the second set, and managed to decode her opponent’s serve to carve a 4-2 gap but her advantage was short-lived as Muchova broke twice and wrapped up the contest in 94 minutes.
The 19-year-old Mboko has the most match wins on the women’s tour this season with 13 to just three defeats. She will rise to No. 10 in the world on Monday.
“It’s not the outcome I wanted but I think there’s many positives to take away,” said Mboko, who was competing in her fourth WTA final, and second at the 1000 level.
