Female referee Frappart hopes World Cup helps women in Qatar

Stephanie Frappart is set to become the first woman to referee at a men's World Cup when she takes charge of a Group E match between

and

at Al Bayt Stadium on Thursday.

Frappart has refereed in the men's Champions League, Ligue 1, and

qualifying round. Neuza Back, Mexican Karen, Diaz Medina, and Kathryn Nesbitt will be part of Frappart's team for this match. Frappart is one of three female referees selected to officiate in the tournament.

Ahead of the game, Frappart said she hopes that her presence at the men’s World Cup can help women in Qatar.

"

We know there are some difficulties there for women,"

Frappart said.

"But I think and I hope that this World Cup will help them.

"I have always been made welcome [in Qatar], so there is no problem. I am not afraid to go there, but I hope this World Cup will help them in the future.

"When you are selected for the World Cup, how can we say we will not be going?

"The men's World Cup is the most important competition in the world, not only in football.”

The Frenchwomen also said female referees are experienced enough to handle the pressure of refereeing in the man’s game.

"There is always pressure in the matches,"

she added.

"And when you are a woman there is more pressure because it is always new.

"We know the pressure. But I think we will not change ourselves - be calm, focused, concentrate. And don't think about the media and everything and be focused on the field.

"We know there is a lot of expectation, we know that each game is more important, but we also have experience in our competition.

"I made a lot of games with high importance, so with all this experience we will be ready for the matches."

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