U-17 Women's World Cup 2025: 2 African referees and 4 assistant referees selected | OneFootball

African referees take center stage at the U-17 Women's World Cup

U-17 Women's World Cup 2025: 2 African referees and 4 assistant referees selected

The FIFA Referees Committee has unveiled the list of officials appointed for the 2025 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup.

A total of 54 match officials have been selected, comprising 18 center referees and 36 assistant referees from 36 FIFA member associations, all set to ensure fair play throughout the tournament, which will take place in Morocco from October 17 to November 8, 2025.

Kenya's Josephine Wanjiru and Mauritania's Yacine Samassa are the two African center referees who have been appointed.

Four African assistant referees will also feature at the tournament: Egypt's Yara Atef, Rwanda's Alice Umutesi, Burundi's Fides Banguramabona, and Senegal's Tabara Mbodji.

FIFA will once again test football video assistance (AVF), as was the case at the U-20 Women's World Cup in Colombia and the U-17 Women's World Cup in the Dominican Republic.

Full list of center referees:

AFC (Asia)

Lara Christie LEE (Australia)

Veronika BERNATSKAIA (Kyrgyzstan)

CAF (Africa)

Josephine WANJIRU (Kenya)

Yacine SAMASSA (Mauritania)

CONCACAF (North, Central America and the Caribbean)

Alyssa Paige PENNINGTON (USA)

Janeishka CABAN RODRIGUEZ (Puerto Rico)

Lizett Amairany GARCIA OLVERA (Mexico)

Vimarest DIAZ (Dominican Republic)

CONMEBOL (South America)

Charly STRADI (Brazil)

Milagros ARRUELA (Peru)

Paula Andrea FERNANDEZ OME (Colombia)

Veronica GUZAHAMBO (Ecuador)

OFC (Oceania)

Torika DELAI (Fiji)

UEFA (Europe)

Alina PESU (Romania)

Ewa AUGUSTYN (Poland)

Hristiyana GUTEVA (Bulgaria)

Olatz RIVERA OLMEDO (Spain)

Silvia GASPEROTTI (Italy)

Full list of assistant referees:

AFC (Asia)

Heba Saadieh (Palestine)

Emma Kocbek (Australia)

Ramina Tsoi (Kyrgyzstan)

Suwida Wongkraisorn (Thailand)

CAF (Africa)

Yara Atef (Egypt)

Alice Umutesi (Rwanda)

Fides Bangurambona (Burundi)

Tabara Mbodji (Senegal)

CONCACAF (North, Central America and the Caribbean)

Kali Smith (USA)

Katarzyna Wasiak (Canada)

Mayra Mora Cerero (Mexico)

Katherine Prescod (Panama)

Aranza Quero Aguilar (Mexico)

Jessica Morales Morales (Mexico)

Santa Felicia Medina Casanova (Dominican Republic)

Melissa Cureen Nicholas (Trinidad and Tobago)

CONMEBOL (South America)

Anne Gomes Sá (Brazil)

Fernanda Antunes (Brazil)

Mariana Aquino (Peru)

Vera Yupanqui (Peru)

Mayra Sánchez (Colombia)

Nataly Arteaga (Colombia)

Viviana Segura (Ecuador)

Joselyn Romero (Ecuador)

OFC (Oceania)

Natalia Lumukana (Solomon Islands)

Allys Clipsham (New Zealand)

UEFA (Europe)

Ivona Pejic (Croatia)

Svitlana Grushko (Ukraine)

Linda Schmid (Switzerland)

Nikolett Bizderi (Hungary)

Heini Hyvönen (Finland)

Emily Carney (England)

Eliana Fernandez Gonzalez (Spain)

Irina Pozdejeva (Lithuania)

Giulia Tempestilli (Italy)