Topline
The Super Bowl LV marked a historic moment for women in the National Football League when three less successful women took to the field on Sunday, the largest number of women ever represented at a Super Bowl match. .
Down Judge Sarah Thomas laughs for the camera before a game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the … [+]
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Key facts
Down judge Sarah Thomas is the first female referee to administer a Super Bowl game.
This isn’t the first time Thomas has broken glass roofs: she broke down barriers that served college football before becoming the NFL’s first full-time female referee in 2015, and she became the first woman to stage a playoff game four years later.
While last year’s Super Bowl saw San Francisco 49ers offensive assistant coach Katie Sowers become the first woman (and gay opener) to coach Super Bowl, this year marks another milestone: this is what first Super Bowl featuring two female coaches.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers has two women on his coaching staff: Lori Locust, defensive line assistant and strength coach and assistant Maral Javadifar, who has been with the team for two seasons.
“MJ (Maral Javadifar) and I are here to help Tampa Bay win,” Locust said at a press conference last week. “We acknowledge that there is not much ahead of us, but it is not something that keeps us ahead of what we do every day.”
Key background
2020 was a big year for women in traditional men’s sports leagues. In November, Sarah Fuller of Vanderbilt became the first woman to play at a Power 5 Conference college football game. That same month, the Miami Marlins announced that the franchise would hire Kim Ngr, making him the first female general manager in Major League Baseball history. San Antonio Spurs assistant coach Becky Hammon made an unexpected history in December when she became the first woman to serve as head coach during a regular-season NBA game when coach Gregg Popovich was sent off.
Further reading
Youth Poet Amanda Gorman plays at the Super Bowl – Here ‘s what her poem will be (Forbes)
Who is Sarah Thomas? First female Super Bowl referee (New York Times)