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Amy Elizabeth Fearn (''née'' Rayner; born 20 November 1977) is an
She grew up in
- The Official Football League website. However, she grew frustrated at the lack of opportunities to play because no girls' football facilities were available at the time. When she was 13, her father went on a course to gain a qualification as a referee, something which inspired Rayner to do the same. She qualified just after her 14th birthday. Being under 16 meant she could only referee those at under 12 level, something which she did for two years. When she became 16, the restriction was lifted, and she began refereeing in the Midland Football Alliance before being promoted to the Football Conference, aged 26. Around this time, she was given responsibilities as an
- soccerbase.com website.Newell faces inquiry on 'sexism'
- BBC Sport. Angry with the official's decision not to award Luton a penalty, Newell said "She shouldn't be here. I know that sounds sexist but I am sexist. This is not park football, so what are women doing here?". The FA promised to investigate, with
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
referee
A referee is an official, in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection. The official tasked with this job may be known by a variety of other titl ...
from Loughborough, Leicestershire
Leicestershire ( ; postal abbreviation Leics.) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East Midlands, England. The county borders Nottinghamshire to the north, Lincolnshire to the north-east, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire t ...
, who in 2010 became the first woman to referee in The Football League
The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...
. With a degree in economics
Economics () is the social science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services.
Economics focuses on the behaviour and intera ...
and a full-time career in accountancy, having also refereed football since age 14, she became only the second woman after Wendy Toms
Wendy Ann Toms (born 16 October 1962) is an English former football referee from Broadstone, Dorset who has officiated in the Football League and then the Premier League, both as an assistant referee. She was the first female ever to fulfil s ...
to rise to the position of assistant referee in English professional football. On 9 February 2010 she became the first woman to act as the main referee in a Football League
The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...
match.
Career
She grew up in Staffordshire
Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation Staffs.) is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. It borders Cheshire to the northwest, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the southeast, the West Midlands Cou ...
, where, as a girl, she expressed a desire to play football with her brother.AMY RAYNER: "IT'S A GREAT WAY TO TAKE PART IN A GREAT SPORT"- The Official Football League website. However, she grew frustrated at the lack of opportunities to play because no girls' football facilities were available at the time. When she was 13, her father went on a course to gain a qualification as a referee, something which inspired Rayner to do the same. She qualified just after her 14th birthday. Being under 16 meant she could only referee those at under 12 level, something which she did for two years. When she became 16, the restriction was lifted, and she began refereeing in the Midland Football Alliance before being promoted to the Football Conference, aged 26. Around this time, she was given responsibilities as an
assistant referee
A referee is an official, in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection. The official tasked with this job may be known by a variety of other tit ...
, also being appointed to the FIFA
FIFA (; stands for ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' ( French), meaning International Association Football Federation ) is the international governing body of association football, beach football and futsal. It was found ...
assistants' list in 2005. She balances her football officiating duties with a full-time job as a Management Accountant for Santander
Santander may refer to:
Places
* Santander, Spain, a port city and capital of the autonomous community of Cantabria, Spain
* Santander Department, a department of Colombia
* Santander State, former state of Colombia
* Santander de Quilichao, a m ...
in Leicester
Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands.
The city l ...
. In 2006, aged 28, she expressed a desire to move up to the Football League
The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...
.
On 9 February 2010 Fearn became the first woman to take full control of a Football League match as the match referee. The original referee Tony Bates
Anthony J. Bates (born 29 April 1967) is a British born business leader. Bates is the former CEO of Growth at Social Capital. Previously, he held a number of technology based business roles including the former president of GoPro, and the for ...
suffered a calf strain, and Fearn, as senior assistant on the day took over for the last 20 minutes of Coventry's 1-0 Championship win over Nottingham Forest at the Ricoh Arena.
In 2013, she became the first woman to referee an FA Cup Game in the Main Draw
Mike Newell
In November 2006, Luton Town manager Mike Newell made controversial comments about Rayner, who was the assistant in their game against Queens Park Rangers, which Luton lost 3–2.Luton Town vs. QPR- soccerbase.com website.Newell faces inquiry on 'sexism'
- BBC Sport. Angry with the official's decision not to award Luton a penalty, Newell said "She shouldn't be here. I know that sounds sexist but I am sexist. This is not park football, so what are women doing here?". The FA promised to investigate, with
Neale Barry
Neale S. Barry (born 4 June 1958
and early career details:
and early career details: