Solomon Islands assistant referee Natalia Lumukana has been named among the 54 match officials selected for the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup 2025, set to take place in Morocco this October.
Lumukana is one of three officials from the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) appointed by FIFA, alongside New Zealand’s Allys Clipsham and Fijian referee Torika Delai. The trio will join a panel of 18 referees and 36 assistant referees representing 36 FIFA member associations.
Their selection marks a significant step forward for gender representation in football officiating across the region and also reflecting growing recognition of OFC women officials.
Recently, the trio officiated a high-profile international friendly between Australia and Slovenia senor women’s teams.
Lumukana has held her FIFA assistant referee badge since 2019, while Clipsham earned hers earlier this year. Both were also part of the first all-female officiating team to oversee a men’s OFC tournament earlier this year.
This year’s U-17 Women’s World Cup will also see the continued use of Football Video Support (FVS), a cost-effective alternative to the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) system. Trialed at previous youth World Cups, FVS allows head coaches to request reviews of key incidents but does not involve dedicated video match officials or automatic checks of major decisions.
The 2025 edition in Morocco is the first of five consecutive annual tournaments to be hosted in the country and marks the competition’s expansion to 24 participating teams.
By TIMOTHY INIFIRI JNR
Solomon Star, Honiara
