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- Al-Qwaidi was accredited by FIFA last year, and took charge of Friday鈥檚 clash between Al-Qadsiah and Al-Riyadh
JEDDAH: Hiba Al-Owaidi has become the first Saudi female referee to take charge of a Women鈥檚 Premier League match, after she officiated Al-Qadsiah鈥檚 1-0 win against Al-Riyadh on Friday.
In a historical first for Saudi women鈥檚 football, Al-Qwaidi took charge of the match as field referee after she was internationally accredited by the games鈥檚 governing body FIFA.
The clash the Al-Qadsiah鈥檚 stadium in Al-Khobar saw Abdullah Al-Madad and Khaled Al-Anezi take part as assistant referees.
Al-Qwaidi鈥檚 first appearance after receiving her accreditation was as the fourth referee in the Riyadh Season Cup tournament, specifically the match that that鈥檚 aw Saudi鈥檚 Al-Hilal beat Inter Miami of the US 4-3 at Kingdom Arena.
Al-Qwaidi, a graduate of College of Sports Sciences at the University of Jeddah, is now among 22 Saudi referees accredited by FIFA, as announced by the Saudi Arabian Football Federation last December.
The referees include Mohammad Al-Hoaish, Faisal Al-Balawi, Sami Al-Garisi, Majed Al-Shamrani, Khaled Al-Taris, Abdullah Al-Shehri, and Shukri Al-Hanfosh.