The 7th FIFA U17 Women’s World Cup 2022 will be held in India from October 11 to 30, 2022. A total of 14 referees, 28 assistant referees, 3 alternate assistant referees, and 16 video assistant referees (including 3 male referees) from 27 FIFA members participated in the law enforcement work of this competition. Chinese international assistant referees Fang Yan and Xie Lijun joined the lineup of referees for this tournament. Another Chinese ex-international referee, Zhang Lingling, served as a physical fitness instructor for this event.
The 43-year-old international referee Qin Liang missed the law enforcement work of this tournament due to injury, but he was able to enforce the last two Women’s World Cup finals, the 4th U20 Women’s World Cup and a number of major women’s football events hosted by the AFC. Qin Liang is undoubtedly She is one of the female referees with the best comprehensive ability and quality in Chinese football and even international football.
In the Women’s Asian Cup which ended in India in early February this year, the Chinese women’s football team defeated the South Korean team to win the championship, which has written a brilliant record for Chinese football. A group of Chinese female international referees, including referee Qin Liang, assistant referees Fang Yan and Xie Lijun, also successfully completed their law enforcement tasks in the current competition.
In fact, at the time of the Women’s Asian Cup, the above-mentioned three Chinese female referees were already among the candidates for enforcement of this year’s U17 Women’s World Cup. In other words, the enforcement work of the Women’s Asian Cup is also an important warm-up for the enforcement of the U17 Women’s World Cup. As long as the three of them stay in shape and healthy in the next preparations, they will participate in the U17 World Cup law enforcement as normal.
It is reported that after the three female referees returned to China, they actively participated in various trainings and went to the competition area to participate in the law enforcement work of domestic women’s football-related series events. However, in June this year, Qin Liang accidentally ruptured the anterior cruciate ligament of his right knee due to training in the competition area. Due to the unsatisfactory effect of conservative treatment, Qin Liang had to undergo surgery. In this way, she was unable to participate in the law enforcement work of the U17 Women’s World Cup due to injury, and FIFA and the AFC had to choose another person to replace Qin Liang’s law enforcement. According to the official information released by FIFA, a total of 3 groups of referees (including referees and assistant referees) from AFC member associations participated in the law enforcement work of this competition. Partnering with Fang Yan and Xie Lijun, the referee in the same group is Wu Xianting from South Korea.
Although Qin Liang is absent from the law enforcement work of the U17 Women’s World Cup, the fact that Chinese women referees have become “regulars” in the law enforcement arena of top international competitions cannot be changed. In fact, before they went to India to enforce the Women’s Asian Cup at the beginning of this year, Qin Liang, Fang Yan, and Xie Lijun had partnered to enforce many major women’s football events hosted by FIFA or the AFC.
Qin Liang has previously enforced the 2015 (Canada) and 2019 (France) World Cup finals as a referee. In 2012, 2014, 2016 and 2018, he enforced the U20 Women’s World Cup for 4 consecutive years. She is currently one of the female referees with the most number of international major football matches in Chinese football and even Asian football. Before Xie Lijun entered the international law enforcement arena, another experienced referee, Cui Yongmei, also worked with Qin Liang and Fang Yan to enforce a number of major international events including the 2015 World Cup.
Although there are huge differences between men’s and women’s football in terms of technical content, fierce competition, social attention, and market appeal, the frequent appearance of Chinese women’s referees in the international law enforcement arena has undoubtedly won an alternative honor for Chinese football. Fellow male referees constitute the spur. With referee Ma Ning, assistant referees Cao Yi and Shi Xiang as members, the Chinese men’s international referee team has successfully entered the Qatar World Cup finals referee lineup with years of hard work, learning and accumulation.
It is worth noting that Qin Liang and Ma Ning, both born in 1979, have entered the end of their law enforcement careers after galloping on their respective stages for many years. Since the current U17 Women’s World Cup is also the key actual test venue for FIFA to inspect the referees of the 2023 Women’s World Cup, Qin Liang’s absence from law enforcement may have a certain adverse impact on his qualification to compete for the Women’s World Cup next year. It is also worth noting that Yoshimi Yamashita, a female referee from Japan, has entered the Qatar Men’s World Cup law enforcement referee lineup in a record-breaking manner. This aspect shows the development potential of female referees, and it also has a positive impact on the future of female referees on the international stage. The competition provides a wind vane. After Qin Liang, it is worth paying attention to whether there are other excellent Chinese female referees who can “top” in time.
For Ma Ning, the Qatar World Cup is not only the first experience of World Cup law enforcement, but also the opportunity to make his final appearance. Like Qin Liang, it is not only a personal honor, but also a positive example for the young local referees who are active in the domestic professional law enforcement stage.
Article source: Beiqing SportsReturn to Sohu, see more
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