| Born | (1964-06-25)25 June 1964 (age 61) Sherbrooke,Quebec | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| International | |||
| Years | League | Role | |
| 1994–2004 | FIFA listed | Referee | |
Sonia Denoncourt (born June 25, 1964) is a retiredsoccerreferee fromCanada. She worked forFIFA as head of women's referee development, Director of Refereeing at Concacaf and currently work as the North America Academy Director at You Are The Ref International.
Denoncourt was born inSherbrooke,Quebec, Canada and attended Mitchell & Montcalm High School. She graduated from theUniversité de Sherbrooke with a degree inphysical education and later attained a master's degree in Sports Administration from theUniversity of Ottawa.[1]
Denoncourt began refereeing in 1978 at the age of just 14 and later decided to give up playing the game to further her career as a referee at the age of 22.[2]Denoncourt became the first femaleFIFA accredited referee in 1994. She went on to referee the1995,1999 and2003FIFA Women's World Cups.
Women's football was made its debut at theSummer Olympics in1996 and Denoncourt was selected as one of four female referees that would officiate in the tournament and she refereed the first ever women's football match in the Olympics when she took charge of a match betweenGermany andJapan. She also officiated a semi-final match betweenNorway andUnited States and was theFourth official in the final.[3]
In February 1997, Denoncourt became the first female to referee a professional men's match in Brazil, when she officiated the openingCampeonato Paulista fixture betweenSão José Esporte Clube and defending championsSociedade Esportiva Palmeiras.[4] Her performance was criticized by the away team's players, coach and supporters after she sent offCafu and disallowed a goal byDjalminha.[5]
Denoncourt was selected as one of the nine match officials that would participate in the2000Olympic football tournaments. She refereed two group matches,Australia vs.Sweden and Norway vs.China,[6][7] and was picked to referee in the women's football final at the 2000 Olympics between Norway and United States.[8]
She announced her retirement as a referee on 6 July 2004, stating: "It is a difficult decision as I am still in love with refereeing, but I guess it is time for me to move on with my life."[9] In October 2005, Denoncourt was appointed byFIFA as its head of women's referee development after impressing as a refereeing instructor at the women's world under-19 championships inThailand.[10] In 2005, she was inducted into theCanadian Soccer Hall of Fame.Also inducted in Hall of Fame:•2015 First women to be inducted to the CSA Life Membership Award•2005 Inducted in the Canadian soccer Hall of Fame•2004 Inducted in the Quebec soccer Hall of Fame•2015 Inducted in the Hall of Fame for Sherbrooke City•Named Ambassador of the University of Sherbrooke for extended international career and accomplishments•Inducted in the Soccer Club “Les verts de Sherbrooke”•CAAWS award (Canadian Association for the Advancement Women in Sports and Physical Activity) as an international leader in women in sports
