Sam Allison becomes first Black referee in Premier League for 15 years in Boxing Day match between Sheffield United and Luton
Referee Sam Allison took charge of Sheffield United's Boxing Day fixture with Luton Town - making him the Black man to officiate a match in England's top division since Uriah Rennie in 2008
Tuesday 26 December 2023 18:39, UK
Sam Allison became the first Black referee to officiate in the Premier League for 15 years on Boxing Day, and only the second ever.
The 42-year-old former firefighter took charge of Sheffield United's Boxing Day fixture with Luton Town - marking the first time a Black man officiated a match in England's top division since Uriah Rennie in 2008.
The game ended in a 3-2 win for Luton and attention was on Allison for Sheffield United's second goal which required a VAR check, with the official awarding the goal without controversy.
BAMRef - which offers guidance, support, mentoring and counselling to Black, Asian and mixed heritage referees - said before the game: "It is a further step in the right direction towards refereeing reflecting society and the playing contingent within football.
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"It is also the culmination of years of hard work by BAMRef members. We hope to work with Howard Webb (Professional Game Match Officials Board chief) to identify and progress more black officials to the top flight."
Dan Forbes, at level four in the referee pathway and working for BAMRef, said: "It's been a long time coming for him and it's been a long-time ambition as well. He totally understands the pressures.
"Sam absolutely deserves to be there, he's one of the top referees in the country and there's no doubt Sam will deliver and fly our flag.
"We've also got some other top referees coming through - Lisa Rashid, Ruben Ricardo, Aji Ajibola - that deserve the opportunity.
"This is just the starting point. This is not the end. It's huge, it's also well overdue. The impact will be huge. If you can't see it, it's a lot harder to be it."
Allison's appearance comes after Rebecca Welch made history on December 23 when she became the first woman to referee a Premier League match.
The 40-year-old officiated Fulham's game against Burnley at Craven Cottage, showing three yellow cards.
Having climbed through the ranks after taking charge of university and Sunday league games, Welch became the first woman to referee an EFL match in April 2021.
Welch also refereed a men's FA Cup fixture in January 2022, and was the first woman to be appointed as a fourth official during Manchester United's 1-0 win at Fulham in November.
