SYDNEY, March 1 (Xinhua) -- The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has confirmed that Chinese referee Dong Fangyu will take charge of the curtain raiser between host Australia and the Philippines at the 2026 AFC Women's Asian Cup.
The opener will kick off at 5 p.m. local time at the 60,000-capacity Perth Stadium on Sunday.
A graduate of the AFC Referee Academy, Dong made history as the first alumna to officiate at a FIFA competition when she was the referee in the quarterfinal between the Netherlands and Colombia at the FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup Colombia 2024, according to an AFC statement on Saturday.
Joining Dong as the assistant referee will be Xie Lijun. Their compatriots Bao Mengxiao and Tian Jin will fill the roles of another assistant referee and fourth official.
In recent years, Chinese female referees made breakthroughs in their career, not only officiating men's football matches in domestic leagues but also increasingly appearing on the international stage.
In the U-20 Women's Asian Cup final in 2024, Dong and Xie worked together as the referee and assistant referee.
In a sixth round match of the 2024 Chinese Super League, Xie served as the assistant referee, becoming the first female referee in the country to officiate a top-tier men's professional football league match.
In the seventh round of the 2024 Chinese League Two, the third-tier league, Tian blew the opening whistle for one match, marking the first time in China that a female referee officiated a men's professional league match as the referee.
"We will continue this work, selecting appropriate men's matches, allowing female referees to gradually progress from lower levels to higher levels, making them slowly adapt to the pace of the games, and continuously improving their refereeing skills," said Mao Heming from the Chinese Football Association's Referee Department, in an interview with Xinhua in 2024.
The 2026 AFC Women's Asian Cup will be held across Sydney, Perth and the Gold Coast from March 1 to 21, featuring a total of 12 teams across three groups. The top two teams from each group and the two best third-placed teams will qualify for the quarterfinals.
Defending champion China will kick off its campaign against Bangladesh on Tuesday. ■
