Meet Sarah Thomas, the Woman Who Made History at the 2021 Super Bowl

The Super Bowl was filled with memorable moments this year, from The Weeknd's show-stopping performance to Amanda Gorman's tribute to frontline workers. However, there's one noteworthy change that deserves just as much attention—and it's the fact that a woman officiated the game for the first time ever.

Meet Sarah Thomas, the NFL football official who has already made history multiple times in the span of her career. Not only is she now the first woman to referee a Super Bowl game, but in 2015, she also became the first full-time female official in NFL history. Additionally, Thomas is the first woman to officiate a major college football game and the first to officiate in a Big Ten stadium.

In response to her remarkable achievement, Troy Vincent, Sr., NFL's executive vice president of football operations, said in a statement, "Her elite performance and commitment to excellence has earned her the right to officiate the Super Bowl. Congratulations to Sarah on this well-deserved honor.”

Thomas first learned that she would become the NFL's first female official in 2015, when she received a call from the NFL's former vice president of officiating, Dean Blandino. She told ESPN, "That call came Thursday, April 2 at 10:47 a.m. And when I looked at my phone, and it was area code 212, I was just praying that it was Dean Blandino on the other end of the line, and it was, and he just said it was an honor for me to have received it."

She continued, "It was just an honor and a humbling experience, and I'm glad I got the call."

Thomas has come a very long way since she started her officiating career in 1996—but we get the feeling that this is only the beginning for the trailblazing NFL star.

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