Sam Allison, highest-ranked Black match official to referee in Championship; Akil Howson also given promotion
Wednesday 26 July 2023 16:40, UK
Sam Allison, the highest-ranked Black match official working in English football, will now be refereeing in the Championship, after excelling in Leagues One and Two last season, Sky Sports News can reveal.
Another high-profile appointment will see Akil Howson promoted to being a referee's assistant in the Premier League.
Professional Game Match Officials Ltd (PGMOL), who organise referees and assistants at the elite level are due to announce the news officially later today.
They are also expected to announce all the new positions for what they call their "Development Group Officials", who have been working their way up the football pyramid.
But this will be seen as a big boost for under-represented groups in officiating English professional football.
Allison was previously in the PGMOL "National Group" but now has been promoted to Select Group 2.
Howson has moved into the very top level of match officials - and will be an assistant referee in Select Group 1 which works primarily in the Premier League.
FA to recruit and retain 1000 diverse refs
Meanwhile, the FA will unveil ambitious new plans to recruit and retain 1,000 new referees from diverse backgrounds in the next three years, Sky Sports News can exclusively reveal, in the hope of drastically changing the culture of grassroots football.
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The landmark new FA strategy will be launched on Thursday, with the aim of encouraging more people from under-represented communities to consider getting involved in football, and refereeing.
While the Professional Game Match Officials Ltd (PGMOL) organises referees and assistants at the elite level, it is nonetheless supportive of this new FA initiative, in the hope that more black and South Asian referees will make it into the professional game in future.
