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Sarah Thomas to make NFL history as first woman to officiate in the Super Bowl

<p>Sarah Thomas will be a down judge at Super Bowl LV in Tampa Bay</p> (Getty Images)

Sarah Thomas will be a down judge at Super Bowl LV in Tampa Bay

(Getty Images)

Sarah Thomas will become the first woman to officiate in a Super Bowl, the NFL has announced.

Thomas has been named as the down judge for the match on February 7 in a historic first for the sport four years after she became the league’s first full-time female official.

Carl Cheffers, in what is his 21st season as an NFL official, has been given the role of refereeing his second Super Bowl having also performed the role back in 2017.

In a statement, Troy Vincent, NFL executive vice president of football operations, said: “Sarah Thomas has made history again as the first female Super Bowl official.

"Her elite performance and commitment to excellence has earned her the right to officiate the Super Bowl. Congratulations to Sarah on this well-deserved honour.”

The 47-year-old Thomas had previously become the first woman to officiate in an NFL playoff game.

Next month’s Super Bowl is set to be played out between two of four sides remaining in the postseason race.

Tom Brady will be bidding to inspire the Tampa Bay Bucaneers to a home Super Bowl as they face the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Championship Game this weekend, while the Kansas City Chiefs will hope to keep their title defence on track against the Buffalo Bills in the AFC Championship deciders.