Akhona Makalima is the first certified female soccer referee in South Africa, where she officiates for FIFA, the Premier Soccer League, the SASOL Women’s League, and the South African Football Association (SAFA). 

Raised in a poor community in Eastern Cape, Akhona became known in her village for her speed and was encouraged to run track and play sports. A lack of programs and leagues, however, led her to pick up refereeing, and by the age of 23, Akhona was traveling the country officiating matches. Eventually, she became FIFA-accredited, the first female referee to pass the association’s fitness test and referee in South Africa’s top professional soccer league. Akhona officiated at the 2018 Africa Women’s Cup of Nations in Ghana, and officiated at the 2023 Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand. 

Across South Africa, low-income women suffer from obesity and disease caused by inactivity, teen pregnancy, domestic violence, and lack of access to education. In 2016, Akhona launched a program, Inter-Refs, where she teaches girls about the laws of the game of soccer with the hope of creating a generation of women to follow in her footsteps.