Having worked as an administrator with the
NHS Business Services Authority, Welch became a football referee in 2010, but continued to work in her NHS post until becoming a full-time referee in 2019. She had played football from a young age, and studied to be a referee with
Durham County Football Association. Her first two matches were women's university games, followed by a
Sunday League match in Sunderland, something she has described as being "a completely different kettle of fish" compared to the university games. During her career as a referee she has officiated at games in the
Women's Super League, and was referee at the
2017 and
2020 Women's FA Cup finals. She also officiated at the
2020 FA Women's Community Shield. Since the
2018–19 National League season, she has refereed at several men's
National League matches. In December 2020, she was added to
UEFA's elite women's list, joining other female football officials to referee at international games, including
Stéphanie Frappart of
France and
Bibiana Steinhaus of
Germany. Welch's appointment to referee the Harrogate v Port Vale match was announced by the
Football Association on 30 March 2021. The announcement made Welch the first woman to be appointed to referee an English Football League game, though not the first woman to referee during a game.
Amy Fearn was substituted to referee the final 20 minutes of a match between
Coventry City and
Nottingham Forest in February 2010 when the original referee was taken off due to injury. On 29 December 2021, it was announced that Welch would be the first woman to officiate a third round men's
FA Cup match. The game in question, between
Birmingham City and
Plymouth Argyle, was played on 8 January 2022. In July 2022, Welch refereed at the
Women's European Championships. She oversaw the group matches between
France and
Italy in
Rotherham and
Denmark and
Spain in
London, as well as the quarter-final between
Germany and
Austria in
London. Across July and August 2023, Welch officiated at the
Women's World Cup. She oversaw the group matches between
Colombia and
South Korea in
Sydney and
Portugal and the
United States in
Auckland, as well as the round of 16 match between
Australia and
Denmark in
Sydney. In November 2023, Welch was allegedly the subject of misogynistic chanting during a match between Birmingham City and
Sheffield Wednesday; two 17 year olds were subsequently arrested. On 23 December 2023, Welch became the first woman to referee in the
Premier League, officiating in a fixture between
Fulham and
Burnley. She was congratulated by the Burnley manager,
Vincent Kompany, after the match. On 8 March 2024, it was announced that Welch would be inducted into the
English Football Hall of Fame. In May 2024, Welch adjudicated the
Women's Champions League final between
Barcelona and
Lyon at the
San Mamés Stadium in
Bilbao. She was assisted by compatriots Natalie Aspinall and Emily Carney. Across July and August 2024, Welch officiated at the
Olympics, overseeing the group matches between
Brazil and
Japan in
Paris and
Colombia and
Canada in
Nice, as well as the semi-final between
Brazil and
Spain in
Marseille. In August 2024, the
PGMOL announced that Welch was to retire from officiating and that she would become their manager of the Select Group Women’s Professional Game. In December 2024, Welch was inducted into the
WSL Hall of Fame alongside players
Gilly Flaherty,
Alex Scott and
Steph Houghton. This made her the first official to be inducted into the WSL Hall of Fame. ==References==