The NFL hired Sarah Thomas as an on-field official in 2015. She remains the lone female on-field official in the NFL, though two other women are in replay booths this season.
The XFL will make a “concerted effort” to diversify its officiating staff, Dean Blandino told Melissa Jacobs of Football Girl Podcast, via Football Zebras.
Blandino, the former NFL officiating senior vice president, serves as a consultant with the XFL in charge of rules and recruitment.
“We’re trying to create more opportunities for female officials and minority officials,” Blandino told Jacobs. “The XFL is going to be a showcase for officials all over the country to get more looks and potentially have the NFL look at them. So we’re going to put together an inclusive [officiating] staff.”
Blandino served as an adviser for The Alliance of American Football, which had three female officials on the field, and also is the executive director of a documentary about women in officiating called Her Turf.