Sarah Thomas is set to make history as the first woman to officiate a Super Bowl game.- Thanks to a uniform change this season, she'll be allowed to wear her
hair in a ponytail. - Prior to 2020, Thomas had to wear her hair tucked into a cap.
Sarah Thomas is moments away from becoming the first woman to officiate a Super Bowl game.
And, thanks to a recent change to the
Through the end of the 2019-2020 season, all NFL officials wore fitted ball caps, the kind without a large hole in the back. That meant Thomas, as the lone female member of the league's officiating corps, had no choice but to tuck her hair up into the cap.
However, starting this season, the NFL now allows officials to wear snapbacks. Ever since, Thomas has been wearing her hair in a ponytail laced through the back hole of her hat, making her markedly distinguishable from her fellow officials.
It's safe to assume Thomas will be rocking a similar look on football's biggest stage, as the Kansas City Chiefs and Tampa Bay Buccaneers face off in Sunday's Super Bowl LV. So if you find yourself trying to spot the line judge who broke one of football's glass ceilings while watching the big game, look no further than the long, blonde ponytail bouncing around on the gridiron.