Uriah Rennie, the first Black referee in the English Premier League and a former FIFA official, has died at the age of 65.
His passing was announced on Sunday in a statement by the Football Association (FA), which praised him as a trailblazer in football officiating.
“The FA Refereeing Department is saddened to hear of the passing of former FIFA and Premier League referee, Uriah Rennie,” the statement read. “Uriah will forever be remembered as a true trailblazer of the game. Our thoughts are with Uriah’s family and friends at this time.”
Rennie made history in the Premier League, overseeing more than 300 top-flight matches from 1997 to 2008. His debut came in a match between Derby County and Wimbledon.
Just weeks before his death, Rennie had been appointed Chancellor of Sheffield Hallam University. He had recently spoken publicly about living with a rare medical condition that had left him temporarily paralysed from the waist down.
