Bhupinder Singh Gill made history as the Premier League's first Sikh-Punjabi assistant referee on Wednesday when he ran the line in Southampton's home game against Nottingham Forest at St Mary's.
The 37-year-old comes from a soccer family, with father Jarnail Singh the first referee to wear a turban in the English league and officiating in more than 150 Football League (EFL) games between 2004-10.
Bhupinder's elder brother Sunny is also an EFL referee.
"This has to be the proudest and most exciting moment in my refereeing journey, but I’m not getting carried away as it is just another step in the direction to where I want to get to," Bhupinder told English media before the game.
"Hopefully, this is another moment to help inspire the next generation to sign up to a refereeing course and get into officiating.
"My dream has always been to reach the top of the game, be a role model for future officials and encourage more people from diverse backgrounds into officiating, especially from a South Asian background just like me."
Arsenal has wasted the chance to restore their six-point lead at the top of the Premier League table as they were held to a 1-1 draw at Brentford on Thursday, with Noni Madueke's second-half header cancelled out by Keane Lewis-Potter.
Defending champions India continued their march towards the Super Eight stage of the Twenty20 World Cup with a 93-run win over Namibia in a group A contest at Arun Jaitley Stadium on Thursday.
Brothers Justin and Anthony Mosca guided Twenty20 World Cup debutants Italy to their first win in the tournament, as their unbeaten half-centuries secured a dominant 10-wicket victory over Nepal in a Group C clash on Thursday.
The 2026 Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships will usher in the start of a new era for one of the Middle East’s most iconic sporting events with plans revealed for an extensive two-phase redevelopment that will transform the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Stadium and surrounding Aviation Club Tennis Complex.
Sri Lanka batsmen Kusal Mendis, Pavan Rathnayake and Dasun Shanaka cracked half-centuries as the 2014 champions continued to build momentum in the Twenty20 World Cup with a 105-run win over Oman in Pallekele on Thursday.
His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, has launched a Ramadan campaign to save 5 million children under the age of 5 from "death due to malnutrition and hunger".
Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has introduced a bus service between Dubai Mall and Hatta, with operations starting from 7:00 am to 7:00 pm daily.
The UAE’s Ministry of Education has announced that public school students will switch to remote learning on Fridays during the holy month of Ramadan, marking the second consecutive year of the initiative.