Dr. Suzanne Huurman: Only Female Chief Doctor at World Cup

Dr. Suzanne Huurman stood on the sidelines at the 2026 World Cup knowing she was the only woman in her role among all 32 teams, but she wasn't there to focus on history. She was there to do her job.

The 36-year-old from the Netherlands serves as chief doctor for Curacao, the smallest nation ever to qualify for a World Cup. She's the only female head of medical at the entire tournament and just the third woman ever to work as any kind of doctor at a World Cup in the competition's history.

Getting here meant hearing "no" countless times. "You cannot work here because you are a female and we don't want a female in a male squad," she told reporters. "I've heard it a million times."

The rejection didn't come from lack of qualification. Huurman notes that women make up 70% to 80% of medical school classrooms. But in elite sports medicine, especially for men's teams, those numbers plummet.

Huurman started at Dutch football club Go Ahead Eagles Deventer and has led medical teams in professional sports since 2015. She even worked at Real Madrid for several years. The roadblocks appeared at higher management levels where directors simply refused to allow women on male coaching staffs.

Her response was simple: let the work speak. "The only thing you can do as a professional is prove your worth and show that you are capable," she said. She focused on delivering maximum effort every day, keeping everything prepared, and demonstrating top-level knowledge and skills.

The Ripple Effect

Huurman isn't alone in pushing doors open. Dr. Silja Schwarz works as a doctor for Germany's men's team. American referee Tori Penso is set to officiate Germany's final group game. Each woman creates a path for the next generation.

The changes are measurable in other sports. The American Olympic team jumped from 19% female physicians in 2012 to 32% in 2024. FIFA now requires women's teams to have at least two female staff members, though nothing similar exists for men's teams yet.

Football remains stubbornly male-dominated compared to other sports, but Huurman sees the world changing. "I hope at the next World Cup there are way more female doctors," she said. "Hopefully in four years it's way better."

Every time a qualified woman hears "yes" instead of "no," the game gets closer to reflecting the world it serves.