Information: State Cup

Restrictions During State Assignments

Protecting the Referee - Bias and Fatigue

In order to protect YOU, the referee, from accusations of bias or that you have done a poor job because you are taking too many games, the State Referee Association and other entities have established rules about how many games you can take during State Cups. In addition, we are offering, and to the degree possible, enforcing restriction on which games you can take. Many of these mandates are not enforced by the systems you use. Instead, they are enforced by an assignor inspecting the games. You can protect yourself from having your assignments changed by making sure you follow these rules.

Maximum State Cup Assignments

The Washington State Referee Committee has determined that a referee should only work ONE assignment per day as a center referee on State Cup games. This is to help prevent fatigue and to make sure the best possible job is done by the referee. In our area, our systems are being enhanced so that assignors can see what referees have signed up for in multiple associations. So, if you have taken one center referee assignment in Northshore, one in LWYSA, and one in EKCSRA - that's three center referee assignment and you can expect to be removed from two of them. If you want three assignments, do one middle and two AR jobs. We want the players to have the best possible referee crew and that includes you not being exhausted.

Bias, Conflict of Interest - or the APPEARANCE of Bias

We know that referees do everything they can to avoid bias. However, sometimes we need to take action to avoid the appearance of bias. Therefore, you need to avoid the appearance of bias by making sure you do not take assignments where there is a potential conflict of interest. This is ESPECIALLY important during State Cups. Taking an assignment in which there is a conflict MAY result in your license being suspended. Here are your guidelines:

1. At all ages and competition level during State Cup events, do not take ANY assignment (center referee or assistant referee) on a game that is the same age or gender as a relative who plays. This means you don't do ANY game with ANY team in that age and gender, even if your relative is not playing in that game; AND
2. During any "preliminary round" game, if you are somehow associated with the Crossfire Club - do not take a position as a center referee on any game that involves a Crossfire team. "Somehow associated" means that you have a relative (any age) that plays on ANY Crossfire team OR that you have an official role of some sort with the Crossfire Club; AND
3. For any "elimination round" games, do not take ANY assignment (Center or Assistant Referee or 4th official) on any game involving any Crossfire team at any age if you are in any way associated with the Crossfire Club.
4. If you become aware of a conflict AFTER you have signed up for a game, contact your assignor immediately. This can certainly happen when you are signing up for games when you don't know which teams will be participating. Your assignor will do everything they can to rearrange coverage, but understand that they may not be able to get you another game, or another game at a similar competition level. That's just part of being a ref in a tournament setting.
5. Assignors will be doing everything they can to enforce the above restrictions. However, they don't always know which teams your sons or daughters play on, or even which club. YOU have the obligation to make sure you avoid these conflicts.
6. At the youngest ages of competition (in particular U11 and U12) and in preliminary rounds, there may be times in which, because of a shortage of referees, the assignor chooses to permit you to officiate in some capacity even when there is some distant association with the Crossfire club. HOWEVER, it is important that YOU communicate to the assignor the potential for an assignment to appear as bias. Regardless of our shortage, the assignor should not be permitting you, under any circumstance, to officiate a match as a center referee at the same age and gender as a relative.
7. For elimination round matches, you should decline any assignment in ANY position (center, AR, or 4th official) which could be construed as bias. This means that, if you are fortunate enough to be eligible to work these matches, one of your tasks is to see which teams are involved in the competition and make sure you separate yourself from any possibility that you could be considered biased. Again, avoid the same age and gender of relatives.

We know you know that bias is very contrary to the spirit of being a referee and that the typical referee who is forced into a position in which they are officiating a relative's game often goes out of their way to avoid bias by being overly harsh to their own child's team. Well, that's not fair either.

Please take the above in the spirit it is intended - that being to serve the game as best we can. A truly neutral referee, both in appearance and fact, who is rested and able to perform at 100% level - is definitely our objective.