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Questions about being a referee

Common Questions About Being a Referee for LWYSA

The items below are some of the many questions we are often asked when people are interested in becoming referees for LWYSA. If you have a question that is not addressed here, or you want a clarification, send a note to the LWYSA Referee Director and we'll get back to you with an answer. In the meantime, thank you for your interest in LWYSA's Referee Program.

FAQ

Do I referee my own child's games?

From U7-U9, LWYSA uses parent volunteers to officiate games. The volunteer will normally officiate 1/2 of their own child's game. You do NOT need a referee license to do this and LWYSA offers free training seminars of a couple of hours to help prepare the volunteer for this. Beginning at U10, LWYSA uses licensed referees to officiate. At U10 and older, you will NOT be officiating your own child's games.

Does this mean I will miss my child's games?

Not at all. LWYSA uses this web site to allow you to sign up for games that are at a time and place convenient for you. LWYSA has games scheduled seven days a week, so there is no need for you to miss one of your child's games.

I've never played or coached, how can I be a referee?

Being a referee is a totally different skill set than playing or coaching. While having played the game may offer some benefits, especially in older and more competitive play, you will acquire the skills and knowledge required to be a referee through classroom education and, more important, through practicing your new skill on the field.

Do I have to ref the same age that my child plays?

No. You sign up to ref the level of match that you feel comfortable officiating. You could have a U14 player and still be officiating U10 games. Similarly, if you like be a referee and have developed the needed experience, you could be officiating a U14 game while your child was playing a U10 match.

What is a "Referee Pool"?

The collection of referees that are trained and able to officiate games is known as the "pool of referees" or "Referee Pool". There are two different "pools" of referees that officiate LWYSA matches. LWYSA recreational games through U14, and Crossfire games through U13, are covered by a pool of referees managed by LWYSA. Other LWYSA homes matches are covered by a pool of referees managed by the East King County Soccer Referee Association (EKCSRA). In general, LWYSA is set up to support and manage newer referees. While EKCSRA does have a place for newer referees, in general, most referees in EKCSRA have at least two seasons of experience, and are familiar with the various procedures required for higher levels of competition.

What is the advantage of being a "Referee in the Pool" for a team?

There is shortage of referees. While LWYSA and EKCSRA have managed to keep coverage levels very high, each year it gets harder and harder. When a team has a "Referee in the Pool" and that referee is actively taking assignment, then that team gets a "priority" when LWYSA or EKCSRA is struggling to find referees. They will try to make certain that teams with a Referee in the Pool get referees before they work on other teams. In addition, for Crossfire home games ages U11-U13, LWYSA will NOT assign assistant referees to those games unless the team has a Referee in the Pool.

If I sign up to be a Referee, how many assignments must I take to fullfill my "obligation"?

If you are a Referee in the Pool for a U10-U14 recreational team, then you must take five (5) assignment within LWYSA (assigned through this web site) during the fall or at the year end recreational tournaments. Crossfire U11-U13 must take ten (10) assignments. For U15+ recreational play and for U14+ Crossfire play, you must take ten (10) assignments assigned through the EKCSRA web site. In all cases, these assignments may be as a center referee OR assistant referee on youth games.

What if I cannot fulfill my obligation?

If you cannot fulfill your obligation, then your team will have a lower priority. Priority is determined by counting the number of matches you have signed up to officiate. Also, for Crossfire U11-U13, if we discover that we do not have enough referees to cover matches, we will remove assistant referees from your team's home games. Note that none of this is intended as a "punishment". Rather, we are allocating our resources as fairly as we can - and believe it is most fair to allocate referees to those teams supporting the referee program.

How much training is required?

There are two levels of license available for starting referees. The "Grade 9" (also known as "Recreational Referee") requires 8-9 classroom hours of education. A Grade 9 referee may officiate as a center referee on Recreational matches only (not Crossfire) and only through U14. The "Grade 8" class requires 16 hours of classroom education. A Grade 8 referee may officate any level of youth match and many recreational adult matches. In addition to these "entry level" requirements, a referee must take a further five hours of continuing education every year.

Does it cost anything to become a referee?

LWYSA uses referees that are licensed by the US Soccer Federation. In addition, we expect referees to wear a proper referee uniform. Therefore, there is a cost to obtain and maintain the license as well as obtain the necessary uniform. Once you obtain your license, that license will enable you to referee almost anywhere in the U.S. In order to encourage you to referee for LWYSA, LWYSA offers an incentive wherein we will pay you a bonus if you start your referee career in LWYSA. That bonus, which is paid after you referee ten games for LWYSA, is approximately equal to the cost of your initial class plus the cost of a starter uniform plus the cost of your referee license. The total is about $150. This is in addition to amounts you are paid for the assignments you take.

How much are referees paid?

The amount varies with the organization you work for and the competition level. In LWYSA, a U10 recreational match pays about $16. A U14 recreational match is about $42. So, the amount you can earn is very individual. The median amount earned by LWYSA referees in 2008 was about $280. When thinking of being a referee for a recreational program, it is really best to think of yourself as a volunteer as much of the money you receive will offset costs (gas, coffee on a freezing morning, extra uniform pieces, a meal on the run, etc.). However, there is also the potential to earn a notable sum. LWYSA does have a SMALL number of referees that earn over $1000 each year.

I'm not very athletic. How fit do you have to be to be a referee?

Its important to remember that YOU choose the matches you wish to officiate. So, you never need to take an assignment that is beyond what you would feel comfortable doing. Because the fitness level required varies with the age and competition level of the players, we actually have some referees who use being a referee as part of their exercise program. You can begin on a U10 recreational match. Those are played on much smaller fields and are short games (50 minutes) and you can easily keep up with play by walking and sometimes jogging. You can then work your way up, over a long period of time, to the highest youth levels (U18 Premier). Those are 90 minute matches during which you should be jogging most of the time, with some running. Proper officiating will have you going 3-5 miles during that match.

When are classes offered?

Classes are offered throughout the year, though most are offered in July and August, right before the soccer season. You can attend any entry level class. You need not attend a class sponsored by LWYSA. You can find classes throughout Washington by going to the Washington State Referee Committee web site -> HERE .

Can players be a referee?

Yes. Approximately half of LWYSA's matches are officiated by current players or brothers or sisters of players. While many of these youth are excellent officials, because of their many activities and changing interests, very few officiate more than one to two seasons. We train about 70 youth per year. After three years, only 2 or 3, at most, will still be reffing. By the time most youth quit, they have only progressed to covering U13-U14 age matches.

Why not get more youth instead of pleading for more adults?

As indicated above, the attrition rate for youth is quite high - about 65% per year and after 3-4 years, those that remain move on to college or their professional lives. The attrition rate for adults is about 30%. After 3-4 years, adults who have not quit will tend to remain referees as long as they have children playing. Some of these will even remain after their children stop playing. It is this collection of referees that serve as the core of officials for U15 and older matches. Thus, the long term health of our programs requires that adults be recruited.

Games keep getting covered, is there really a shortage of refs?

It is true that the coverage rate for matches in our area hovers around 97%. That number is a bit deceptive. One reason it is high is because we keep cutting back the number of matches that will get assistant referees in order to make certain we cover games with at least one official. Many years ago, all U12+ matches, including recreational matches, had three officials. The other thing we do is "promote" referees faster than we used to. This means there is a greater chance the referee in the center isn't as experienced as we'd really like for the level of match they are officiating. While many referees are successful with being "stretched" like this, each year we are doing this more and more often with less than ideal results. Finally, the average number of matches taken by experienced officials keeps going up. The challenge with this is that fatigue can cause excellent referees to have too many "off games". We are at a point where there isn't a place to cut our coverage, and we can't really ask referees to take more games. So, we will see a slow errosion in the number of games covered and the quality of the coverage. It will happen over time, and the desperate pleas for adults are an effort to stave off problems 3-4 years down the road.

I want to be a ref... how do I get started?

1. Take an Entry Level Referee Class
   
   • Next LWYSA Class <-
     
   • Other Classes in Washington <-
     
   
   
2. Sign up on your local soccer association web site
   
3. Complete their administrative requirements.
   
4. Jump in and ref a few games
   
5. Still have questions? --> Ask it HERE! <-
   

The important thing is to give it a try. While being a referee is not for everyone, a very large percentage of referees who ENJOY being referees were very skeptical at first, sometimes even a bit fearful. It was not until they actually tried being a referee that they discovered they enjoyed it.