Football Referee

You can get into refereering through a structured training programme run by the Football Association (FA).

To start, you'll need to register with your local County Football Association and complete a Basic Referee's Course.

The course takes up to 24 hours to complete and includes laws of the game, the role of the referee and practical skills. You must also referee at least five 11-a-side games and be assessed by your referee mentor.

You would usually start refereering at youth football level then progress as your experience grows. You can do further training with the FA to help you move on to refereering at higher levels in both the mens's and women's game.

You'll need:

• patience and the ability to remain calm in stressful situations
• the ability to accept criticism and work well under pressure
• to be thorough and pay attention to detail
• the ability to work well with others
• ambition and a desire to succeed
• excellent verbal communication skills
• concentration skills
• the ability to think clearly using logic and reasoning
• to be able to carry out basic tasks on a computer or hand-held device

In your day-to-day tasks you may:

• inspect the pitch and markings
• make sure equipment like goalposts and nets are safely set up
• check you have everything you need for the game, like stopwatches, cards and radio communications (at top levels)
• meet with team managers
• brief your assistants on which signals to use and what to do in particular situations, like if there’s a confrontation on the pitch

During a game, you’ll:

• follow the play and make decisions
• communicate with your assistants to help with rulings
• control the behaviour of the teams on the pitch, and their coaching staff on the sidelines

You could work at a college, at a sports arena or at a university.

Your working environment may be physically demanding, outdoors in all weathers and you'll travel often.

You may need to wear a uniform.

Professional and industry bodies

You can join the The Referees' Association for support and professional development.

Further information

You can find out more about becoming a referee from The Football Association.

You'll need to:

• pass enhanced background checks
• be over 14 years of age