Without the neutral governing of a referee, any sport you follow would cease to exist in its current form. Despite this, they are subjected to a great deal of maltreatment. Being a football referee may be one of the most demanding occupations out there, but do the salary and status reflect the difficulties of the job? Is the compensation adequate, or will they have to work two jobs? Let’s see what occurs.
Professional referees don’t have other jobs because they have a regular wage, as well as match fees and costs, due to their professional, full-time status. Amateur and semi-professional referees frequently have other jobs because they do not work full-time and are paid per game.
Do Football Referees Work Full Time?
The finest referees earn a lot of money, and some of them, like retired referee Howard Webb, have refereed in World Cups, Champions League Finals, and European Champions in the same year. Now, depending on what level the referees are officiating at, they may be able to make enough money from it to be their sole source of income, or they may have to look for another profession to make ends meet.
Amateur referees in the United Kingdom are paid per game. Then there are the semi-professional referees, who work in the English lower leagues and are paid per game as well as for their travel expenses. The Premier League is another option.
Referees in England’s top division are paid a regular income in addition to match costs. They have a retainer, which means they are paid a base rate plus an additional fee per match. Referees in the English Championship have the same yearly wage retainer as referees in the Premier League.
Professional referees do not require a second job because they are adequately compensated; nevertheless, amateur and semi-professional referees have been found to work in other occupations.
Different Levels for Football Referees
A soccer referee must take the requisite courses, acquire the necessary sanctions, and obtain the necessary certificates from a specific soccer organization. Specific qualifications differ depending on the region they desire to referee in and the regulatory body that controls and regulates competitive games.
Referees in the United States, for example, must obtain qualifications from the US Soccer Federation (USSF) for each region. The Football Association (FA) certifies referees in the United Kingdom. They can apply to their County FA.
Even local and regional referees must have sufficient qualifications. Background checks are conducted by the state US Soccer association to ensure that applicants are fit for officiating minor and adult games. With good performances and experience, referees can advance through the ranks and finally reach the professional level. In the United States, a state’s US Soccer representatives help local referees advance their careers by nominating them to officiate larger and more important competitions, such as a state cup.
MLS Referee
The path to the MLS for a US referee is pretty simple, although challenging. When a regional referee is given the chance to work in significant state tournaments, US Soccer takes notice. The top players in each class are then selected for the regional championship, Development Academy, and high-level amateur tournaments. The PRO and PRO2 organizations aim and scout referees at the highest regional level.
The Professional Referee Organization (PRO)
They are in charge of supervising and managing referees and assistant referees in professional soccer competitions in the United States and Canada. They collaborate with the Major League Soccer (MLS), the United States Soccer Federation (USSF), the United Soccer League (USL), and the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL), among others, to develop an appropriate officiating system.
They also provide programs for referees and assistant referees in the United States and Canada. The PRO’s major goal is to deliver professional soccer games in North America with high-level, world-class referees and match officials. They also want to increase the level of professional refereeing in major events by training referees from a young age and prepare them to represent the United States and Canada in FIFA tournaments throughout the world.
The PRO2
This is a division of the PRO that is responsible for assigning referees and officials to USL Championship, NWSL, and USL League One matches (referee feeder league to MLS). PRO2 referees have the potential to advance to PRO at the end of each season. PRO2 is an important stepping stone to North America’s top level of professional officiating.
Premier League
A Premier League referee’s path is similar to that of an MLS official. The first stage is to finish the FA Referees Course. This can only be done through your county FA. Applicants must be 14 years old or older to enroll in an FA course. Referees can gain experience and advance through the ranks of the FA to become professional-level Premier League referees over time.
FIFA
FIFA’s team of referees includes the best officials from all the world’s professional leagues. A referee must hold the highest possible qualification from a FIFA-affiliated league in order to be eligible to be a FIFA official. A Premier League referee, for example, possesses the highest possible domestic certifications, allowing him or her to officiate in FIFA competitions across the world. Such games can also be officiated by US PRO licensed referees. All referees at FIFA tournaments are chosen by the organization. Domestic soccer organizations, such as the United States Soccer Federation or the English Football Association, can, nonetheless, propose their best players for FIFA games.
Are Premier League Referees Full-Time?
Being a Premier League referee isn’t simple, but unlike further down the hierarchy, they have a professional position and are fairly well compensated for their work. And yes, Premier League Referees work full-time.
In English football, Premier League referees belong to the ‘Select Group’ level category, even though they and the Championship are the only two leagues with professional referees. However, this hasn’t always been the case. Referees in the Premier League only went pro in June 2001, nine years after the tournament began.
How Much Do Premier League Referees Earn
A Premier League referee’s remuneration comprises of a regular wage, as well as match fees and costs, due to their professional, full-time status. Leading referees, for example, would most certainly be paid over £42,000 per year, which, when combined with Premier League match fees of £1,150, will push their total yearly earnings well over £70,000.
Mike Dean, for example, officiated 29 Premier League games in 2018-19, earning him £33,350 in match costs. It’s a significant boost from when Premier League referees first went pro in 2001 when they were paid a £33,000 annual retainer plus £900 in match costs.
Officials in the Women’s Super League, on the other hand, earn roughly 20 times less than those in the men’s top flight, where the average yearly wage is less than £4,000 and match fees can be as low as £120. They also don’t get a weekly retainer, nor do they get any sickness, illness, or childcare benefits.
Meanwhile, several of Europe’s other “major” leagues hire referees on a game-by-game basis rather than on an annual basis. Spain’s La Liga has the greatest payscale, with middlemen earning up to €6,000 each match, although Germany, Italy, and France also out pay English referees.
Best Payed FIFA Referee
By officiating domestic and continental tournament games, a top-ranking FIFA referee can expect to earn around $260,000 per year. However, the game changed when Premier League referee Mark Clattenburg agreed to a $650,000-per-year deal with the Saudi Arabian FA. He had no choice but to referee matches in Saudi Arabia.
It was a new high for a professional soccer referee, and it helped him become the highest-paid official in the world. In comparison, the National Group list of referees in the UK, which includes a proportion of the estimated 1,000 active female referees, earns only $23,000 a year. It demonstrates the disparity not only between the highest-paid referees and the others but also between men and women.
Conclusion
Depending on the level of professionalism or the soccer league, the permanent or temporary employment of referees is determined, and thus their salary. Those who judge in amateur matches and lower leagues are most often employed part-time, while professional referees in major leagues are employed permanently and have high incomes that allow them to be their only job.
The job of a judge is demanding, you need to have certain skills and work on their improvement. This profession can be exciting, with high salaries and bonuses, so it’s not hard to believe that a lot of referees dream of working in the Premier or Fifa league.
