Referees across the country on the decline

If you speak to a sports fan, it’s usually easy to tell that they’re passionate about their teams, and when you get their kid or kids involved, that passion rises to another level. While passion can be good, it can also be bad, which has been the case in youth sports across the country and when it comes to parents and other adults in the stands. A lot of that yelling and aggression is directed at the referees. It’s become so bad that many referees decide to hang up their whistles. All throughout the country, we are facing a shortage of high school referees, in part because of all the harassment referees face.

Perhaps no statistic underscored the situation more than this one: “An average of only two of every 10 officials return for their third year of officiating, according to the National Federation of State High School Associations.” Officials who oversee sports are in such short supply for varsity games that league officials are pulling refs from junior varsity, freshman and middle school games. While it is rare now to have games at the varsity level canceled because of the shortage, the future promises more unless the problem is addressed.

The veteran officials who remain are aging. Some are having trouble keeping up with the speed of the game, coaches and athletic director's note. What used to be a steady flow of younger officials is now the exception, not the rule. While the pay and time constraints contribute to the decline, the stories of abuse or near physical confrontation at games play much a bigger role.

In part, Barry Mano, founder of the National Association of Sports Officials, believes social media is to blame. Parents will pick up their phones and take a video, he said. If they don’t like the call, they’ll post it to YouTube or other sites, chastising the official. This adds to official’s angst, making the job even less appealing.

Factors such as verbal abuse, low pay, aging officials and the continued expansion of travel and club teams that compete for officials with public school programs have contributed to the crisis. I believe there's a simple two-step solution. Parents need to behave better, and those who think they can do better should sign up to become officials.