Referee recruitment and retention drive pays dividends

The number of active referees in European football has grown by almost 50,000 over the past two years, thanks to recruitment and retention activities taking place across the continent.

Since the summer of 2023, we have been working closely with our national associations to grow the number of match officials, with leading referees supporting our Be A Referee! campaign which aims to inspire young people to begin a career within the game.

The latest figures provide cause for optimism, and represent a significant turnaround. "We had a worrying situation before we launched our campaign in 2023 – a lot of referees were leaving football," says UEFA refereeing officer Bjorn Kuipers.

"Action was necessary to make people more aware about how rewarding it is to be a referee, and how crucial referees are for the game.

"A priority objective has been to attract youngsters in their mid-teens to take up refereeing and convince them that they are making a good choice in doing so. You learn so much about life as a referee...taking decisions, handling people, learning courage and resilience. It’s a fantastic job."

The figures were presented at a workshop in Vienna this week, attended by refereeing representatives from national associations, as well as delegates from other sporting bodies, who together examined various areas of the UEFA Convention on Referee Education and Organisation, which aims to enhance the role of officials and strengthen referee development in Europe.

UEFA's Referee Convention Panel at the Vienna meeting

Association strategies and initiatives

Wide-ranging initiatives have brought recent increases in the number of referees in many countries – strategies have been designed to make referees feel valued, and environments created where referees are being treated with respect and appreciation for the role they play as central components in any match.

In some countries, elite referees are passing on wisdom to young and inexperienced counterparts. Elsewhere, professional players are being appointed as referees for grassroots matches, and concerted media and promotion campaigns are profiling refereeing in a positive light.

Refereeing: 'Something to be enjoyed'

Kuipers identifies European football’s heartening recruitment and retention developments as just the beginning. "We feel that our campaign has been successful, but we must keep working together from the top to the bottom of the game," he insists.

"We need, for instance, to get more people on board to act as mentors, to encourage and advise young referees and give them confidence within a trusting atmosphere. I’d like to see top players helping to spread the message about football’s need for referees. It’s essential to keep pushing the fact that refereeing is definitely something to be enjoyed."

Abuse prevention

Retention of referees has had its share of difficulties at grassroots and youth levels, with officials facing abusive and hostile behaviour on and off the field, and some choosing as a result to give up refereeing.

"Abuse by players, coaches and spectators towards referees is an unpleasant phenomenon at any level," says Kuipers. "It’s very unhealthy, for referees as well as for the image of football. If referees are badly affected in any way by the conduct of a coach, player or spectators, this can greatly damage their self-confidence and we lose them. Referees should be able to operate in a safe environment."

European football still needs more refereesGetty Images

'Bad behaviour towards referees cannot be tolerated'

Kuipers feels that clubs and coaches should also take increased responsibility in preventing abuse towards match officials, especially at youth and grassroots levels.

"For example, every club must be ready to take action against parents who abuse and threaten referees from the touchline," he reflects. "Coaches at matches can also play a primordial role by keeping their teams and players under control.

"It’s absolutely clear that bad behaviour towards referees cannot be tolerated in any shape or form."