u13 wants to referee junior level football - what's allowed?

[Kinsleyr]

Hi,

My 13 year old daughter wants to referee and as I used to referee both adult and junior I have suggested she look at doing u5-u8s as a gentle introduction to the game.

She needs to improve her rule knowledge but is currently really interested to give it a go but all I can find are the official referee courses that don't start till you are at least 14.

Does anyone have any advice at this stage and is it something she can do at this age?

 

[lincs22]

Hi, as it currently stands your daughter cannot qualify as a referee until she is 14. Therefore, no league can/will appoint her to any match.

Therefore, she would have to be asked by the relevant clubs to officiate friendlies. She would not be licenced and not covered by any insurance. So if something happened, the clubs could be at risk.

Honestly, I think you want get clubs to agree to her and she would be better wait until is 14, pass the course and undertake things officially

 

[RustyRef]

You can't be a referee at any age group until you pass the age of 14. Once qualified the regulation on what age group youth referees can officiate is below.

Referees under the age of 16 are only eligible to officiate in competitions where the players’ age band is at least one year younger than the age of the Referee. e.g. a 15 year old referee may only referee in competitions where the age banding is 14 or younger.

 

[Kinsleyr]

Hi, as it currently stands your daughter cannot qualify as a referee until she is 14. Therefore, no league can/will appoint her to any match.

Therefore, she would have to be asked by the relevant clubs to officiate friendlies. She would not be licenced and not covered by any insurance. So if something happened, the clubs could be at risk.

Honestly, I think you want get clubs to agree to her and she would be better wait until is 14, pass the course and undertake things officially

Ok I appreciate that leagues won't allocate her to matches but at my local level for the u6-u9 there are no allocated referees and in most part the referee is the coach who then has to deal with refereeing and coaching at the same time.

I think in some instances the league will run a two hour referee course for coaches that barely covers the surface.

 

[JamesL]

Ok I appreciate that leagues won't allocate her to matches but at my local level for the u6-u9 there are no allocated referees and in most part the referee is the coach who then has to deal with refereeing and coaching at the same time.

I think in some instances the league will run a two hour referee course for coaches that barely covers the surface.

A minimum age will be set in competition rules so even if there is not an appointed referee the age limits of those able to take on the role is still set.

Whilst no the answer you'd hoped for, she will have to wait until she is 14. It might be worth asking CFA if she can attend the course before in preparation but certainly will not be able to officiate a game in the mean time

 

[ChasObserverRefDeveloper]

Ok I appreciate that leagues won't allocate her to matches but at my local level for the u6-u9 there are no allocated referees and in most part the referee is the coach who then has to deal with refereeing and coaching at the same time.

I think in some instances the league will run a two hour referee course for coaches that barely covers the surface.

The two-hour course for club referees/assistant referees also has the minimum age of 14. The best advice we can give is that the extra maturity your daughter will achieve over the next few months will be useful when she starts to referee after her course. Make sure she completes the online part firstly, so she is ready for the classroom/practical session. Hope she enjoys the course.

 

[Quarryref]

I do know of someone who was about your daughter's age and used to practise 'refereeing' games at a junior club training session - so not real games, but the sort of internal team 5-a-sides that usually happen at the end of training. His (in this case) Dad managed an U6 side or similar so it kept everyone happy and occupied and no risk of upsetting anyone

 

[Kinsleyr]

Cheers thanks for the advice and it all makes sense - she will be disappointed and it won't be easy to arrange matches although like you say I should be able to get her ref time at the end of training sessions.

Thanks again!

 

[RefRyanAus]

In the mean time maybe take her to some senior club games with young but experienced referees where she can observe how they go about things. Once you have a focus on watching the match official in a game you can learn heaps about positioning, control, whistle technique, etc. I learned a lot this way as a very young referee and definitely recommend it even at 13. When you do this you can also prompt her about why she thinks the referee made a particular decision, etc. it’s also a great way to see how referees handle the inevitable character assessments coming their way.

 

[Refollie]

It might be worth asking CFA if she can attend the course before in preparation but certainly will not be able to officiate a game in the mean time

This is worth a go. It was a long time ago, but I passed the course when I was 13 and then started refereeing in practice when I was 14. With my dad alongside me who couldn’t give a hoot about football.

 

[Ref_Dad]

A minimum age will be set in competition rules so even if there is not an appointed referee the age limits of those able to take on the role is still set.

To add to @JamesL's point, it is worth noting that the minimum age for 'volunteer' referees (i.e. non-qualified coach / parent) and qualified (registered) referees will sometimes be quite different in the competition rules too.
For example, in some of our local (mini / youth) leagues a qualified referee is permitted to officiate at 14 years of age, but non-qualified referees / assistants must be aged 18 or over.