 Welcome to the sports playbook where we discuss its solutions to issues that impact sports. I'm your host Angela hazelett. Today's guest is Zach finger hut a soccer referee in northern Virginia, Maryland area. We're here to discuss officiating and soccer, the journey of a soccer referee. Welcome Zach. Hi, Professor hazelett. Thank you so much for this, this honor and distinction of being on your broadcast, you know, I'm truly flattered and really grateful for this opportunity. Well, I am really excited to have you here and your expertise. I know soccer is clearly your passion. You've grown up playing soccer you were recruited and played a couple years of division one men's soccer at Wake Forest University. You've dabbled in coaching soccer. Your day job now is in ticket sales for the Loudoun United Football Club, which is a professional soccer team in Leesburg, Virginia. And as as if that were not enough you at night and on weekends referee soccer games. So how did you get your start in officiating soccer matches. Yeah, so I think, you know, I formally began back in roughly 2013, like my senior year of high school. You know didn't really take it very seriously, just kind of did games on the weekends whenever I could, you know, started off at the lowest level with, you know, recreation soccer. I started to get my, you know, my feet wet and start, you know, building my myself confidence as a as a soccer referee. And I think just in starting to get the games under my belt and repetition. I really felt more confident in my abilities and I knew from the, you know, background I have growing up playing, you know, high school and in club for a number of the top teams in my in my area. I knew that I had have a lot to bring to the the officiating world and knew that, you know, I could really implement my my knowledge, you know, in in a different aspect of the game. And so, then you know fast forward many years later here I am now. You know, I feel extremely self assured and I've managed to accomplish a lot and still fairly young I have some some time on my side. And I'm ecstatic and really excited to see, you know, what my future holds with refereeing. Absolutely. And did you have a do you have a favorite age group you like to officiate. Great question I think growing up. I kind of had more of an inclination or preference to, you know, referee the younger aged kids. I kind of realized that, you know, parents and spectators and players can be, you know, very animated and energetic, especially at the younger ages, because you know there seems to be kind of not as, you know, strong like knowledge of the game I feel. And, you know, people can become kind of over reactive with certain things and so then I kind of, you know, felt more inclined over the years to now probably prefer to officiate like older age groups. It's interesting when I kind of when I was, you know, I less experienced referee. I kind of drifted towards wanting to do like girls over boys. And because, you know, I guess just generally speaking there's like less physic physicality. And, you know, kind of chippiness, I guess. But, you know, after after time. I've kind of had a change of thought and now kind of have a preference to do more like, you know, boys, because you know I'm able to relate more with them. And, you know, there's probably more more ways that I can address boys to, you know, using different terms of endearment and stuff to keep players level headed and prevent them from doing, you know, things they they shouldn't shouldn't aren't supposed to be doing. So, yeah, I think, you know, I now I probably, you know, I'm able to mix it up a lot and I don't really have, you know, I don't lean one way or the other now when it comes to refereeing whatever games I'm assigned. You know, I, I do do the best I can. And, yeah, I don't have really, you know, much of an option. I just, you know, do do as I'm told, just like I have all throughout my life and, you know, put put my best foot forward on the field. You know, straight you, you feel like you can communicate differently when you're officiating boys and then you don't have the parents to deal with if you're dealing with an older age group. So there's some distinctions there and who you might get assigned to officiate is that correct. Yeah, yeah, definitely. You know, you mostly got it. Right. I think, you know, with girls, there's only a certain amount of terms I can use to, you know, get their attention. And, you know, I want to want to always be sure that I am acting in a respectful manner. You know, boys have a behavioral tendency in, in sports to, you know, oftentimes be like melodramatic and, you know, just, you know, push referees buttons some more, I think. And, you know, generally speaking, you know, females in sports are, you know, probably more level headed, I would say. And, you know, just even tempered. So that's like a major difference I've noticed in my years of officiating is just picking up on these little like small cues and like I said different behavioral tendencies and habits. Between, you know, referring, you know, different genders. That's a really interesting observation that you've noticed and maybe how you have to approach them. I would love to kind of dive into what you were talking about and how it could be perceived as maybe challenging when you have players who are giving a little pushback. You mentioned parents of younger children can often be very challenging maybe because they don't have the knowledge of the game and are familiar with why calls are being made and why penalties are being raised. And there's this huge lack of officials were short officials to referee matches. I know COVID has had a huge impact on the retention of officials with canceled games. But that's this abusive and violent treatment towards the officials that have also really impacted the sport. The National Federation of State of High School Sports has reported between 2018 and 2021 that 20% of its officials have actually quit. And now games are even being canceled due to lack of officials. So why do you stay in the game, despite these challenges. Yeah, I mean the the stats and the figures don't lie. You know, this is an issue that is very prevalent and serious in our society today with, you know, referees dropping out, you know, did day by day, as we as we see. But one of the main reasons I stick around and am still involved so heavily is because of my passion for the game and, you know, primarily wanting to give back to my community in a different capacity is that that's one of the main, you know, motives that that keeps me going. And, you know, knowing that I have, you know, a lot of knowledge of, you know, the laws of the game as they're called or the rules of soccer and how it's supposed to be, you know, implemented and carried out in a game has has really, you know, carried me a far away so I think, you know, most importantly just like my my love and affection almost I have to to soccer is what keeps keeps me going and, you know, I have aspirations to move up in advance. And in the next few years become a regional a US soccer Federation regional referee, and I'm really eager to see, you know, how far I can I can go with with my refereeing career. I definitely want to get into talking a little bit more about the process of what it takes to become an official, but before we go that direction. Do you feel like it's your responsibility to educate athletes coaches spectators about the rules while you're officiating and to maybe curb some of this bad behavior, or to improve the game and improve improve fairness. I feel like that's your responsibility or do you just call the game as you see it, and leave it at that. Yeah, so to answer your question, I would say yes and no, I think. This time I've learned that it's, it's paramount that I pick and choose my moments when I do explain certain calls that I make, or why I arrived at a decision that I did during a game, especially if there are incidents where the intensity level rises and the temperature of the game goes up. And, you know, I know I can sense or pick up that, you know, players and coaches just are, you know, becoming more like noisy than normal, then, you know, I might kind of use that as a cue to, you know, be more vocal and, you know, conversational with with the players and in the coaches, especially if there's a very critical call that could could potentially be an outcome of a game. I think, you know, that that's one example of a time when, you know, communication is extremely important and, you know, being able to, you know, feel like everyone is like included. And, you know, you're not being, I guess, like, you know, I guess discriminatory or like just, you know, feel like you're favoring like one team over another, I think, you know, it's always, I always, you know, referee with, you know, integrity and just, you know, being as honest as I can with myself. Yeah, that sounds like the ideal characteristics of a good referee. But sometimes these angry people get violent. I don't know if you've ever personally experienced that or you felt threatened for your physical and personal safety. So how do you prevent things from escalating to that point where violence happens, not that you can completely control that, but and how do you keep yourself safe in those situations? A lot of it comes down to, you know, being dependent and reliant on your other, you know, fellow referees whom you whom that I work with. And, you know, having the trust in them that, you know, they will always stand behind me and have my back and support the calls that I make, even though they, you know, might not always agree or, you know, see the exact same play that I did. But I think also it's just very important that I always stay even keeled and, you know, like just remain calm despite, you know, high pressure situations. And I think it's it's never it's nobody wins or it's never beneficial when, you know, I try to combat like an argument or dispute from by somebody else by like matching their their volume and tone of voice, because then that just leads to getting into a shouting match and, you know, that's that's very unproductive, unproductive. So, you know, I try to always do my best to, like I said, remain calm and maintain my composure, even with, you know, all the the background noise that that goes on during my, you know, competitive matches that I referee. That can't be easy to keep a calm demeanor and even leave the the stress of the situation behind and not take that kind of home with you to replay that in your head. Have there you've mentioned that it was important to have support from your fellow fellow referees. Do you have you ever had a situation where you were working with someone who was just wasn't a good match with you and maybe it had difficult personality made bad calls and how did you deal with the officials who maybe didn't operate in the same style or manner as as you would. There's, there's like hundreds if not thousands of referees who have crossed paths with over the years and, you know, unfortunately, you know, I must regrettably say, you know, not all of them are of the highest quality. And personally I hold myself to, you know, high standards and expectations and, you know, it can be sometimes frustrating when I work with other officials who, you know, may not be as kind of well rounded or competent as me but I also use those those games as opportunities to, you know, to teach others and just share my knowledge of of the sport and, you know, my skill set that I've acquired as a referee, and, you know, I tried to, you know, almost act act as an ambassador. I think that will kind of benefit everybody if, you know, referees pick each other up and instead of, you know, everybody on the sidelines trying to tear referees down. You know, our society is not going to go anywhere when people do that so yeah just just overall trying to, you know, be positive in encourage, you know, referees who may be like less experienced than than me. Officiating is really subjective and by nature so I'm as people see things a little and perceive them a little differently. I'm curious though with with all this angst and different personalities and different approaches. Is there concern for how officials impact the mental health of their, their co worker their colleagues, the players on the field the other coaches, do you ever think about that, and how you play a role in the mental well being of those around you. Yeah, of course, I think that's never really something I, you know, am actively thinking about like in the moments during games but I think that is a, you know, mental health is a byproduct of like what shapes my my experience and the experiences of my my fellow referees on the field. And, you know, like we're seeing today. You know, there's, there's so many referees who are dropping out, you know, due to the amount of like verbal abuse they're experiencing. And that was a figure that I came across on the one of the Maryland state use soccer associations. Social media pages, which, which says that, you know, 60% of officials surveyed in 2020 said their top reason for quitting would be, you know, verbal abuse from parents. Similarly, you know, the verbal in physical, you know, or the verbal abuse and physical intimidation, you know, drives, you know, many young referees out of the game like all together, and there's a stat out there, reported by the US soccer Federation, which, which notes that roughly 60% of referees don't return for a second year. You know, those are numbers that really stick with me. Because, you know, it's truly the young, younger generation of referees who, you know, shape the future of, of officiating in our country and, you know, we have to do everything that we can, and myself included to persuade and encourage, you know, young, promising, talented referees to, to stick with it, you know, despite the adversity they may face from, you know, all parties involved, you know, parents, players and coaches. So, you know, all the active officials are startup as a youth, referring a match, just as, as you did. So, getting them while they're young and retaining them is really important. So describe to us the process to become a soccer official. What do you have to do to get where you are. Yeah, sure. So, you know, first off, the, the first step is attending a, I mean, first registering online for a, you know, referee class. And that, that course itself takes place in person and lasts for, you know, several hours, it's pretty long and, you know, mentally taxing. But, you know, I, I really learned a lot from, you know, taking those, those classes. And so, you know, when somebody first wants to become a referee, they, you know, sign up for a new referee course but there's also, you know, annual recertification classes that must be taken as a requirement to renew referee licenses each year. But, yeah, once, once I took my, you know, very first class, there is subsequently an on field session where, you know, we practice and hone in on the mechanics of, you know, like which directions to point when making calls, you know, certain, you know, hands like mannerisms that are, you know, critical in order to like signal to other people like the calls you're making. And then there's like another portion of, you know, using the flag as an assistant referee, and you know how to properly, you know, do that. And after that's all over with, then referees will take a final examination. And interestingly, you know, all of my instructors I've had are very, just very upbeat, like, you know, cordial friendly people and they in fact encourage referees to, to talk with each other while they're taking the exam and, you know, discuss through the scenarios and the questions with each other. And, you know, we don't move on until to the next question until everyone, you know, is on the same page. So there's really this strong sense of camaraderie amongst officials and also instructors to and, yeah, just really appreciate the guidance I've received to, you know, help prepare me for taking the field. That's interesting that kind of team approach to taking the exam because you're going to be working as a team on the field as well. And then I know once you pass your certification, you work with the assigners to kind of assign you to work in different matches. That's a long history though of working at certain level of games to kind of get that to the upper echelon. Can you briefly describe what is the process of kind of getting to those elite premier kind of top games. The biggest factor that has pushed me and moving up I would say is just having this ambition to challenge myself and push myself out of my comfort zone. You know, like, like I mentioned, in the beginning, I started off doing, you know, like the younger age groups like the 1011 12 year olds. And once I got a number of those games under my belt. Then, you know, I, I, you know, ultimately, you know, tested the waters with like, you know, 1314 15 year olds and I started off just being an assistant referee so I could, you know, visually see and observe how the center referee kind of operates and how they manage the games. And I think just from being on the sideline, you know, I'm still indirectly involved but with being on the sideline. You know, I was able to pick up a lot of, you know, great observations and key takeaways that I could then incorporate into my own officiating and then, you know, next thing I know I've, I've moved up to doing 1819 year olds, you know, and now, you know, most recently I am I feel comfortable refereeing like, you know, high level adult men's league games, college club, high school. You know, I've been named to multiple state championships for high school, and also a state cup final for you soccer. I've been privileged with receiving an invitation to attend the USU soccer regional championships in the past. So, yeah, I think just over time, like, I feel more comfortable in my in my own skin and just with my ability to carry out a game and yeah I think just, I need to continue to push myself to reach the next level. And that center referee position is is the perceived coveted position. I presume they're probably paid a little bit better but they're also sort of the key decision maker and calling the game. Um, it's far as representation goes how often do you see people of color or women that serve as officials, do they start the process, do they stay. How is soccer approaching encouraging diversity representation and officiating. Yeah, very fascinating question. I think from a diversity standpoint I am seeing a fairly wide variety of, of, you know, races and ethnicities. As far as gender goes, I think there's still a lot more room for growth and improvement in that area. You know, over the, you know, like, 10 or nine 10 years I've been officiating, you know, I've only come across like, you know, not even like a dozen like female referees total I think. So, you know, it's, it's interesting, but I think we as a society need to, you know, encourage and support females to, to work alongside, you know, male referees, and that you know there's no shame in, in being a referee. In fact, there's a lot to be proud of and what one of the best parts of, you know, becoming an official sports official is that, you know, there's not a huge like cost or expense to doing it. You know, what one of the only costs is, you know, buying your uniform and, you know, equipment. But, you know, that's, that's all, you know, pretty, you know, inexpensive and from there once you, you know, meet a signers like I have then you end up, you know, recouping all of those, all of those costs so you can do it very quickly. Um, actually so. Absolutely. Yeah. Yeah. So we are kind of at the end of our time but I want to know like what's the number one thing that can be done to solve the crisis of the shortage of officials. In your opinion, what's the number one thing that can be done to solve that problem? I think probably like providing more access and opportunities for, for the referees. One of my signers who I've gotten to know very well over the years is making a concerted effort to, you know, offer more referee courses, you know, throughout the area. I think that's one of the things that can be done to, to places where might not be as like feasible for people to get to. And I think just, you know, holding trying to sustain the current referees in the industry now. So access and sustaining what they have currently. So Zach, thank you so much for your insight into officiating soccer and in your journey being a soccer referee. Thank you to our viewers for joining us today on the sports playbook. In two weeks, our guest is Skip Gilbert from US Youth Soccer who will discuss the future of youth soccer. So we will see you then. Thank you so much for watching Think Tech Hawaii. If you like what we do, please like us and click the subscribe button on YouTube and the follow button on Vimeo. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn, and donate to us at thinktechhawaii.com. Mahalo.