Become a U.S. Soccer Referee

Entry referee courses for new referees are now open.

Due to Covid-19, entry referee courses will no longer have a required In-Person component at this time. All work will be completed online to become a new U.S. Soccer Grassroots Referee. Optional field training events (previously mandatory) will be offered in the future.

Note: The minimum age to register for a course and become a referee is 13.

Please add memberupdate@georgiasoccer.org to your safe senders list or to your email's contact list to ensure you receive email communications from the State Referee Committee. Otherwise, these emails may go to your Spam folder. If you use Gmail, they will arrive in your Promotions folder.

To become a U.S. Soccer Grassroots Referee, register for the Georgia 2021 Entry Grassroots Referee Course - New Referees in the Learning Center, and complete all of the following in the assignments tab:

Online Grassroots Referee Course
2020 Intro to Safe and Healthy Playing Environments
2021 First Time Grassroots Quiz

After completing all of the assignments in the Learning Center course, register for the Zoom Virtual Training.

Hosted on Zoom. Must only attend one (1) Zoom session to become certified.
Must have video turned on and be present for the entirety of the session to receive credit.
The Zoom registration link and available dates are in the Learning Center course details.

If you are 18 years of age or older, you must also complete these two (2) mandatory items:

US Soccer NCSI Online Background Check ($30)
- Valid for two (2) years
SafeSport Online Training (Required by Federal Law)

Completing these requirements will certify a Grassroots Referee from that date through December 31, 2021.

Please consult the Learning Center FAQ page if you have any questions.

What To Do Next

1. Create a Profile through the U.S. Soccer Referee Learning Center (LC).

Create a Profile through the U.S. Soccer Referee Learning Center (LC).

The unique account identifier is an email address. Parents may not use their personal or work email address to register multiple referees; each referee profile must have their own email address. Parents may add a secondary email address to each account profile.
If you are experiencing technical issues with creating an account or completing the online assignments, the U.S. Soccer recommended steps are to clear your browser history, cache, and cookies, then close and restart your browser. If this does not solve the issue, try a different browser and/or device to create your account.

2. Complete the US Soccer NCSI Background Check and SafeSport (if 18 years of age or older)

Open the U.S. Soccer Learning Center.
Click Courses, click Available Courses, then Supplemental Courses.
Mandatory for all referees 18 years of age or older
- If the referee turns 18 during the registration year, they will receive an automated email from U.S. Soccer reminding them to return to the Learning Center to complete these requirements. If they are not completed, their license is removed and they will no longer be eligible to referee.

3. Register for the Georgia 2021 Entry Grassroots Referee Course - New Referees through the U.S. Soccer Referee Learning Center.

Register for the Georgia 2021 Entry Grassroots Referee Course - New Referees through the U.S. Soccer Referee Learning Center.

Complete all of the following assignments in the Assignments tab:
- Online Grassroots Referee Course
- 2020 Intro to Safe and Healthy Playing Environments
- 2021 First Time Grassroots Quiz

After completing all of the assignments, register for the Zoom Virtual Training.

Must have video turned on and be present for the entirety of the session to receive credit.
The Zoom registration link and available dates are in the Learning Center course details.

4. Download the IFAB Laws of the Game (LOTG).

Download the IFAB Laws of the Game (LOTG).

The LOTG are also available as an app in both the App Store and Google Play. All referees should download and have the LOTG app available with them at the fields.

Follow Up

Email Anne Wright for general questions about the Georgia Soccer Referee Program, or any assistance with registration.

Also email (CC) U.S. Soccer (referee@ussoccer.org) for general questions about the Learning Center, issues creating your account, background checks, etc.