The life of this professional is not easy: even before the game starts, the fans are already cursing his mother… “The best referee is the one who makes as few mistakes as possible. There’s no way not to make a mistake, that doesn’t exist”, says the vice-president of the Union of Football Referees of the State of São Paulo, Márcio Campos Sales. If you want to give traditional professions a red card, try this one!
Training
Undergraduate and postgraduate:
It is not necessary to have a higher education
Other courses:
There are schools linked to the state football federations that qualify those interested in being a judge or linesman.
What is learned:
Game rules, other languages, notions of physical preparation, writing summaries and reports, sports psychology…
Work
Occupation area:
You can work only in amateur football (club championships, associations, etc.) or be linked to a state federation. In this case, you start refereeing tournaments of basic categories (children, youth), then matches of the third, fourth division; only after a few years of experience is it possible to work on top-notch games
Day to day:
It is necessary to arrive at the stadium hours in advance to fulfill the bureaucratic part: filling out the scoresheet and inspecting the field. No later than four hours after the end of the match, the referee gives a report on the game
Market situation:
The demand for the courses has been great, including among women. As the number of games, in the different categories, is high, there is a lot of service
What else is worth:
The opportunity to work with football, even without having the skills to be a good player, and the possibility of traveling around Brazil and other countries
Why think twice:
It is a solitary job with irregular dates and hours. As the activity is not regulated, many arbitrators have other jobs
Remuneration
Initial salary:
In São Paulo, around 150 reais per game in the base categories
Possible salary after ten years:
A world-class referee earns BRL 2,500 per match