AYSO referee training is designed to provide education to referees and prospective referees that will allow them to officiate AYSO soccer matches in accordance with the IFAB Laws of the Game and the AYSO National Rules and Regulations. It is the intent of the AYSO National Referee Program to provide practical, incremental referee training that will ensure consistency throughout AYSO. To register for a course, visit “My Training” from your volunteer page. Requirements for upgrades as a Referee, a Referee Instructor and a Referee Assessor may be found in the Appendix of the National Referee Program Manual. Questions on training?  Contact Al Prado, Section 1 Director of Referee Instruction.

AYSO Section 1 Advanced Referee Instructor Evaluation Policy and Procedure

In order to maintain consistency at the highest levels of instruction within Section 1, this policy and procedure shall be utilized for all Advanced Referee Instructor evaluations. This policy as well as the current list of Advanced Referee Instructor Evaluators in Section 1 may be found using the links below:

Questions on an Evaluation? Contact Al Prado, Section 1 Director of Referee Instruction.

Ready to upgrade your skills? Many Intermediate, Advanced and National Referee courses are being offered in and around Section 1. Browse for and register for courses online at eTrainU.

Upcoming Referee Training in Section 1

Safe Haven

Becoming Safe Haven certified may take a little time, but AYSO families know their child’s safety is worth it. Safe Haven is both a child and volunteer protection program. It was the first of its kind in youth sports. Volunteer protection comes into play as a result of volunteer training, certification and continuing education. The Volunteer Protection Act of 1997 provides certain legal protections for volunteers who have been trained and certified and act in accordance with a written job description. Safe Haven includes these three elements, giving volunteers the highest degree of protection available under the law. Safe Haven training is one of the courses you can eTrainU and, after login, look for AYSO’s Safe Haven – Full In-Person Course in the Training Library

Heads-Up: Concussion Awareness Training Requirements

Many States have recently passed laws requiring training for Concussion Awareness & Safety as well as Sudden Cardiac Arrest. Key elements from State legislation:

  • Information: Need to inform parents and players about concussions.
  • Training: Require Concussion Awareness Training for Officials (e.g., Coaches, Referees, RCs, etc.) similar to the Center for Disease Control’s online course.
  • Participation Release: Most laws require a Medical Release before a player suspected of having a concussion may return to play.

Best practices and policies are being developed for AYSO as a whole and for local programs impacted by new laws. What to expect in AYSO’s Concussion Awareness & Safety Practices & Policies:

Please watch for the implementation of the new Concussion Awareness and Safety Best Practices and Policies for AYSO. AYSO has partnered with the CDC to use the Heads Up program for concussion awareness materials. Goto eTrainU and, after login, look for CDC Concussion Awareness – Online in the Training Library.

Sudden Cardiac Arrest

AYSO, in partnership with Simon’s Heart, is pleased to provide Sudden Cardiac Arrest training in eTrainU and, after login, look for Sudden Cardiac Arrest – Online in the Training Library. This course satisfies the California, Washington and Tennessee state requirements or any state requiring the NFHS training.  Ohio residents are required to take sudden cardiac arrest training from the Ohio State site.

For training required from non-eTrainU sites, volunteers must print the Certificate of Completion upon completing the training. Instructions are provided for Volunteers under the RESOURCES tab for uploading the Certificate of Completion and receiving a certification. Regions are provided with instructions for setting up verifying certificates and for using a Course Roster to mark volunteers complete/passed for a certification.

SafeSport Training

The 2017 SafeSport Act has expanded Mandated Reporters to include adults authorized to interact with children. Due to this expansion, that includes AYSO and it requires training on child abuse and mandated reporting.

Effective, January 1, 2022, U.S. Soccer will no longer allow equivalent training* and has mandated SafeSport training.

Details at https://aysovolunteers.org/safesport-mandatory-training/

Updated 2019 AYSO Player Development Initiative Implementation

This presentation of these changes covers the referee implementation of 10U and 12U PDI in Section 1.  

Additionally, our own Area 1P staff has updated this 8 minute video presentation of the implementation of the Build-Out Line for Coaches & Referees, perfect for training at all levels and Annual Referee Updates. — Special shout-out to Tony Robinson for making keeping this material current.

NOTE: Referee Course Lesson Plans, Presentations, Handouts and Exams have updated for 2019. Download your Course materials on eTrainU. under Resources.  Contact Section Director of Referee Instruction Al Prado for Exam passwords.

Comments or suggestions?  Contact the Section Director of Referee Instruction Al Prado.

The Importance of Establishing Good Match Rapport

Paul Castellani, Area 1S Referee Administrator Emeritus, offers his thoughts on the importance of understanding and knowing how to defuse and control, if not eliminate, the problems that come with more competitive matches. As competition increases, players acquire improved skills and a stronger attitude toward winning, Referees must be prepared for the increased emotions and control problems. Referees that are unprepared contribute to problems to a greater extent than anyone would expect. This can be remedied by proper continuous education. Please read this short memorandum Paul has provided.

AYSO Help for Instructors

AYSO maintains an online library of Referee and Assessor Course lesson plans and exams and Instructor Course materials in eTrainU. After login, switch to your Instructor profile and click on Docs in the menu.

The Referee Instructor Resource Book, updated for 2021, is also now available.

Referee Forms for Instruction and Referee Forms for Assessment are also available online.

AYSO Training Manuals

AYSO maintains a library of online training for all registered volunteers in eTrainU.

Referee Course Pre-Tests

As the referee upgrade courses are increasing in numbers, instructors are asking candidate to take the Pre-test to help them prepare. Pre-tests are located in the section Referee Pre-Test and don’t require a password.  Your Section Referee Administrator or Section Director of Referee Instruction have the passwords for the Pre-test Answer Keys.

Registration is on your Regional Sports Connect website

Sports Connect is the online registration system that AYSO provides for volunteers to register annually, to register for courses in their area of interest and many other functions.  You can find your Region’s site by going to https://ayso.bluesombrero.com/regionXXXX where XXXX is your Region number.

Updated: January 30, 2023 at 8:48 AM