HOW FIT DO YOU NEED TO BE? Preparing and Training… Andrew Castiglione Founder of Ken Aston Referee Society

There are three kinds of fitness that are of concern to a Soccer Referee - endurance, speed and agility. Endurance allows you to keep going throughout the game; speed allows you to cover ground when the play moves away from you sharply; and agility allows you to change direction quickly.

This Video from the... Ken Aston Referee Society - Channel

Endurance

Although "When you're fit.." gives estimates of total distance covered in a game for games of different age levels, most soccer organizations measure a referee's fitness by the distance the referee can run in 12 minutes. Here are the recommended targets for folks ranging from FIFA international referees on down.

The target distances are given in meters: 1 mile is 1600m; 400m is one lap of any normal running track.

The targets for Under 14 on down are very undemanding. Younger Referees, or those who aspire to very tight coverage of play, should shoot for 2000m or better. If we consider targets for Referees of different ages, David Ager, in 'The Soccer Referee's' manual, gives the following guidelines for an "in condition" referee for the 12 minute run.

Speed

Being able to jog 2000m in 12 minutes is a good foundation, and you will spend a lot of time following play at this relaxed pace. However, as we all know, Referees also have to be able to sprint to catch up with breakaways, or when the play suddenly moves in an unexpected direction. Here are some recommended targets for AYSO, USSF referees.

Agility

Agility is important for when you have to stop or change direction quickly, and for running side wards and backwards. This is probably even more important for assistant referees (lines folk), since side stepping and sudden starts and stops are so frequent on the line. There are two drills used to test agility.

- 1. Agility run: A square 10m on a side is laid out. The referee begins at one corner and runs backwards along one side, side steps right along the next, runs forward along the third and side steps right along the fourth (arriving back at the start point). The referee then returns around the square, side stepping left, backwards, left and forwards in turn. The time is the total time around the square twice.
- 2. Staggered run: Marks are placed in a straight line at 5, 10, 15, 20 and 25 metres from a start point. The referee runs from the start point to the 5m mark, back to the start, to the 10m mark, back, etc. until each mark has been visited and returned from (a total of 150m).

Here are some recommended targets for those drills for AYSO, USSF referees.

- Be careful running these drills! These are exactly the kind of movements that will strain or pull muscles if you overdo it before you are used to them. Take them slowly until they feel comfortable.