CINCINNATI — It’s not always the most appreciated job, officiating a high school sport. Which is partly why there’s been a huge drop-off in referees — not only in the state, but across the country.
One high school referee said if it keeps up, major cancellations could be the future of high school and club sports.
What You Need To Know
- Randy Clark has been a soccer referee in Cincinnati for over 15 years
- He also is an assigner, making the schedules for all the referees in the area
- Clark said he’s seen a 40% decrease in club soccer referees in the Cincinnati area over the last four years
- Clark believes if this trend continues, games will need to be canceled because there won’t be enough officials for the number of games played
There’s a lot of running up and down the sidelines as a referee. For Randy Clark, he’s used to it after over 15 years as a soccer ref.
He started the profession when his son showed an interest in it, and now does it full time.
“Just being here, the atmosphere of the kids and things like that, this is what makes it fun to me,” Clark said.
But it’s not always fun and games.
“If it gets harder and harder to do and I just can’t do it, and the enjoyment and the fun of doing it is out of it, I’ll get out,” he said.
Part of that is because of the actions of parents and coaches, something he said has become increasingly worse over the past several years.
And back at home, he sees the effects of that.
“This is my high school schedules. This down here is my club schedules they’ve sent me,” Clark said of the pile of schedules in his office.
Clark doesn’t just officiate games, he’s also an assigner, making the schedules for all the games and tournaments in the Cincinnati area.
“It’s fitting the pieces together of who can do what, when, where,” he said.
But Clark said it’s been tough because of a huge drop-off in referees. He said there’s been a 40% decrease in club soccer refs in the area since 2018, something that’s happening all across the country.
“We can mask the deficiencies, so we ultimately don’t have to cancel games,” Clark said. “So we can then sit here and say we didn’t cancel any games. If there’s no cancellations, then there must not be a problem. And that’s not necessarily what it is.”
As he gears up for his nightly games, he knows if something doesn’t change, then the game will have to.
“It’s going to affect club,” he said. “It’s going to affect high school. It’s going to affect all levels of play that are going to be affected.”
