Welcome to the Fayette County Youth Soccer League’s referee corps. Here are some of our basic policies and procedures, and some of our expectations of our referees. I hope you will have a good experience refereeing with us and continue to referee for several years to come.

PAY

Since this is the reason many people referee, I’ll start with the pay structure.

These pay rates will be effective in Fall 2022 and will be for recreation games and any other games for which the competition does not set referee fees.

GAME ASSIGNMENTS

Get on the FCYSL Referee List by filling out the form here. You can not be assigned nor be paid if you do not fill out the form.

On Wednesday or Thursday of each week, I send out an email to all referees for whom I have an address with the schedule for the following week. If I can't contact you, I can't assign you. Please make sure that my email addresses, bgmcd@mac.com can get through to you. I will not take the time to respond to spam blockers.

Based on the schedule, email me at bgmcd@mac.com with your availability. This needs to be done by Saturday evening. On Sunday morning I begin assigning games based on availability sent to me. Assignments are then sent out on Sunday or Monday. If you don't receive an email by Wednesday, you probably have not been assigned any games.

I get over a hundred emails each day, many of which do not deal with referees. In order to keep your email from getting lost, please follow the instructions below.

Availability emails - you get an email with the subject line "Week ..." Hit reply so that your email back to me has the subject "re: Week ..." It goes in to a special mailbox where I can find and track it easily. It is not necessary to quote the email back to me especially since it is usually long and I know what I sent out anyway. Just list the games/times that you want.

Confirmation emails - you get an email with the subject line "Games" Hit reply so that your email back to me has the subject "re: Games ..." Unlike the availability emails, please quote the original email. You don't have to go into detail, simply "OK" and you full name will do. Changing the subject line on these emails can cause your message to get lost.

Please check your availability carefully. Last minute cancellations are not appreciated.

New referees usually start as assistant referees on younger games. The rate at which you move up to older games depends on the level of proficiency you show and your willingness to advance. It is often not until his second season before a new referee is allowed to start doing middles, but this again is subject to the job the referee does.

Once you have been booked for a game you will be paid for it unless the league cancels the games because of weather or you are assigned to another game at the same time slot. If you are reassigned to a game which pays less, you will be paid the amount of your original fee.

Failure to show up for your game will result in a loss of your game fee. You may also be fined the equivalent of what your game fee would have been if a replacement is not found to do the game. Depending on the circumstances you may also be dropped from the referee list.

If you are late for your game and another referee is available to do it, he will be paid and you will lose your game fee. If you know in advance that you may have a tough time getting to your game early, let me know by Friday. We can then hold the game for you or get someone to start it without you losing any money.

GAME DAY

You are expected to be at the field at least 30 minutes before your game. This time is necessary for you to cover a pre-game talk and to check the players’ equipment. We strive to keep our fields running on time. Do not allow yourself to be the cause of delays.

We expect all of our referees to be in proper uniform. Your socks are to be pulled up just below your knees, your shirt is to be tucked in your shorts. Referees who are improperly dressed will be fined $10.00 for each game in which they appear that way.

On very cold days, assistant referees may wear black warm up pants. The referee is still expected to wear shorts. If you do not have a long sleeved referee shirt, you may wear a black long sleeved shirt underneath your uniform shirt.

If you play for an AFC Lightning or FFC team and are working a game for another AFC Lightning or FFC team do not take an AFC Lightning nor FFC bag, jacket or anything with their logo or colors with you to the field. It gives the away team an immediate sense that you are biased against them.

All referees are required to have a yellow referee uniform shirt. Our recreation teams play in blue or white, but AFC Lightning teams wear red or black, with yellow being a probably addition in the next couple of years. Due to this, it is advisable to have a green alternate shirt if you plan on getting one. The next best color to get would be blue, then black and last of all red.

RAINOUTS

On rainy days, the fields are checked at 7:30 am. You can sign up for notification through Status Me. The league is Peachtree City/FCYSL. Whenever the status of the fields change Status Me will send you an email and a text message. You can also see the current status on the FCYSL, AFC Lightning and Peachtree City web sites.

You will not be paid for games that are rained out.

PROBLEMS

If you have problems with a coach or parent be sure to report it. If the problem is immediate, get a member of the league’s board to help. There is usually one at or near the concession stand.

It is sometimes advisable to go to the concession stand simply to cool off and get away from the parent or coach.

If the problem is not immediate, contact me as soon as you can. In either case, a written report will be required. Once we receive the report, the problem will be dealt with at the appropriate level.

Hopefully, you will enjoy refereeing with the league. If you have any questions or problems, do not hesitate to email me.

Bryan McDermott

Referee Coordinator