Umpires, Referees, and Other Sports Officials
What Umpires, Referees, and Other Sports Officials Do
Officiate at competitive athletic or sporting events. Detect infractions of rules and decide penalties according to established regulations. Includes all sporting officials, referees, and competition judges.
See full salary breakdown & percentiles →
Career Outlook
National employment outlook, 2024–2034.
- Related work experience
- None
- On-the-job training
- Moderate-term on-the-job training
- Self-employed
- 18.2%
Source: BLS Employment Projections — 2024-2034.
How Much Preparation Does This Take?
Job Zone 2 of 5Job Zone 1-2: Very Little to Some Preparation Needed
- Experience
- Some occupations may need little or no previous experience; others require several months to a year of experience.
- Education
- Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not.
- Job training
- Ranges from a few days to one year of on-the-job training.
Source: O*NET Job Zones.
Key Knowledge Areas
Subject-matter areas this occupation draws on most, per O*NET.
- English Languageimportance 3.4/5
- Education and Trainingimportance 2.9/5
- Administration and Managementimportance 2.9/5
- Customer and Personal Serviceimportance 2.7/5
- Psychologyimportance 2.5/5
- Communications and Mediaimportance 2.4/5
- Mathematicsimportance 2.2/5
- Computers and Electronicsimportance 2.2/5
Work Environment
What the day-to-day work setting is like, per O*NET.
- Freedom to Make Decisions4.5/5
- Work With or Contribute to a Work Group or Team4.0/5
- Spend Time Standing4.0/5
- Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams4.0/5
- Importance of Being Exact or Accurate4.0/5
- Contact With Others3.9/5
Careers With Similar Skills
Occupations whose Transferable Skills profile most closely matches this one — a mathematical comparison, not observed data about people actually moving between these careers.
- Musicians and Singers97% skill match
- Substitute Teachers, Short-Term97% skill match
- Interpreters and Translators97% skill match
- Tutors97% skill match
- Reservation and Transportation Ticket Agents and Travel Clerks97% skill match
- Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education97% skill match
- Tax Preparers97% skill match
- Kindergarten Teachers, Except Special Education97% skill match
Transferable Skills
Cross-functional skills this occupation draws on most, per O*NET — the kind that carry over to other careers.
- Judgment and Decision Makingimportance 3.3/5
- Social Perceptivenessimportance 3.0/5
- Coordinationimportance 3.0/5
- Complex Problem Solvingimportance 3.0/5
- Instructingimportance 2.9/5
- Time Managementimportance 2.9/5
- Persuasionimportance 2.8/5
- Negotiationimportance 2.8/5
Software & Technologies
Tools and software used in this occupation, per O*NET.
Hot Technologies
Other Software Used
Work Style
Personal work characteristics that matter most for this occupation, per O*NET.
- Integrity
- Self-Control
- Dependability
- Stress Tolerance
- Self-Confidence
- Attention to Detail
- Cautiousness
Career Interests
This occupation’s RIASEC interest profile, per O*NET — how strongly it fits each of the six Holland interest types.
- EnterprisingHigh
- ConventionalMedium
- RealisticMedium
- SocialMedium
- InvestigativeLow
- ArtisticLow
This page includes information from the O*NET 30.3 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.
Where This Career Is Most Concentrated
Metro areas where umpires, referees, and other sports officials make up the largest share of local employment, relative to the national average (BLS location quotient).
- 1Provo-Orem-Lehi, UT13.62× national avg
- 2Bismarck, ND9.69× national avg
- 3Coeur d'Alene, ID9.54× national avg
- 4Bend, OR8.03× national avg
- 5Springfield, MO6.54× national avg
Possible Career Moves
A computed starting point, not observed job-change data — see the full list for why each one might fit.
- Self-Enrichment TeachersCareer Change
- Reservation and Transportation Ticket Agents and Travel ClerksCareer Change
- Tax PreparersCareer Change
- Customer Service RepresentativesCareer Change
See the full career path from Umpires, Referees, and Other Sports Officials →