In a snap news conference held this morning, Don Garber – Commissioner of MLS – announced the hiring of AYSO referees as an “emergency measure” that he was forced to take in light of the “unprecedented and unreasonable” demands of the “greedy” PRO referees. “MLS has always been on the forefront of innovation,” said Garber, “from rethinking the US Open Cup, to adjusting our roster rules when our marquee teams want a star player, to ensuring our supporters’ groups do not unduly influence the hiring and firing decisions of our teams, we will always do what is best to protect our owners’ investments. This initiative with AYSO is the next step in that evolution, and will help grow the next generation of match officials.”
AYSO is the largest youth soccer organization in the United States, with a membership of over 56,000 teams and upwards of 630,000 players ages 4 to 18. AYSO Referees are typically parents or siblings of AYSO players, or in some cases AYSO players officiating matches of younger-aged players, and are paid $0.67 per game minute, while AYSO Assistant Referees – for those games that use more than one referee – are typically paid $0.50/minute. Garber indicated that the AYSO referees officiating MLS matches would receive a “significant pay bump” of $100.00 a match for Referees and $75.00 a match for Assistant Referees. Given that travel arrangements for PRO referees are one of the contentious issues that has precipitated the current strike, Garber was asked about payment of travel expenses for the new AYSO referees. He responded that that “was not on the table. We anticipate hiring locally, so our referees can have their mom drive them to the matches.” Garber also indicated that the new AYSO referee compensation package “may be something we look into for future PRO contracts. PRO needs to understand you cannot fight the laws of competitive economics.”
Several MLS players, speaking on condition of anonymity, expressed concern about the quality level of officiating they will receive from the AYSO referees. An AYSO spokesperson, who attended the press conference with Garber, attempted to allay those concerns. “The speed of the game will definitely be different for our referees,” said the spokesman, “but we think it will be manageable. These young kids, they have a lot of excess energy to burn off.” One accommodation that will be put in place will be to station a milk carton by the VAR monitor, as some of the AYSO referees are not yet tall enough to reach the monitors at their current height setting.
The Nutmeg News reached out to several current AYSO referees for their thoughts on the announcement. Although most were nervous, many indicated excitement that “they might be on TV” and that they might get to see Lionel Messi live, as current Inter Miami ticket prices preclude them from attending matches. At least one AYSO referee indicated that at least one aspect of MLS refereeing might be easier than their current assignments – MLS’s “Confrontational Incidents” rules. The AYSO referee stated “once you’ve had a purple-faced parent screaming at you about an offside call in a U-10 match, having Matt Miazga chase you into the referees’ locker room is NBD (no big deal).”
