Register with NCSRA

Register with the North Carolina Soccer Referees Association

1

First complete this Supplemental Google Doc Form . Next, create an Arbiter account and/or complete an Arbiter registration form. You will need a valid credit card and a unique email address that no other person uses. The 2023 registration fee is $120.00 which will be charged to your credit card. Once your registration has been received, NCSRA will send you an initial email confirming receipt and provide further information to complete the certification process. The Arbiter account and/or registration form can be accessed from this link: 2023 NCSRA Referee Registration

2

Create a free account in the US Soccer Learning Center. Instructions on how to do this can be found from: Learning Center Account Set Up Instructions.
To access the Learning Center to create your account use this link: Create a Learning Center Account

3

Complete the online USSF Grassroots Referee Course, approximately 4 hours in length and email the certificate of completion to the NCSRA office at [email protected]. YOU MUST COMPETE STEP 2, CREATE A LEARNING CENTER ACCOUNT BEFORE ATTEMPTING THIS STEP. The Grassroots Course can be accessed from this link: USSF Grassroots Referee Course

4

(An optional Step for those under 18, but needs to be completed when you turn 18)
Complete the online Safesport Training Course, accessed through the US Soccer Learning Center under supplemental courses, and email the completion certificate to the NCSRA Office at [email protected]. You can access the Safesport Course from this link: Safesport Course

5

Complete the online Safe and Healthy Playing Environments Course, accessed through the US Soccer Learning Center also under supplemental courses. Once completed the Learning Center will add your name to the report listing successful completion from which the NCSRA Office must manually mark your record in this area as complete. This may take several days to process. To speed the process, email the NCSRA office directly at [email protected] to let them know to look for your completion information. You can access the Safe and Healthy Playing Environments Course from this link: Safe and Healthy Playing Environments Course

6

Complete either a) an on-field training session, b) an online interactive webinar regarding on-field training, or c) the on line recorded course regarding on-field training. The NCSRA Office will assign you to the earliest training session available based on the answers you provided in the supplemental registration form you completed. For option c you can access that course 24/7 from the eligibility level in which you have enrolled by going to the Central Hub from your Arbiter profile account and clicking on Eligibility.
For a guide to finding this click the link: Guide to Accessing Your Eligibility List

7

The last 2 requirements to complete your certification are the NCYSA Policies and Procedures Tutorial (10 minutes or so in length) and the Referee Text/Exam (2023 All Grassroots Ref Test). Links to both of these are below.

NCYSA Policies and Procedures

Grassroots New Referee Exam/Test

Once you have completed all of your requirements, please email Erick Varone at [email protected] to let him know you have completed all of your requirements so he can confirm this and complete your certification.

To access your arbiter eligibility, log into your arbiter account, go to your central hub, and look for your specific eligibility in the 2023 New Referee Tab, which is either the 2023 New Ref U-18 (referees Under 18) or the 2023 New Ref 18+ (referees 18 and over) tab and that will bring you to your list of requirements.

Once these 7 steps are completed you will be eligible to referee USSF soccer games in North Carolina. You will receive an email from our office specifically providing you information regarding referee assignors in your area and other information to help you get started. The office will also mail you an initial registration packet containing your USSF referee badge with Velcro backing, an NCSRA flipping coin, and NCSRA luggage tag for your gear bag, and an NCSRA warm up shirt, along with another instruction sheet with guidance and reference information.

Area Referee Administrator Erick Varone has been specifically tasked with assisting referees through the 2023 registration process. Feel free to contact him if you run into any issues. He can be reached at [email protected].

What Comes Next?

If you have completed all of your online requirements, your account will have an eligibility icon under your picture on your profile.

The icon denotes that you are now completed and certified.

Once you have added the assignor information to your profile, your assignor will be able to assign you soccer matches.

What's Next?

Referee Uniform

This link will provide information for obtaining a USSF Referee Uniform

LYSA uniform info

USSF Badge

The NCSRA Office will provide you with a United State Soccer Federation Referee Badge via USPS. US Soccer will provide you with a USSF Identification Number, via a registration card. This number is similar to a Social Security Number, as no other Referee will have the same ID Number.

Arbiter Main Tab

Mark yourself "Ready to be Assigned"

Once you sign into the Arbiter and you click on "Official" there will be a checkbox on the main page that says "Ready To Be Assigned".

Click this checkbox on your profile so assignors will know that you're ready to work games.

Keeping the box unchecked will let your Assignor know you are not available to work.

Arbiter Profile Tab

Click the Profile tab ensure that your profile displays the correct information.

On the left side of the Profile page, click the Custom Fields link.

The information on this page applies to only you. This is where you can change shirt size, Assignor numbers, input tournament codes, etc.

Add yourself to assignors' rosters

ARA & Assignor Numbers (Updated spring 2022)

Locally, LYSA is in region 8, supervised by Ed Guzowski, and our Assignor, James Sharp, is #195.

So, under profile then custom fields, locate the text box labled USSF ARA & Assignor #(s). In the text box, enter (33)(195)

Additionally, add any other assignors/location numbers you might want to work--Burke, CVYSA, Wings of Wilkesboro, or High Country are all drivable options from Lenoir.

Once you add the numbers, please allow the system to update 24 hours. During this time you will be added to your Assignors list of Referees. You can add up to ONLY 4 Assignor Numbers at one time like this (##)(##)(##)(##).

After waiting 24 hours; if you would like to add more Assignor Numbers, delete the numbers originally added, and add the next numbers. The system will then need to update another 24 hours. Once it has updated, you will be added to a total of eight Assignors, versus four.

Arbiter Blocks Tab

Clicking the Blocks Tab will allow you to block out dates that you cannot work.

Adjusting your blocks is very important. Your assignor will rely on your availability to assign you games.

Please block out dates and times that you know you will not be able to referee.

If you need assistance with Blocks, please review the Setting up Blocks video below

Setting up Blocks

Getting Game Assignments

Email your Local Area Assignor and the other Assignors that you've signed up to work for, so that they know that you are ready to referee.

If you are not getting games:

1) Look at your Custom Fields settings on your profile. Your assignor numbers may not be correct.

2) Look at your blocks tab and ensure that your blocks are updated to receive assignments.

3) Make sure that you're marked "Ready To Be Assigned" on your profile.

4) You may not be marked "Active" in the system by Administrators.

This is a permission that only administrators can change. Contact your local assignor to help you understand why you have been marked inactive or to have yourself marked Active.

Please Note: You will be marked inactive, due to denial by a Criminal Background History Check. Please contact the NCSRA Office if you feel as if you should not be denied.

Receiving Games From Assignors

If all of the above items are correct, you will be ready to get games. When you receive games from your Assignor, you will receive notification via email.

To view the game, please access your Schedule Tab.

You will first need to log in and then click on Official's view (Not Central Hub). Within this view, you should see the tab Schedule.

When your Local Area Assignor or Tournament Assignor sends you a game assignment, you will get an email from Arbitersports. It will say that you have new games from "USSF-NC" or another group depending on your location and your assignor. This will inform you to log into the Arbitersports website and view your schedule.

The Schedule Tab video

From here, please accept or decline the assignment by clicking either checkbox. Be sure to click the Submit button to submit the changes and accept or decline the game.

Tournaments

After you're certified, you are free to referee tournaments throughout the State of North Carolina. There are tournaments held throughout the year and the best place to view them is on the Tournament & Event List. Once you are uploaded to US Soccer's Database and receive a USSF ID Number, you will be able to referee in any State in the United States.

NCSRA Tournament & Event List
NC Soccer Sanctioned Tournaments

How To Sign Up For A Tournament?

1) Tournament Invitations are sent out a few weeks prior to a tournament by email.

Review the invitation email or review the tournament event page and look for the tournament codes that are provided. Each tournament has a specific code.

The codes will resemble this:

XXXX17

XXXX17H

2) In Arbitersports while acting as an "Official", go to your personal profile.

3) On the left side of the screen, click Custom Fields.

Scroll down to the USSF-NC Section and look for the Tournaments section.

4) Locate the tournament dates

It will resemble this:

Tournaments 1-7-8-17 (Which means January 7-8 2017)

5) Click the drop-down box next to the tournament date of your choosing

6) Click the tournament code you would like

Typically there will be multiple tournament codes in the drop-down box. Please be sure that you are selecting the correct tournament code.