How to become a grassroots football referee

The short version

• You can start the FA Referee Course from the age of 14.
• Two things have to be done before the face-to-face training: the online Laws of the Game learning and an FA safeguarding qualification.
• The face-to-face training is about 11 hours, which England Football says is normally one evening and a full day.
• You qualify after refereeing five games, and then receive a certificate and an FA referee badge.
• From 16, refereeing youth football means an FA DBS check.
• Courses are booked through your County FA, and what you pay depends on the county.

Who can referee, and what they can referee

The FA Referee Course is for people aged 14 and over who want to referee mini soccer, 9 v 9 or 11 v 11 football. Surrey FA (opens in a new tab)'s current course page explicitly says there is no upper age limit. If you are under 18, your FAN must be linked to a parent or guardian FAN; the FA help centre (opens in a new tab) explains the setup.

Age also decides what you can take charge of. Under the FA's Standard Code of Rules for youth competitions (opens in a new tab), nobody under 14 can officiate a competition match, nobody under 16 can officiate open-age football, and a referee aged 14 or 15 can only officiate where the players' age band is at least one year younger than they are.

So a 15-year-old can referee Under 14 football and below, and a 14-year-old starts with Under 13s. That is worth knowing before you book, because it shapes which matches you will be offered in your first season.

What the course involves

England Football's national route has the online Laws of the Game learning and safeguarding before face-to-face training, followed by five qualifying games. County FAs deliver the course and can add local completion steps; Surrey FA, for example, also requires an online CPD module before you qualify.

• The online Laws of the Game learning. Five modules, roughly 90 minutes in total: before the match, signals and communication, fouls and misconduct, offside, and restarts and set-pieces. It is free, and it has to be completed before the face-to-face training. Sign in with your own FAN so the record lands on your account rather than somebody else's.
• FA safeguarding training. Also before the face-to-face training. Referees cannot register without it.
• Face-to-face training. About 11 hours, normally an evening followed by a full day. Classroom work on managing players, foul challenges, offside and dealing with poor behaviour, then practical work on a pitch: positioning, signals, cautions and sendings off, and acting as an assistant referee.
• Five matches. You qualify by refereeing five games after the training, supported by your County FA. Then the certificate and badge arrive, and further training opens up.

You book through your County FA rather than through The FA. England Football lists every County FA (opens in a new tab) with contact details, and each one publishes its own course dates.

Checks and safeguarding

Every referee completes FA safeguarding training before registering, and it has to stay in date. Referees need an in-date appropriate safeguarding qualification on their FAN record to re-register for the next season.

From 16, The FA requires referees in under-18 football to hold an in-date FA-accepted DBS. Contact your County FA Referee Development Officer to start the FA process. It includes an identity-verification step, although the method can vary. Start it early: you cannot officiate youth football without an in-date accepted DBS.

What level of check a role is legally eligible for is a separate question from the FA's process. Current government guidance for sport (opens in a new tab) says officials are assessed on what they actually do and, where regulated activity is in question, how often they do it. The minimum age for a DBS check is 16, so a younger referee does not have one.

What it costs

Fees are set by each County FA, so the figure depends on where you live. As checked on 18 September 2026, Surrey FA (opens in a new tab) charges £170 for the course. Its usual £30 county registration fee is covered for the first season, and the FA criminal record check costs £11 and lasts three years. The course fee includes a whistle, cards, a resource pack and a county badge.

Other counties price differently, so check yours before assuming those figures. Ask three questions when you book: what the course fee includes, whether registration is covered for the first season, and what equipment you are expected to buy yourself.

Match fees work the other way. Each competition sets them through its own fees tariff, and they are paid to you.

Getting your first matches

Your County FA supports you through the five qualifying games. Ask its referee development team how it wants those matches arranged and recorded before you start.

• Start with your County FA referee development team. Surrey FA, for example, gives candidates access to league and club contacts to help them find matches.
• Leagues appoint match officials through their own approved process, so ask your County FA which league contacts to use.
• Before you count a fixture towards the five, check that your County FA accepts it. Surrey FA currently requires the five games to be on County FA-sanctioned leagues or competitions.

Tell whoever appoints you which days you are actually free. If you still play at the weekend, that shapes what you can take.

After you qualify

Your County FA may offer local development support. Surrey FA, for example, lists a Development Group, Referee Academy and mentoring. England Football's referee progression pathway (opens in a new tab) explains the national route, while FA CORE (opens in a new tab) is the talent-development programme for referees identified with progression potential.

Behaviour towards match officials is the other half of the job. England Football's behaviour hub (opens in a new tab) covers the Grassroots Code, Respect and how to report discrimination. After a match, discriminatory abuse should be reported to the relevant County FA; other misconduct can be submitted through the Referee Portal and is sent to the County FA.

Elsewhere in the UK

Refereeing qualifications and registration are organised separately in each nation. England uses The FA and your County FA. Scotland uses the Scottish FA, Wales the Football Association of Wales, and Northern Ireland the Irish Football Association. Start with the association that covers where you will referee.