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How to Become a Football Referee in Nigeria
Being a professional football referee in Nigeria can be
fulfilling and rewarding. Football referees are responsible for
overseeing games, and enforcing rules and regulations, when
necessary. Football referees play vital roles in every football
game.
The main responsibility of a referee is to ensure and maintain
order, and fairness, and make decisions regarding penalties,
foul plays, goals, and any other aspects of the sport that may
occur during games. The football referee also possesses the
absolute power to pause, stop or remove any player if rules and
regulations are not followed. The referee is responsible for
ensuring that every football game is under the law of the game.
Football referees are of diverse levels in the sport, they help
at grassroots level, amateur games, professional level, as well
as national and international competition levels. There are
different organizations affiliated with the National Football
Association or governing bodies such as FIFA that offer
professional training and certifications to football referees.
To become a football referee in Nigeria, it is important to have
sports and football knowledge as well as professional
certifications or bachelor’s degree in related fields such as
Human Kinetics, Sport Sciences, Physical Education, Sports
Analysis, and so on, and become a registered member of the
Nigeria Referees Association. One or more assistant referees
usually assist referees during a match or game.
The average salary of a professional football referee is between
100,000 NGN and 150,000 NGN per game officiated .
First and foremost, refereeing helps you keep fit and healthy.
You can have extra source of income from officiating matches.
You have access to stadium facilities in Nigeria and or abroad.
You will be well traveled and acquainted with the diverse
cultures in Nigeria. It gives you the opportunity to meet and
mingle with different professionals.
To become a football referee in Nigeria, you can follow any of
the two options.
You can locate a Referee society in your area. There is probably
a referee society somewhere not too far from you. They normally
have their keep fit exercise on their own chosen days, more on
weekends, in stadium or sports complex that is convenient.
When you locate them, you will be required to write an
application leter to become a member. There are some criteria
needed to be met anyway:
You must be 16 years or above.
You must be physically and mentally fit.
You must have a source of livelihood.
You must have someone recommend you.
After you have been screened, you will start as a referee in
training for 2 years then, you sit for an exam conducted by
Nigeria Referees Association (NRA). After passing the exam, you
are promoted to Grade 3 Referee. After 3 years, you sit for
another exam, and if you pass, you get promoted to Grade 2.
After 3 years again, you sit for another exam, if you scale it,
you get promoted to Grade1.
At that grade you no longer sit for any exam, but go for NRA
physical test, which is held every year at the national stadium
Abuja before the football season begins.
This first option is a more complex process that could take you
between 9 to 12 years before you can begin to handle major
league matches – that’s pretty long.
There is an easy and fast means now. You can become a Grade1
Referee in just 3 years or so.
You can enroll into the Referees Academy in Abuja. After 2 years
training and exams in the academy (which covers grade 3 and 2
curriculum), you become affiliated to NRA. Then you sit for
their final exams and from there you graduate and become an
international Referee.
NFF have given state Referees councils mandate to set up
academies in every state of the federation.
The academies will only accept graduates from recognized
tertiary institutions – University, Polytechnics, and College of
Education as the case may be. People with this level of
education are deemed to have high intelligent quotient needed to
run such short course in the academy.
WHAT DO YOU NEED TO BECOME A FOOTBALL REFEREE IN NIGERIAN?
To become a football referee in Nigeria, you must first be a
Nigerian, in the sense that you are able to withstand the
Nigerian factor. Joining football referees isn't a problem, but
standing the test of time is.
When someone joins the referee without a personal vision, it is
so easy to drop out by the way. Define where you want to get to
even before taking the step as this will be your greatest
motivation.
Now, the other features you need so as to become a football
referee in Nigeria.
1. Age
If we must be frank, we have lied so much about our age that
even our names are in doubt when we tell someone. Using your
real age can be the best thing to happen to you. I call during
the last fitness and seminar at Ijebu, Benin. I didn't have to
ague my age with the screening committee because I may have even
looked younger than it. You need to be young and below 20 year
to start this step.
2. Athletic
We know of many who are so passionate and intellectually sound
but ain't able to run, your ability to run as an individual can
just be one of the reasons to join football referees.
Personally, after realizing that professional football for me
was impossible, I sort for other legitimate means my strength
and energy could pay me and football referees was the best
option in football.
3. Reading and Writing
There was a time when intellect wasn't really a consideration
but truth be told, except you want to be a village based
football referee in Nigeria, one must be able to read write and
pass the NRA Examination so as to get to the National stage and
Leagues. When you are intellectually sound, it reflects in the
way you interpret the laws, articulate them to players and your
body language communicates that as well.
Go to the stadium and register
There are so persons who claim to be referees but aren't
registered with the NRA in our local communities. The real
challenge in football referees isn't just on the peach, it is
you excelling intellectually in the laws, being physically fit
to pass the fitness test and managing your matches according to
the laws and hitch free. As a registered referee, you meet other
referees who seem perfect in all these areas of refereeing, a
good referee is perfect, you can't be good enough where you have
no competition, you must register to prove you've become a good
referee and evolve through the NRA Processes.
Get our Practical Guide on How to be a football Referee in
Nigeria.
We will train
you on, the vital skills of a football referee, and
the job description of a
football referee.
Penetrating international markets requires compliance with
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