Those of you who've read this blog for a while know that I am a soccer referee and baseball umpire. The spring soccer and baseball seasons are about to start up, so if you're interested in officiating either one, now is the time to speak up. Sports officiating is a great way to learn more about your favorite sports, promote youth and amateur athletics, stay in (or get into) shape, and, of course, to earn a little extra cash.
Lincoln desperately needs more sports officials in most every sport. This high school soccer season, for example, few sub-varsity games in Lincoln will feature a full three-referee crew, and even some varsity matches may have to do with only two referees. In youth soccer, many games are refereed by only one referee, which is a poor situation for everybody involved. The situation in baseball is only marginally better. Each year Lincoln adds more baseball teams, but umpire numbers are basically stagnant. There simply aren't enough umpires to go around.
In other words, if you want to be a soccer referee or baseball umpire, you can pretty much work as much or as little as you like. You can only do two games per month? Great, we'll take you. Seven days a week through the entire spring and summer? Great, we'll take you.
Soccer has no inherent age restrictions; if you can do the job, you're good to go. I think the local baseball umpire organizations have minimum age requirements, but I'm not certain what they are off the top of my head. If age is an issue, I'll help you figure it out.
Whether you have zero experience or you're a pro, if you want to get started as a soccer referee or baseball umpire in Lincoln, let me know in the comments, or e-mail me at mrwilson at [this domain] dot com (e-mail obfuscated to prevent spam). I'll point you to the people you need to know in Lincoln's various sports officiating organizations and we'll get you all set up.
Comments
See what your friends and neighbors have to say about this.
Hi, I am interested in being an umpire this summer in Lincoln. Who do I need to talk to to get certified and get more information.
There are two primary umpiring organizations in town. The Lincoln Amateur Baseball Umpires Association (LABUA) does area youth (select and Little League), American Legion (around Lincoln), and adult (Lincoln Adult Baseball Association) games. To contact them, drop an e-mail to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) and let them know you are interested. FYI, the LABUA is having a meeting this Saturday.
There is also the Capital Umpires Association (CUA), but I can’t find contact information for them right now. I’ve sent out some e-mails to see if I can find a contact; I’ll post an update here if I find out anything. CUA does Babe Ruth, Lincoln high school, and Lincoln American Legion games.
Share your thoughts with the community.
Commenting is no longer permitted on this post.