GSSA Referee Program
Ref Training
GSSA holds an annual referee training class in the winter just prior to the spring soccer season (late February). Details on the class, including dates & times, registration procedures, and the small fee to offset classroom materials is available around mid-January each year. GSSA also accepts training and certification from other SAY communities. Several communities offer training classes in the summer. Search for “SAY referee training Cincinnati” on the web or go to the SAY soccer websites for nearby communities for more information. If you have successfully completed a course in another community, please have the instructor or other official from the class email [email protected] to verify completion of the course and we can add you to the roster of referees for upcoming seasons.
2021 Referee Class Details (note: this is the prior year class details, not the upcoming class)
Age Groups and Referees
Upon successful completion of a referee training course, all new referees begin by working Instructional (U6) and Passers (U8) games. Following two seasons of experience in Instructional/Passers, a ref can request to begin refereeing Wings (U10) games. With two additional seasons of the Wings level experience, a referee can move to upper level games. See the table below for a summary.
| Instructional (U6) | 12* | None Required |
| Passers (U8) | 12* | None Required |
| Wings (U10) | 13 | 2 Seasons |
| Strikers (U12) | 14 | 4 Seasons |
| Kickers (U14) | 16 | 5 Seasons |
| Minors (U16) | 18 | 6+ Seasons |
| Seniors (U18) | Adults | 6+ Seasons |
* New referees must turn 12 by April 1 to be eligible to begin reffing in the spring; if you turn 12 by August 31, you can still take the class and begin to ref in the fall season.
SAY Playing Rules: current SAY rules which are used for all GSSA levels. *The most recent version of the SAY rulebook is from 2020