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Take 5: Majority of high school referees quit before 3rd year

Long-term referees are a rarity in youth sports.
Credit: pkripper503
(Photo: Thinkstock)

Youth sports officials have a retention problem.

Eighty percent of high school officials quit before their third year, and it's mainly because of abusive parents, according to the National Federation of State High School Associations.

Washington has a similar problem. Washington state is down 1,139 referees since 2016 and 117 referees since 2017, according to Richard Meeks, president of the South King County Soccer Referee Association.

There’s a 43 percent turnover among officials, meaning we lose almost half of the referee pool in a given year.

Learn more about becoming a youth soccer referee in Washington state here.

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