UEFA Research Final Report

Refereeing in Women's Football: Motivation, Experiences and Career

Development in Women's Football.

Sandra Santos
June 2023

1
1. Executive Summary

The objective of this study was to examine the motivation, experiences and career development of female
referees in football. Specifically, the research aimed to identify the most effective strategies for selecting,
recruiting, and retaining women football referees. Additionally, the study sought to determine the main
barriers faced by female referees in a men-dominated sport, focusing on the context of Portugal and
Spain. Furthermore, the investigation also explores the working environment and expectations regarding
the professionalization of women`s refereeing careers within the Football Federations of Portugal and
Spain.
The participants were 427 women referees aged between 11 and 50 yrs. (25.1±6.7) with 3 months
and 28 years of refereeing experience (6.2±5.3) belonging to the regional and national Portuguese and
Spanish Football Federations. An online questionnaire to collect data was emailed to all the active referees
in Spain and Portugal. The questionnaire included sociodemographic, motivations and experiences
information along with the Referee Retention Scale to identify factors influencing referee retention.
Additionally, a focus group was conducted according to a semi-structured qualitative interview to gain
further insights and perspectives on the variables that could influence the retention of females in
refereeing,.
The results showed that mentoring was the most important dimension regarding the retention of
female referee career followed by intrinsic motivation on both countries. Referee's career sustainability
was also influenced by main barriers, which were related with three aspects: lack of institutional support
throughout the career; lack of potential career; difficulty in reconciling personal and professional life,
namely lack of support in motherhood. In both countries the most relevant aspects of the development
of women´s referee career are injuries, the aspiration to be international and the easiness of being a
football referee.
Women referees revealed that the European entities, e.g. UEFA, have shown them greater support
through the visibility and opportunities, as well as greater financial equity when international matches are
held. The Portuguese National Federation has to improve and develop more strategies to support women’s
referee career. At the present, the Spanish National Federation provides female referees with the same
support system as their male counterparts, including mentors and coaches at all levels. The federation
commitment to support referees' careers is evident and it is more prepared to support the referee's career,
due to the fact that they have achieved professionalization.
It is crucial for responsible organizations to prioritize the prevention and strategies to deal with
women referees injuries and their international reputation to foster their development and encourage
their progression. This study offers a new perspective on the sustainability of women’s referee career and
provides a valuable insight of a comprehensive career pathway from grassroots to elite level.

2
2. Introduction

Referees are responsible for implementing the rules and regulations within the ‘spirit’ of the game (The
International Football Association Board, 2022), providing a crucial role to almost organized sport
competitions, which is an important service to players, coaches, and sports representatives (Ridinger et
al., 2017).
Given the multifaceted role, their work should be seen as equal as to the other sport participants.
However, referees are often a forgotten component of the sport system (Cuskelly & Hoye, 2013).
Notwithstanding, the refereeing behaviour can have impact on players behaviours and consequently,
game outcomes (Philippe et al., 2009).
These factors are the main concern for the stakeholders, which are working on the development
of the refereeing across the sports, avoiding its discontinuation (Praschinger et al., 2011). Knowing that
refereeing is a task that involves harmonious and obsessive passion (Philippe et al., 2009), a study by
Livingston and Forbes (2016) identified what motivated the referees to enter into and remain active
officiating, revealing that the resilience is the main factor from referees to continue their role.
These facts are more relevant when we talk about female refereeing, justified by sexual
discrimination, marginalized status and undervalued positions in sports (Passero et al., 2019; Reid &
Dallaire, 2019), where male-dominated career is prevalent (Forbes et al., 2015).
Women's football continues to build a solid platform on participation, professionalism and interest
from fans, media and sponsors. However, greater gender equality in society has been associated with
higher levels of female participation in sports (Livingston & Forbes, 2016). The popularity of women's
football has been increasing substantially, having gained more impact through the UEFA #Time for action
programme, which was launched with an approach and strategy in women's football in 2019 to 2024,
clearly highlighting the need to "better understanding the women's football and make decisions”. Football
will achieve greater sustainability of values when valuing all the players in the game, including the
referees, who play a crucial role in the course of sporting competitions.
Most of the research has been centred on referees physical and technical performance, including
the burnout, well-being, professionalization and sexism sub-themes (Castagna et al., 2019; Castillo et al.,
2019; Meckel et al., 2020; Samuel et al., 2019; Schmidt et al., 2019; Van Biemen et al., 2018).
Observing some of the available research (Aragão e Pina et al., 2018; Nordstrom et al., 2016;
Valenti et al., 2018), female football refereeing research is scarce and focus on comparing the basic
physiology explains “Sex Differences in Aerobic Fitness in Top-Class Soccer Referees”. Another bias is that
data is analysed as a whole for general conclusions (Aragão e Pina et al., 2018), not considering the
differences, the proportion and sample size (Potrac et al., 2022).
It is important to be aware that female referees are still experiencing discrimination, stereotypes
and challenges due to gender, despite their resilience and vocation (Nordstrom et al., 2016). In this sense,
a study that developed a scale to measure the main factors to referee retention (Ridinger et al., 2017)
highlighted some variables that could influence the retention of refereeing, namely administrator

3
consideration, intrinsic motives, mentoring, remuneration, sense of community, lack of stress, and
continuing education.
Despite that, the research associated with refereeing in women's football is scarce leading to a
high need for research to better understand and establish strategies to improve the quality and quantity
of women's football.
This study aimed to identify the most effective strategies in selection, recruitment and retention
of female football referees, determine the main barriers for a female as a football referee in a men-
dominated sport and investigate the working environment and expectations regarding the development
of professionalization in women`s refereeing career in Portugal and Spain football organisations.
These data intend to assist the Portuguese Football Refereeing Council and other UEFA refereeing
councils in sports policy, recruitment, retention and sustained development of women’s refereeing
career.

3. Research Questions, Aim and Objectives

The aims of this project were to investigate and explore the factors influencing the working motivation,
experiences and career development of women's football refereeing within the context of Portugal and
Spain.
This explorative research, due to the inductive and under researched nature of the topic was
conducted according with four research questions (central to the project): 1- What are the challenges that
women referees face in a sport dominated by men? 2- What is the experience and the strategies of
women referees who conduct recruitment, selection and retention of referees? 3-What is the reality of
the career in women's refereeing in women's football and what are the expectations regarding
professionalization and career development? 4-What is the working environment in women's football
refereeing?

4. Literature Review

Research on football refereeing has become more prevalent in the literature over the past two decades
(Weston, 2015), due to the increasing awareness regarding the important role of football referees. These
further increases the need for research to better understand and establish strategies to improve the
quality and quantity of women's football. Notwithstanding, published studies on the development and
sustainability of their career are scarce (Drury et al., 2022).
The research on football refereeing is growing, much of the existing scientific literature on referees
has focused on the physiologic aspects of their activities during competitions (Castagna et al., 2007). It is
important to be aware that female referees are still experiencing discrimination, stereotypes and
challenges due to gender, despite their resilience and vocation (Nordstrom et al., 2016). However, the
components that are affecting the recruitment, retention and sustained development of the sports career
and successful refereeing in women referees remain scarce (Szymski et al., 2022). In this sense, a study
that developed a scale to measure the main factors to referee retention (Ridinger et al., 2017) highlighted

4
some variables that could influence the retaining of refereeing, namely administrator consideration,
intrinsic motives, mentoring, remuneration, sense of community, lack of stress, and continuing education.
Despite all these variables, in recent years, the number of female referees has been increasing, which
demonstrates the effort to tackle the inequality and lack of opportunities. The women referees have been
facing some issues due to psychological and physiological differences between genders. Papanikolaou and
DimitriosRousis (2020) analyzed the anxiety in men and women referees and revealed that men had less
cognitive and somatic anxiety compared with women, in contrast to confidence which was higher in men
than in women (Papanikolaou & DimitriosRousis, 2020).
Furthermore, some psychological issues could come from gender violence against female referees,
which is the most widespread type of aggression (Marín-Montín & Bianchi, 2022). According to the same
authors, this type of violence that has been disseminated by the media, has made difficult the recognition
and career development of female referees (Marín-Montín & Bianchi, 2022). Reinforcing the above,
Devís-Devís et al. (2021) performed a qualitative study which tried to understand the Spanish football
referees’ experiences of aggression, violence and coping and showed that the most frequent aggression
experienced was the verbal abuse with sexist nature. Beyond verbal abuse, referees reported also that
incidents of physical abuse were also evident, demonstrating a culture of abuse toward referees (Webb
et al., 2020). Thus, throughout the experiences on the pitch, the female football referee becomes aware
of the marginalized status as she confronts normalized sexual discrimination, and may even come to
internalize the sexism she faces (Reid & Dallaire, 2023). This discrimination should be fought because, as
demonstrated in a recent study by Lima et al. (2022), female referees were perceived as capable of the
same achievement than men. Female and male referees presented similar motivations regarding the
development of different capabilities and the most important being the passion for the game. However,
the sexism is still felt by women which have to deal with more stereotypes and psychological abuse of a
male-dominated sports and for that reason, women referees feel that have to work harder than men
referees to attain the same goals (Lima et al., 2022). Despite the vicissitudes, the female football referee
is trying to develop the career and achieve men’s referee conditions, which, according to Mendes et al.
(2020), means to develop performance and consequently career. Referees should improve psychological
elements besides the personal and environmental factors. In this sense, it is known that personality traits
are one of the main roles in referees’ career development, demonstrating that referees with different
personality profiles achieve different levels on career (ÜNGÜR, 2021). Despite the relevance of this
domain presented in different research, there is a lack of investigation to understand the career
development, specifically the working environment and expectations regarding the development of
professionalization in women`s refereeing career in Portugal and Spain football organisations. Also,
identify the most effective strategies in selection, recruitment and retaining female football referees and
determine the main barriers for a female as a football referee in a men-dominated sport in Portugal and
Spain.
Understanding these factors might provide important information for educational and preventative
efforts on a national/international level career, leading us to consider that the career of women referees

5
should be the object of investigation and intervention to allow greater career sustainability while
mitigating the gender inequalities that have been present both culturally and worldwide in football
matches to improve the quality and quantity of women's football.

5. Research Design and Strategy

5.1. Design justification
To explore the working motivation, experiences and career development in women's football refereeing
a cross-sectional design was used, supported by a self-reported questionnaire and focus group
interviews.
The online-questionnaire was conducted using the software, ‘Online Survey’, which is widely used
for academic research across departments and universities (Cleland & Cashmore, 2014, 2016). The
questionnaire was based on the focus-group interviews. An invitation email containing a URL link to the
questionnaire was sent through contacts to the referee databases of national and regional Portuguese
and Spanish football associations. The online questionnaire was adapted to each country´s language. The
self-reporting questionnaire included multiple-choice, Likert scale and free text format questions. The
inclusion of free text format questions was designed to give a greater understanding of respondents’
experiences than could be provided by purely quantitative data (Bauer & Gaskell, 2000).
The Referee Retention Scale was also used to identify the retaining female football referee
considering intrinsic Motives, Mentoring, Remuneration, Sense of Community, Lack of Stress and
Continuing Education. This scale is a 7 factor (28-item) with a 5-point Likert-type scale ranging from 1 =
strongly disagree to 5 = strongly agree. The questionnaire evaluates and predicts a referees’ likelihood of
retention with results providing strategic information in Administrator Consideration, Intrinsic Motives,
Mentoring, Remuneration, Sense of Community, Lack of Stress and Continuing Education (Ridinger et al.,
2017).
The focus group interviews were conducted face-to-face in the selected associations and/or
federations in Portugal and Spain. Each group was composed by eight-twelve female referees. These
group interviews were implemented through a semi-structure interview. These data collection allow the
possibility to hear several subjects at the same time in addition to observe the interactions characteristic
of the group process (Silva & Assis, 2010; Tausch & Menold, 2016).

5.2. Justification of the measurement approach

The use of online questionnaire to collect large-scale quantitative and qualitative data has been an
increasingly successful methodological tool for sport scholars (Cleland & Cashmore, 2014, 2016).
One of the advantages is that it affords researchers the opportunity to not only receive large-scale
data at the convenience of the participants (i.e. to be completed in their own time), but it also allows for
frank and honest accounts from respondents. There have been several research papers concerned with
refereeing that we have also utilised to this approach (Cleland et al., 2018; Webb et al., 2018).

6
 Focus groups have the unique advantage of allowing the participants to hear and respond to
diverse viewpoints (Beyea & Nicoll, 2000; Stewart et al., 1990). This can facilitate discussion, as a comment
from one participant may trigger a chain of responses (Plummer-D'Amato, 2008).
According to the literature, the recommended size for focus groups is three to twelve participants
(Plummer-D'Amato, 2008). Group size is important because a group with too few participants might limit
the diversity and quantity of the lived experiences (Hall & Prentice, 2000). A small group may run the risk
of insufficient interaction or have a dominant individual (Sim & Snell, 1996). Conversely, a large group
may prevent acceptable participation by all participants (Roberts & Paula, 1997) and perhaps hamper
quieter or shier group members from sharing their ideas (Chestnutt & Robson, 2001). It is difficult to
manage the discussion in a large group and it is also hard transcribing data (Chestnutt & Robson, 2001).
The face-to-face focus group interviews were validated by Lima et al. (2022), and were conducted
in seven associations in Portugal and Spanish federations. During the interview, the questionnaire needed
to be adjusted due to the different categories that emerged from female referees’ answers. Focus group
interview included 32 questions and comprised 2 components: motivation and experience. The
Motivation component had six categories and the experience component five. The former had different
variables such as: relationship with football, positive aspects, negative aspects, refereeing and personal
life, personal plans and aspirations and reasons to be a referee. The latter covered: gender equality, career
development strategies, team work, competitiveness and support. Full interviews have been transcribed
and analysed through software Nvivo version 14.0 for windows. It is the most powerful and intuitive
research software for gaining richer insights from diverse data. Data from focus-group interviews allows
to complement the results of the online questionnaire with greater consistency and validity in the results.

5.3. Concepts and Dimensions Examined

Given the exploration of the related literature in the previous section, this research explored the factors
that drive women to become football referees and continue their involvement in refereeing activities.
This includes examining their passion for the sport, personal aspirations, and the satisfaction derived
from refereeing. Therefore, the motivations, experience, working practices and support networks of
match officials are considered within this research. In addition, the analysis of their interactions with
players, coaches, and spectators, as well as any challenges or discrimination due to their gender, both
positive and negative is crucial. Explore the pathways and opportunities for career progression across
both countries, ultimately intended to address wider issues regarding referee recruitment, retention
and training in football within the field of women's football refereeing. This may involve examining the
availability of training programs, mentorship, promotion prospects, and the level of support provided by
football associations or federations.
This research is intended to be a starting point in the comparative analysis of referee working practices
and support networks between these two different countries. Identify the factors that influence the
likelihood of women referees continuing their involvement in the sport could involve assessing the impact
of intrinsic motives, mentoring programs, remuneration, sense of community, the absence of excessive

7
stress, and opportunities for continuing education. Although, some research has been conducted in
England, it was necessary to gather more relevant demographic data about women referees and their
retention in football. Thus, by developing further research and involving other countries will potentially
enable improvements to call the attention to referees retention. Furthermore, it will also help to identify
cultural comparisons as well as differences between countries, whilst also highlighting specific areas
which referees feel that their respective federations can improve. It is important to note that the specific
concepts and dimensions examined depend on the focus that address four central research questions.
Therefore, this research project also provides a comprehensive understanding of the concepts and
dimensions influencing the working motivation, experiences, and career development of women's
football refereeing in Portugal and Spain. The findings of this research will contribute to potential future
areas of research, promoting gender equality, inclusivity, and professional growth in the field of women's
refereeing.

5.4. Sample size

The sample size comprised 427 female referees (156 Portuguese and 271 Spanish), that are the total
number of active referees in both countries, which represents the population of female referees (Lomax
& Hahs-Vaughn, 2013).
The online questionnaire was emailed to active female referees in Spain and Portugal. The
questionnaire was disseminated through the regional associations and national federations in each of the
countries involved in this research process. These institutions hold a database of active qualified referees
and this has been used to obtain the samples from each country.
The face-to-face focus group interviews validated by Lima et al. (2022) were conducted by the
same interviewer in several associations and federations in Portugal and Spain.
It is relevant to refer that the number of female referees registered in both federations and
associations is approximately 600. However, the number of active female referees is lower due to
dropouts (± 100) in both countries.

5.5. An outline of the hypotheses addressed, the analysis strategy and techniques used, and the
strength and significance of the results
The hypotheses of this work were: i) Football referees have the same experiences as their male colleagues;
ii) The strategies for recruiting, selecting and retaining women's football referees are below expectations;
iii) Women's football referees expect to have the same opportunities for professionalization and career
development as their male counterparts; iv) Women who work as football referees have a sociable and
comfortable working environment; v) The working environment in women's football refereeing impacts
job satisfaction and retention.
To collect data, an online questionnaire was emailed to all the active referees in Spain and Portugal.
The questionnaire included sociodemographic, motivations and experiences information along with the
Referee Retention Scale to identify factors influencing referee retention. Additionally, to gain further

8
perspectives on the variables that might influence the retention of women in refereeing a focus group
was conducted according to a semi-structured qualitative interview.
Qualitative and quantitative techniques were used. The quantitative data comprised sociodemographic
information, motivations, experiences, and referee retention strategies (online questionnaire). The focus
group interviews were conducted to gain qualitative insights in the challenges, experiences, and strategies
employed by women referees. The statistical analysis used SPSS software for data analysis and
interpretation along with the NVivo for qualitative data management and analysis to identify themes and
patterns within the focus group interviews. The quantitative analysis examined the demographic
characteristics of women referees (age, experience, affiliations), assessed the relationships between
variables (challenges faced, motivation and factors influencing career development), and compared the
experiences and perceptions of women referees across different contexts (Portugal and Spain). The
qualitative analysis obtained from focus group interviews allowed a thematic analysis and the
understanding of the common themes and patterns related to the four research questions and categorize
results based on recurring themes. Interpret qualitative data together with the quantitative findings
enabled the triangulation and an in-depth comprehensive understanding of the factors influencing
women's refereeing.
This research has the strength of a large sample size, which included 427 women referees, provided
robustness to the findings and increased generalizability. The mixed methods approach by combining
quantitative and qualitative data, allowed a comprehensive understanding of the research questions and
the use of the Referee Retention Scale (validated measure) ensured reliability and validity in assessing
factors influencing referee retention.
The findings can inform the development of strategies to support women referees, improve
recruitment and retention efforts, and promote gender equality in refereeing. Furthermore, this study
adds important evidence to the limited literature on women's football refereeing, providing insights into
the experiences and challenges faced by women referees in Portugal and Spain. The results may inform
policy changes within football associations or federations to create a more inclusive and supportive
environment for women referees.

5.6. Validity and Reliability

The main aspects of validity concerning the traditional questionnaire-based design tend to relate to
random error, measurement error and reliability. Specifically, random error occurs with sampling
techniques and to lower this error large samples or populations can be selected. This research works
with a population from Portugal and Spain ensuring that any random error is avoided.
Regarding reliability, test-retest reliability is commonly used, and can be measured by two sets of
respondents completing the questionnaire at two different points in time (Litwin & Fink, 1995). Since the
instrument used was validated, it was applied only once and there was no test-retest. The online
questionnaire utilised for this research is non-traditional in construction, with a concerted balance
between the descriptive quantitative responses and the qualitative responses. The questionnaire

9
responses were in Portuguese and Spanish and were translated back into English for the purposes of data
analysis and reporting. Mixed methods research can be used to refer to procedures related to the
collection and analysis of both quantitative and qualitative data in the context of a single study (Driscoll
et al., 2007). According to Creswell and Clark (2017), concurrent mixed method data collection strategies
have been employed to validate one form of data with the other, and in several cases the same
respondents provide both qualitative and quantitative data responses in one data collection tool.
This research included quantitative responses within the online questionnaire to draw out the best
of quantitative methods and it was complemented with qualitative data collected face-to-face, which
enabled more consistent and valid conclusions of the study population.

5.7. An overview of any ethical issues and how they are addressed
Eligibility criteria included having a valid refereeing course, being a referee at regional or national football
games. Exclusion criteria were non-active female referees. All female referees freely and spontaneously
signed an informed consent where the objectives of the work were presented and what the purpose was.
All participants (or parents/guardians when participants were aged under 18) provided informed
consent before data collection.
Each participant would have the right to withdraw at any time if not feeling comfortable with
completing the questionnaire and participating in the focus group.
The ethical approval and all ethical principles of the Declaration of Helsinki and other deliberations
of the scientific technical committee will be complied with, including the use of informed consent code of
the Ethics Committee CTC-ESDL-CE002-2020.

6. Research findings
Demographic information has been included (see figures) in support of the qualitative quotes to provide
further context to the findings. The results demonstrated that the Portuguese women referees are aged
between 15 and 48 years old (27.1±6.6) (Figure 1). Spanish women referees are between 11 and 50 years
old (23.9±6.6) (Figure 2). In Portugal, we found a higher concentration of women referees between 19
and 35 years old. In Spain, women’s age ranged from 18 until 30. Significant differences in age were found
between countries (F=23.5; p<0.01) (Figure 3).

10
 Figure 1 Age of Portuguese women referees.

Figure 2 Age of Spanish women referees.

Figure 3 Age dispersion in women referee in Portugal (0) and Spanish (1).

11
In Portugal 35.9 % of women football referees and 45.4 % in Spain have completed university (Table 1).

Table 1 Women referees´ academic degree.

Total (n= 427) Spain (n=271) Portugal (n=156)

With no Higher
167 (39.1%) 97 (35.8%) 70 (44.9%)
Education
Graduation 179 (41.9%) 123 (45.4%) 56 (35.9%)

Master's degree 62 (14.5%) 33 (12.2%) 29 (18.6%)

PhD 19 (4.4) 18 (6.6%) 1 (0.6%)

The years of refereeing in Portugal ranged between 6 months until 26 years old. Mean= 7. 16 ±5. 6 (Figure
4). The years of refereeing in Spain ranged between 3 months until 28 years old. Mean= 5. 71 ±5. 1 (Figure
5). Significant differences in refereeing experience were found between countries (F=73.5; p<0.01) (Figure
6).

Figure 4 Years of refereeing experience in Portugal.

Figure 5 Years of refereeing experience in Spain.

12
 Figure 6 Women refereeing experience in Portugal (0) and Spanish (1).

Percentage analysis of non-football players (62%) overlapped the percentage of football players (38%) in
Portugal (Figure 7).
The percentage of football players (54%) overlapped the percentage of non-football players (46%)
in Spain (Figure 8).

38%
62%

No Yes

Figure 7 Football player experience in Portugal.

46%
54%

No Yes

Figure 8 Football player experience in Spain.

In both countries, the main reason for entering the referee career was related to sporting experience,
followed by other factors, influence from peers, income and curriculum (Figure 9 & Figure 10).

13
 28%
43%

19%
2%8%

Sports experience Source of income Curriculum Peer influence. Others.

Figure 9 The main reason that led me to choose refereeing in football – Portugal.

24%

10% 59%
1%
6%

Sports experience Source of income Curriculum Peer influence. Others.

Figure 10 The main reason that led me to choose refereeing in football – Spain.

In both countries more than 60% of women referees were not aware of UEFA's initiatives.
#FIFA4Equality and #WePlayStrong (Figure 11 & Figure 12).

38%

62%

Yes No

Figure 11 Known initiatives #FIFA4Equality and #WePlayStrong in Portugal.

27%

73%

Yes No

Figure 12 Known initiatives #FIFA4Equality and #WePlayStrong in Spain.

14
Findings demonstrated a number of common themes from the data set from focus group interviews.
These themes encompassed a wide range of different issues and have been categorised into two
components, “Motivations” and “Experiences” and for each component six and five categories
respectively, outlined in Figure 13.

Figure 13. Tree diagram displaying two components of female referee´s career.

15
 The results from this study are presented and discussed in relation to the two components above;
motivations and experiences. The Motivation component had six categories and the experience
component five. The former had different variables such as: relationship with football, positive aspects,
negative aspects, refereeing and personal life, personal plans and aspirations and reasons to be a referee.
The latter covered: gender equality, career development strategies, team work, competitiveness and
support (Fig.13).
The aforementioned ensures that the findings were in agreement with the two most highlighted
components listed by female referees. This in turn provides UEFA with the greatest opportunity to gain
an insight about: a) Selection, Recruitment and Retention Strategies between Portugal and Spain Football
Federation in Career development; b) Working Environment and Expectations regarding the Development
of Professionalization in Portuguese and Spanish Football Federations. Still highlighting differences, as
well as common themes between the two countries.

A) Selection, Recruitment and Retention Strategies between Portugal and Spain Football Federation in
Career development in female Refereeing.
To analyse the differences in selection, Recruitment and Retention Strategies between Portugal and Spain
Football Federations in career development in women refereeing in football, some questions of the
questionnaire were used to analyse selection and recruitment of female referees: If you were a football
player; whether sporting experience influenced your decision to become a referee; If the selection,
retention and support strategies for female referees career have the same indicators as male referees;
There is effectiveness in the strategy of recruiting women for refereeing and what was the main reason
that led me to choose refereeing in football?.
This information was complemented with focus-group interviews, namely experience component
with the categories: gender equality, career development strategies and motivation component with
reason to be a referee.
The associated score was calculated based on the 7 dimensions of the referees' retention scale.
Descriptive measures were estimated, minimum, maximum, mean and standard deviation. We
performed the mean comparative test (T-Student) to verify the score differences between Portugal and
Spain. A multivariate linear regression identified the significant dimensions of retention score of female
referees. In all tests a 5% significance was considered.
We found that there were no significant differences in the average score between Portugal and Spain.
Following this assumption, we analysed the two countries together (Table 2).

16
Table 2 Relative importance of referee retention scale dimension in the score.
p-value Confidence Interval 95% Importance
Mentoring 0.000 ]0.986; 1.013[ 33.6%
Intrinsic Motives 0.000 ]1.021; 1.060[ 17.8%
Remuneration 0.000 ]0.995; 1.041[ 11.5%
Lack of Stress 0.000 ]0.977; 1.024[ 11.0%
Sense of Community 0.000 ]1.014; 1.067[ 9.1%
Continuing Education 0.000 ]0.986; 1.040[ 8.5%
Administrator Considerations 0.000 ]0.967; 1.020[ 8.5%

According to the linear model, selected by forward stepwise, all dimensions of the retention scale
were significant for the referees' retention score. This model explains 99.6% of the score variation
according to the seven factors. However, the relative importance of each factor is different. The
mentoring was more important (33.6%) followed by Intrinsic Motives (17.8%) and the least important
dimensions were Administrator and Continuing Education (8.5% each) (Figure14).

Figure 14 Referee retention scale dimensions.

The analysis of selection and recruitment of female referees has shown that 61% agreed that their
sports experience influenced them to be referees. We perceived that 58% of women referees (38%
Portuguese and 54% Spanish) were football players. 77% of female referees referred that selection,
retention and career support strategies did not have the same indicators as for male referees.
The qualitative analysis confirmed data obtained in the quantitative analysis.
Therefore, Portugal and Spain have shown similar strategies and guidelines on selecting, recruiting
and retaining female referees but with different challenges.

A1) Retention of female referee in career

In Portugal, the interviewees mentioned that the retention of female referees could be enhanced through
greater awareness of the women´s role in the sporting community. Also, through closer and consistent
monitoring by a team of specific mentors (refereeing coach, psychologist) working exclusively with these
sports agents throughout their entire career, particularly in all female national categories, as in the case
of 1st men's referee league.

17
 In this sense, the Portuguese Football Federation (PFF) has sought to enhance the monitoring of
female referees and female assistant referees of high national category and recently selected a mentor
to work exclusively with these female referees. As of today, it is still too early to make an interpretation
of this follow-up.
Other difficulties highly emphasized by the Portuguese referees were how to reconcile professional
life with motherhood. Many female referees postpone motherhood due to the fact that they do not have
the means of support and help on this important phase of their life as a woman and a female referee.

“The strategies for selection and retention, at the moment, are not exactly the best. This retention is
the responsibility of the nuclei, it is voluntary work and therefore, there is no specialized work or
anything close to it, so monitoring and retention also fall short of what would be expected” (PT).
“The way to retain women in refereeing is to foster a culture of greater awareness of female referees
in football” (PT).
“We should have another follow-up as it happens for example in Spanish women referees and in male
referees here in Portugal” (PT).
“The important thing would be to have a specific program aimed at retaining the female referees,
someone with that specific function (…)” (PT).
“Refereeing is a very closed system, people know the referee as the one who will referee and have
no idea of the involvement and preparation that refereeing requires. Therefore, it would be good to
have greater institutional and social openness so that everyone understands what it is to be a referee,
it would certainly attract more men and more women (...)” (PT).
“Taking into account the level of demand in physical terms and what refereeing requires in terms of
sacrifice, I think that there are basic things that we should not miss, such as psychological and physical
follow-up, rehabilitation after injury, that is, an exclusive team that take care of us, as in high
competition athletes”. (PT).
“Referees who want to be mothers do not have any support and this goal of being a mother is
sometimes postponed, or it is the career that is left on standby, I think there is still a lot to be done in
this field, to give sustainability to the referee’s career” (PT).

In turn, the Spanish referees revealed the same difficulties as their Portuguese counterparts,
demonstrating the need for closer, specialized and exclusive monitoring throughout their careers, as well
as, great difficulty in reconciling their professional and personal careers. They also reported that many
female referees were fired for not being able to combine both careers. However, the fact that they have
recently managed to professionalize their careers has given them greater security and stability in
performing their work. Thus, they are calling attention and promoting their referee's career, which they
believe will help more girls to consider building a career in refereeing as a valid option.

A2) Selection and Recruitment of female referees in career

In this way, selection and recruitment strategies of female referees is influenced by the fact that she was
a football player and by her sporting experiences in other sports, federated and non-federated. Selection

18
and recruitment strategies of female referees will gain greater support with the media coverage and
visibility based on the professionalization of their career and, transversally, will support the retention of
female referees through the security, stability and sustainability that professionalization will bring to
them.
“I played on a football team from 6 to 18 years old, I reconciled for a few years until I left football for
refereeing.” (SP).
“I did kickboxing for many years and then when I saw a football game I decided to take the course
(…)” (SP).
“It's difficult to reconcile a professional and personal career, and even more with motherhood, we
have to stop 9 months beyond the recovery time that this involves for an athlete. There should be
some measure in place to help us in this overcomplicated but very important phase for sportswomen.”
(SP).
“The media should make refereeing more visible, promote greater awareness of the referee’s role,
we need more conventions that make known this world of refereeing, we need more projects like this
that involve women and that these women are leaders, help to develop refereeing and all sports
agents, because everything is interconnected, the development of women's football influences the
development of female refereeing.” (SP).

Selection and recruitment of female referees should preferably be conducted by district

associations together with educational institutions as well as with sports institutions to make known
female’s referee career concurrently. All these selection and recruitment strategies will gain greater
sustainability through the dissemination and promotion mechanisms provided by the Portuguese Football
Federation and by the European Confederations through the opportunities given to women, such as the
fact that a woman refereed a men's football match in the Champions League. This visibility given to the
female referee makes it possible to incite greater curiosity and greater interest in the refereeing career.

“The selection and the respective recruitment of female referees has been done by the nuclei on a
voluntary basis, through training and invited referees to hold lectures (…)” (PT).
“I practiced several sports before coming to refereeing namely athletics in school sports and
swimming for 8 years (…)” (PT).
“Women's football is growing, many young girls are deciding to be footballers and women are finding
a place in football that they love so much. These women, like Stéphanie Frappart, who had the
opportunity to manage men's games, are starting to be an inspiration for future generations, and for
women who would like to take this path, they are starting to feel that it is possible and that the barriers
that existed a few years ago are fading away (…)” (PT).

Despite all the difficulties identified in the selection, recruitment and retention of the female
referee, there are still many challenges to overcome in this male-dominated sport.

19
A3) Challenges encountered by women referees in a male-dominated sport
Culturally, football is considered a sport mostly for men, but women referees have been building their
place and reducing some of the socially implemented barriers in this sport.
In Portugal and Spain, female referees referred that they are perceived as having the same
competence as male referees when given the same opportunities. However, some barriers have to be
overcome both internally, within refereeing, and externally in society. In both countries, they stated that
it is necessary to work twice as hard as men to achieve the same goals, in this so-called macho society.
This is guided by the fact that women are physiologically different from men and have to fulfill the same
requirements to ascend to male career. They mentioned that they must prove their value in each task and
in each game or competition they perform.
They are perceived as having the same competence as their male colleagues and recognized by
them as having value. Female referees felt that their fellow referees support female referee's career
development as it develops in women's competitions. However, this support ceases to exist when female
referees compete in the same competition as theirs, being seen as a threat to their position.
Despite these difficulties and cultural barriers identified by the referee, there is a concern and an
incentive by the European entities to deconstruct these barriers. Indeed, the referee is provided with
some of the opportunities that will have an impact on the elimination of these cultural difficulties, such
as the fact that a referee having managed a men's game in one of the most emblematic competitions,
such as the champions' league, potentiates the dissipation of some of the internal and external barriers
to football.
In Portugal, work is also beginning to help women to overcome these barriers, insofar as some
female referees have been given the opportunity to take the access tests for the male panel and, in this
way, the assistant female referees managed to do the tests with success, competing on the men's board
in the 2nd men's professional league.
Consequently, in Spain, these barriers can be easily overcome by implementing professionalization
and having female referees enforcing the rules of the game in men's competitions.
These strategies with different magnitudes applied in Portugal and Spain allow to incite a change
of mentalities, making it possible to approach gender equality.

“At European level, a different opening begins to exist and women begin to be given the same
opportunities to reach the same level as men. At the regional level there is still resistance in some
associations to give the same opportunities that are given to men (…)” (PT).
“Women have to work twice as hard to achieve the same results as men, in this still very sexist society
(…)” (PT).
“I think the biggest difference between genders is in financial terms (…)” (PT).
“Our mistake is seen differently from that of a man (…)” (SP).
“We are always constantly analysed and constantly proving that we are worthy of that place for the
competence shown (…)” (SP).

20
B) Working Environment and Expectation regarding the development of Professionalization in
Portuguese and Spanish Football Federations in Career development in female Refereeing.
In both countries female referee have done 3-4 training sessions per week and the main reason for
entering the referee career was related to sporting experience, followed by other factors, influence from
peers, income and curriculum (Table 3).

Table 3 Main reason that led to choose refereeing in football.

Total (n= 427) Spain (n=271) Portugal (n=156)

Sports Experience 226 (52.9%) 159 (58.7%) 67 (42.9%)
Other 109 (25.5%) 65 (24.0 %) 44 (28.2%)
Peer influence 54 (12.6%) 26 (9.6%) 28 (17.9%)
Source income 30 (7.0%) 18 (6.6%) 12 (7.7%)
Curriculum 8 (1.9%) 3 (1.1%) 5 (3.2 %)

Descriptive analysis was performed with the variables based on the questions of experience and
motivation. Frequency analysis was conducted with refereeing time, played football, family in refereeing
(Table 4).

Table 4 Frequency analysis of the questionnaire dichotomous items.

Portugal (N= 156) Spain (N=270)
Yes No Yes No
a) Played football 59 97 151 119
b) Have family in refereeing 43 113 78 192
c) Had an injury 61 95 96 174

Mean and mode were used with the rest of the variables (Table 10) and classified with a 5-level Likert-type
scale (1-totally disagree, 5-totally agree). The number of refereeing years was chosen as an indicator of the
longevity of the refereeing career. We performed the comparative test (Mann-Whitney) to verify the
existence of differences in longevity of the refereeing career between Portugal and Spain. A multivariate
linear regression was performed to identify the significant variables of the refereeing longevity. In all tests,
a 5% significance was considered.
Significant differences in distribution of number of refereeing years between Portugal and Spain were found.
This result was expected because career professionalization between countries is different. Following this
assumption, we separately analysed the two countries.
Table 5 presents motivation and experience in the referee's career considering the items that seemed the
most relevant to the construction of the model.

21
Table 5 Mean, mode scores of motivation and experience (questionnaire items).
Portugal (N=156) Spain (N=270)
Mean Mode Mean Mode
1. My experience in sports has influenced me to be a
3.47 5 3.64 5
woman referee.
2. Being a football woman referee brings more positive
4.19 4 4.50 5
aspects than negative ones.
3. My experience in refereeing men’s’ matches is more
3.67 3 2.99 3
positive than refereeing in women’s matches.
4. Being a sport mainly practiced by men, my
4.40 5 4.37 5
relationship with football is comfortable.
5. Being a football woman referee affects my personal
3.51 4 3.41 4
life.
6. I aspire to go international. 3.64 5 3.68 5
7. It is easy to be a football woman referee. 2.46 2 2.15 2
8. There are few women referees in football. 4.12 5 4.16 5
9. The football refereeing environment affects my work
3.08 3 3.20 3
and personal life balance.
10. There are differences/ obstacles between men and
4.26 5 3.50 5
women on football refereeing.
11. The matches that are easier of refereeing are the
3.18 3 2.20 3
male ones.
12. It is very important the relationship between the
4.91 5 4.85 5
refereeing team members.
13. When the referee team is mostly male, the
relationship between the team members is more 2.90 3 2.30 3
positive.
14. When the referee team is mostly female, the
relationship between the team members is more 2.83 3 2.63 3
positive.
15. Our men colleagues react well to my rise in the world
3.61 3 3.86 5
of football.
16. The woman referee presents the same competency
4.77 5 3.96 5
as the man referee.
17. The national federations and European football are
prepared to sustain the career development of the 3.03 4 3.59 4
referee.
18. The selection strategies, retention and career
support of the woman referee have the same indicators 2.36 2 2.54 2
as the male career.
19. The challenges that women face as football referees
2.06 2 2.49 2
are the same as men.
20. The support systems for referees treat women the
2.67 3 3.26 3
same way they treat men.
21. Efficiency exists in the recruitment strategy of
2.50 2 3.47 4
women for refereeing.

In both countries the model identified significant variables, which explained 44% of women referees`
career development.
The significant variables selected within the linear modal in Portugal were: (1) injury; (2) being a
football woman referee brings more positive aspects than negative; (3) my experience in refereeing men’s
matches is more positive than refereeing in women’s; (6) I aspire to go international; (7) It is easy to be a
football woman referee; (8) there are few women referees in football; (10) There are differences/ obstacles
between men and women on football refereeing; (17) The national federations and the European football
are prepared to sustain the referee’s career development (Table 6).

22
 Table 6 Explanatory variables considered in the explanatory model over career time in Portugal.

Factor variables sig importance

(1) injury 0.000* 0.330
(2) Being a football woman referee brings more positive aspects than negative 0.003* 0.091
(3) My experience in refereeing men’s matches is more positive than refereeing in
0.006* 0.107
women’s
(6) I aspire to go international 0.000* 0.222
(7) It is easy to be a football women referee 0.039* 0.044
(8) there are few women referees in football 0.026* 0.051
(9) The football refereeing environment affects my work and personal life balance 0.082 0.031
(10) There are differences/ obstacles between men and women on football refereeing 0.023* 0.034
(12) It is very important the relationship between the refereeing team members 0.111 0.026
(17) The national federations and the European football are prepared to sustain the
0.032* 0.071
referee’s career development
(21) Efficiency exists in the recruitment strategy of women for refereeing 0.103 0.027
* Indicate significant P values

Injury and the aspiration to have an international reputation have shown to be relatively
meaningful, 33% and 22%, respectively.
The significant variables selected within the linear model in Spain were: (a) injury; (2) being a
football woman referee brings more positive aspects than negative; (3) my experience in refereeing
men’s matches is more positive than refereeing in women’s; (6) I aspire to go international; (7) It is easy
to be a football women referee; (8) there are few women referees in football; (12) It is very important the
relationship between the refereeing team members; (a) Number of workouts per week; and (b) Main
reasons to be refereeing football (Table 7).

Table 7 Explanatory variables considered in the explanatory model over career time in Spain.
Factor variables sig importance
(1) injury 0.000* 0.193
(2) being a football woman referee brings more positive aspects than negative 0.024* 0.033
(3) My experience in refereeing men’s matches is more positive than refereeing in 0.007* 0.066
women’s
(6) I aspire to go international 0.000* 0.143
(7) It is easy to be a football women referee 0.045* 0.041
(8) there are few women referees in football 0.000* 0.086
(12) It is very important the relationship between the refereeing team members 0.000* 0.181
(a) Number of workouts per week 0.000* 0.093
(b) Main reasons to be refereeing football 0.002* 0.061
* Indicate significant P values

Injury and the importance of the relationship between the refereeing team were relatively
meaningful, 19% and 18%, respectively.
Qualitative analysis confirmed data obtained in quantitative analysis. Hence, to identify the
Working Environment and Expectations regarding the Development of Professionalization in Career
Development in Women Refereeing in Football by Portugal and Spain Football Federations. We selected
six (6) categories in the first domain: relationship with football; negative aspects to be a referee; positive
aspects to be a referee; refereeing and personal life; personal plans and aspirations and reasons to be a
referee. In the second domain we selected three (3): team work, competitiveness and support.

23
C1 – Relationship with football
Portuguese and Spanish interviewees reported that despite football being a sport culturally masculine,
they have a good relationship with the sport and feel comfortable and proud to be part of this
environment. They also revealed that they felt comfortable refereeing men's football, facing it in a natural
way, since they had been trained to do so since the beginning of their careers. With the emergence of
women's football, the interviewees mentioned that there were distinct particularities in refereeing men
or women, with men's games being more physically intense and women’s more unpredictable.

… ”I started refereeing men's games from an early age, I feel satisfied managing men's games.
Sometimes we hear pejorative comments. Unfortunately, we have already waited a little bit that, and,
more and more, with the evolution of women's football, it's not so much men's football, it is more
football for everyone (…)”. PT.

… ”We were trained from the beginning of our careers to referee men's games, so it is our natural
habitat, our place of comfort is men's football. A women's game cannot be refereed in the same way
as a men's game, men's football is faster and more intuitive and women's football is slower and more
unpredictable (…)”. (SP).

C2 – Plans and Aspirations

In both countries, women referees mentioned that they had plans and aspirations to rise to high levels in
their refereeing career, and that one of their guiding objectives as a referee was to achieve
internationalization. However, some referees referred the desire and dream of ascending to the men's
professional competitions, thus allowing them to overcome a large number of cultural and social barriers.

“… My dream more than being international was to go up to the 1st men's league as a referee (…)”
(PT)
“… I want to go as far as I can, I'm in the men's 2nd RFEF and one of my big goals is to reach 1st RFEF
(…)” (SP).

C3 – Reasons to be a referee
In Portugal, female referees revealed several reasons that led them to start a referee career, such as
sporting experience (variable that stood out), peer influences, curriculum, and remuneration.

“… Due to family influence, my father was a referee, sometimes he came home and told me stories
from the weekend and it made me curious and as I also liked football, I went to try it out (…)” (PT).
“… I always liked playing football, I reached a point in my playing career when I had nothing left to
win, to evolve and, one day I was on the bench, and I asked the assistant referee, what could I do to
be a referee (…)” (PT).

24
 In Spain, we found that more than 50% of the referees were encouraged to take the referee course
because they were football players. The remaining female referees were influenced by the practice of
sports in different modalities, by their peers, by other female referees who through their role in the field
directly influenced some women to follow the same path.

“… I played sports other than football, I was used to training and then I was led by a group of referee
friends (…)” (SP).
“… I played football, I had an injury and then I saw refereeing as an alternative to continue playing
football (…)” (SP).

C4 – Positive aspects of being a referee

In both countries, women referees mentioned that positive aspects of being a referee relate to the
personal evolution and that refereeing enhances the development of certain skills: leadership, self-
control, concentration, focus, and decision-making, ability to manage conflicts, resilience, and ability to
deal with pressure, organizational capacity, emotional intelligence and social status.
One of the most highlighted positive aspects was the establishment and the development of
interpersonal relationships within refereeing, as well as the true and lasting friendships that are
established and the places and cultures that are known.

“… Refereeing makes us develop skills that in other sports would be difficult to develop, such as:
ability to deal with pressure, to manage emotions, to solve conflicts, the ability to work in groups, all
skills that we can apply in various situations in life, such as in a job interview (...)” (PT).
“ … Refereeing taught me values for life, without refereeing it would take much longer to acquire
them, I matured faster at a young age, it made me to be responsible, to have the gift of justice, and
I would not have developed these values and skills before the age of 18/19. I also emphasize the
friendships that we have in life and the places/cultures that we know around the country and around
the world (…)” (SP).

C5 – Negative aspects of being a referee

According to the Portuguese referees, the main negative aspects of a referee's career are related to the
lack of time to be with family and friends, tiredness, some frustration, difficulty in reconciling professional
and personal life, ability to face mistakes, intimidation and insults that can sometimes have consequences
for family life. In addition, female referees said that they felt more pressure because of sexism in football,
in addition to the implicit scrutiny of the referee’s role.
The time factor was the most impactful variable on their career well-being, as they yield up many
family moments, particularly when they are at international levels, where professional life and especially
personal life, namely for those with children, is severely affected. In addition, they revealed that they felt
little recognition and appreciation when compared to women's 1st league football players, in which most
of professionals’ work.

25
 On the other hand, in Spain, referees mentioned as main negative aspects of the career: the ability
to face the social pressure that is exerted on them, the lack of time to be with their family and friends,
professional and family repercussions, in addition to often being the target of some sexist bias and sexist
insults.

“… The most negative aspect for me is undoubtedly, the time it takes away from my real family, I had
a game on the islands over the weekend and I had to leave my young daughter, it cost me hell (…)”
(PT).
“… There is a lack of time, there is tiredness, and the pressure we feel from the game players, from
spectators to the media, sometimes leading to moments of frustration and mental exhaustion…” (PT).
“… It involves a lot of sacrifice, it takes away moments of leisure with the family, hours of sleep, quality
of work, some complications and repercussions at the family level. I'm a mother and at the weekend
I have to leave my son, refereeing is something I love, but I also love my son, I spend very little time
with him…” (SP).
“… One of the worst things I have to deal with is the pressure on the field, pressure from the
spectators, social networks, when there is a game that doesn't go well, I am psychologically affected
for 2/3 days (…)” (SP).

C6 – Refereeing and Personal life

According to referees, it is difficult to reconcile a professional career, personal life and refereeing, which
denotes a greater impact on more demanding levels such as internationalization.
In this sense, the interviewees reported that the biggest challenge in the referee's career is to find
a balance between these three fields, personal, professional and refereeing, expressing greater difficulty
when they desire motherhood, the biggest challenge of the referee's career in this non-professionalization
area. Thus, we found that most female referees postponed motherhood in favour of a refereeing career.
Spanish female referees reported that it is very difficult to reconcile personal, professional and
refereeing careers, and often different areas of life are compromised to refereeing. Therefore, some
referees mentioned that they were fired because the employer would not understand their absences from
office. However, with the recently achieved professionalization, they are certain that they will be more
efficient in refereeing and will have more quality time with family and friends.

“… I think that, the closer we are to the top, namely when we are international, we are fully aware
that it really affects our personal life, we often have to decide between professional life and refereeing
because this latter does not give us financial support regularly, and if we get injured, we have no
remuneration (...)” (PT).
“… We often postpone motherhood for the sake of refereeing and then later regret the decisions we
make, because with refereeing is very difficult to reconcile these two areas, we spend a lot of time
away at the weekend and if we do not have support it is very difficult…” (PT).
“… Being a referee has greatly affected my professional life. When I finished my studies they didn't
understand what it was like to be a referee and they fired me. Organizations are not interested in

26
 employees who are constantly absent, with games during the week, they don't understand that I am
a sportswoman…” (SP).
“Right now I'm in a good situation but last year I had the option of not even being in this category, I'm
a nurse and I've been working 12 consecutive hours and I had support from my colleagues in
replacements, but it wasn't always possible to get them , it's too demanding.” (SP).

C1 – Competitiveness
In Portugal and Spain, the interviewees mentioned that: Concerning competition between genders,
referees support and encourage the increase in the number of female referees in women's football.
However, when female referee competes in men's competition, she is seen with intolerance and there is
little mutual help.
Referees are perceived by their male counterparts as competent and highly efficient to reach levels
of high competition in sport. However, male referees feel threatened when their female peers compete
in the same competition.
Despite the skills identified in the female referee, she continues to feel that she needs to work
twice as hard as the male referee to achieve the same goals, revealing that she always has much more to
prove in all aspects in this field than male. However, female referees reveal that they feel more accepted
in this environment, despite still being the target of some prejudices by some players within refereeing,
such as fellow referees and observers when they compete in the same competition.
With regard to the various sports agents (e.g., players, directors, coaches) referees revealed that
they felt well accepted and integrated. Concerning the public, they continue to be the target of some
sexist bias and sexist insults.

“… There is hypocrisy by our colleagues when we compete in the same competition as theirs, they try
to pass a correct posture of acceptance, but then indirectly when you are in their category it is not so
pleasant, because the way they treat us is not the same as it was when we weren't there (…) (SP).
“… They are afraid to compete with women, because we have shown progression, consistency in
performance and competence, they see us as a threat to their positions (…)” (PT).
“I feel that we are accepted by all sports agents. However, there are still sexist bias and sexist insults
from the spectators, despite being lesser than 7 years ago (…)” (SP).

C2 – Team Work
In both countries, women referees reported that the relationship among the elements of the refereeing
team is extremely important for career success, since they spend a lot of time together, namely on trips,
games, formations, training, among other moments. Referees stressed that it makes no difference
whether the team is made up of men or women, the most relevant for the team’s success is the
competence, mutual help and complicity shown, since the team is felt as a second family.

27
 “… The relationship with the team members, regardless of gender is fundamental, as we spend a lot
of time with together, the level of connection is often proportional to the team’s success …” (PT).
“… The atmosphere in the team is very important. Having a good relationship leads us to learn, to
evolve, to be self-critical, to be more successful, which would otherwise be impossible, if we do not
have an excellent connection with the assistants, the work does not flow and won’t go well…” (SP).

C3 – Support
Portuguese female referees revealed that national and regional entities provide support in the training
field through seminars and specific training actions throughout the season, while the Portuguese
Association for Support of Refereeing Council provide the necessary support to referees who report
abuse. In addition, female referees revealed the need for greater monitoring in several areas, which are
still underdeveloped and extremely relevant for the sustainability of the female referee's career, namely,
psychological support, since they are the target of constant scrutiny and social pressure. Besides,
nutritional monitoring is also necessary, since it impacts on physical and mental performance, with
preventive monitoring of injuries or rehabilitation after injury.
Referees revealed that the European entities, e.g., UEFA have shown them greater support through
the visibility and opportunities they have provided, as well as greater financial equity when international
matches are held. However, according to the opinion of the female referees, the national federation are
not prepared to support female referee career, since it implies that they become professionals, with an
employment contract, which would allow them to be 100% professional and currently this is not feasible.
The interviewees highlighted another highly relevant aspect for the referee’s well-being, related
to the fact that there is no institutional or financial support at the time of maternity.

“… At the European level, a different opening begins to exist and women begin to be given the same
opportunities to reach the same level as men. At the regional level there is still resistance by some
associations to give the same opportunities that are given to men...”
“... We have no system to support us, we try to support each other…”
“I'm on the men's team, I'm sincere in saying that the national federations are not prepared to support
the referee's career, this would imply that I would make this my life, and, at the moment, that is not
a reality, neither for me nor for all of us”.

Spanish referees mentioned that the referee's career support system depends on the category in
which she finds herself. At the moment, the Spanish Federation yields female referees the same support
system as men, namely mentors and coaches are at both levels, and therefore they receive the same
information and tools for their career development. In this way, referees revealed that they felt support
from the European entities, e.g., UEFA, and have justified it by the visibility and opportunity that they
have been given to reach the same level as men.

28
 Additionally, at this moment, the Spanish Federation and the European bodies are prepared to
support the referee's career, due to the fact that they have achieved professionalization, thus attaining a
perfect conciliation between refereeing and personal life.
On the other hand, Spanish female referees at regional level mentioned lack of support from the
district entities to lever their career, revealing a greater need for follow-up both in training and
psychological issues. Additionally, they highlighted another highly important aspect for the well-being of
the referee: the fact that there is no institutional or financial support during maternity.

“… I feel that our federation and the European bodies are prepared to support the referee's career,
especially now with the issue of professionalization. Everyone will win in every possible way...” (SP).
“… Now they treat us the same way men, we have the same conditions, the same training, every year
it has been changing, it has been improving…” (SP).

6. Overview of Findings
The purpose of this report was to provide UEFA with the pertinent findings from the data collected
through the online questionnaire and focus group discussion. These instruments allow an insight into the
challenges faced by women’s referees in a sport predominantly dominated by men. Additionally, the
report also explores the strategies employed in the recruitment and the selection and retention of female
football referees. Furthermore, it shed the current work practices and operating environments and
respective expectations regarding the professionalization and career development of female football
women referees.
The findings revelled that career retention among women’s referees was primarily influenced by
mentoring, followed by intrinsic motivation. The participants emphasized the importance of having a
specialized support team, including mentors in areas such physical conditioning, technical training,
psychology and nutrition. They noted that this kind of support is similar to what professional male referees
receive on the highest level championship.
Motivation was the second dimension that most influenced the referee's retention, namely the passion,
the challenges involved in refereeing as well as the relationships established in the team. However, the
finding emphasized was that gender is not the determining factor for success in refereeing, but rather
dedication and performance.
Regarding the selection and recruitment of female referees, the study reveled that 61% of the responders
agreed that their sports experience, both within federated and non-federated modalities influenced their
decision to become referees. Based on these findings, it can be conclude that the selection and
recruitment of female referees should be performed through associations, along with promotion and
raising awareness among young people in schools. These measures should be supported and
implemented by higher entities, such as the federations and UEFA to ensure equal opportunities and
visibility for women referee, thereby enhancing their chances of career achievement.

29
The study also highlighted that 77% of female referees referred that selection, retention and career
support strategies did not have the same indicators as for male referees. Career sustainability was found
to be influenced by two barriers: lack of institutional support throughout the career and difficulty in

reconciling personal and professional life (e.g., lack of support in motherhood) . The Working Environment

and Expectations regarding the career development in women refereeing were closely related to factors
such as injuries, aspiration to have an international reputation and the easiness of being a football referee.
In Portugal, the variables identified as having the greatest impact on referee development and
sustainability were explained by Injury; being a football woman referee brings more positive aspects than
negative; experience in refereeing men’s matches is more positive than refereeing women’s; aspiration
to be international; easiness to be a football women referee; there are few women referees in football;
differences/ obstacles between men and women on football refereeing and the national federations and
the European football are prepared to support the referee’s career development. Portuguese referees
acknowledged that European entities, such as UEFA, have been supportive by providing visibility,
opportunities and greater financial equity when international matches are held. However, according to
female referees’ perspective, the national federation is not currently prepared to support the careers of
female referee in terms of professionals and employment contracts that would allow them to become
fully professional, and currently this is not feasible.
The interviewees reported that the biggest challenge in the referee's career is finding a balance between
personal, professional and refereeing responsibilities. However, in the professional area, the biggest
challenge of the referee's career is when they desire motherhood. Thus, we found that most female
referees postponed motherhood in favour of a refereeing career.
In Spain, the Working Environment and Expectations related to the development of professionalization
were similar to those in Portugal. Spanish referees mentioned that the referee's career support system
depends on the category in which they find themselves. At the present, the Spanish National Federation
provides female referees the same support system as men, namely mentors and coaches are at both
levels, and therefore they receive the same information and tools to their career development. Referees
acknowledged the support they felt from the European entities (e.g., UEFA), and have justified it by the
visibility and opportunity that they have been given to reach the same level as men.
Additionally, at this moment, the Spanish National Federation and the European bodies are prepared to
support the referee's career, due to the fact that they have achieved professionalization, thus attaining a
perfect adjustment between refereeing and personal life. Spanish female referees reported that it is very
difficult to reconcile personal, professional and refereeing careers, and often different areas of life are
compromised to refereeing. Therefore, some referees mentioned that they were fired because the
employer would not understand their absences from office. However, with the recently achieved
professionalization, they are certain that they will be more efficient in refereeing and will have more
quality time with family and friends.

30
7. The limitations of the current study
It is important to acknowledge the potential constraints that may have impacted the study. First the
differences and dynamics within the several focus-groups, namely the interaction between interviewers
and participants, since more introverted people tended to have a smaller participation compared to
extroverted ones.
Furthermore, the studies relied on voluntary participants that completed an online questionnaire
and/or participated in a focus group interview. These factors may impact the response rate, and non-
response bias could impact the findings if those who chose not to participate had had different
perspectives or experiences. The data collected through the online questionnaire and focus group
interviews relies on participants’ self-reporting. This introduces the possibility of response bias, as
participants might have provided socially desirable responses or could not accurately have recalled their
experiences.

8. Future Research and Recommendations

This research produced some significant recommendations and key areas for future research.
The present study developed the understanding associated with the motivations and experiences
in the work environment of female referees with the objective of identifying the use of selection and
retention strategies for the sustainability of the female referee's career in two European countries.
However, after the success of this pilot research. It would be important to implement political strategies
to promote football refereeing in clubs and associations so that we can achieve greater expression and
competitive reach right from the base of the career, creating sustainability for its progression.
Therefore, recommendations are as follows:
• Create a support network from associations and federations to mobilize children from schools,
football clubs, to encourage greater selection and recruitment of female referees.
• Each entity, associations, federations, create a multidisciplinary mentoring team with the aim of
accompanying female referees throughout their career, to enhance retention from base to top.
 Dissemination of educational information regarding abuse, and cope with incidents of abuse and
decrease the drop-outs.
 Further research in other European countries is required to better understand referees’ working
conditions and operational environments and the differences between countries.
 Evidence suggests that promotion opportunities and referee pathways as well as continuous
follow-up will be cardinal to prevent greater dropout rates and the workforce loss.
 Conduct a new investigation on Spanish female referees to understand the reality of
professionalization, advantages, work environment and the articulation with personal life.
 Promote intervention and support strategies for all female referees who aspire to motherhood,
since the inhibition of such a condition due to reasons associated with refereeing causes changes
in their physical and mental well-being.

31
By incorporating these suggestions, the recommendations section will provide more specific and
actionable guidance to stakeholders involved in improving the working conditions for training and
development of sustainability of women referee career and the trust fostered among the UEFA,
federations, associations and the referees from base to top.

9. References
Aragão e Pina, J., Passos, A., Araújo, D., & Maynard, M. T. (2018). Football refereeing: An integrative
review. Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 35, 10-26. doi.org/10.1016/j.psychsport.2017.10.006.
Bauer, M. W., & Gaskell, G. (2000). Qualitative researching with text, image and sound: A practical
handbook for social research. Sage.
Beyea, S. C., & Nicoll, L. H. (2000). Learn more using focus groups. AORN Journal, 71(4), 897-897.
Castagna, C., Abt, G., & D’Ottavio, S. (2007). Physiological aspects of soccer refereeing performance and
training. Sports Medicine, 37(7), 625-646.
Castagna, C., Bizzini, M., Póvoas, S. C. A., Schenk, K., Büsser, G., & D'Ottavio, S. (2019). Aerobic fitness in
top-class soccer referees. The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, 33(11), 3098-3104.
Castillo, D., Raya-González, J., Usabiaga, O., Cámara-Tobalina, J., Castellano-Paulis, J., & Yanci-Irigoyen, J.
(2019). Analysis of the success in soccer match officials’ decisions during an international
tournament according to contextual factors.[Análisis del éxito en las decisiones de los árbitros
en partidos oficiales de fútbol durante un torneo internacional atendiendo a factores
contextuales]. RICYDE. Revista Internacional de Ciencias del Deporte.,15(57),225-234. doi:
10.5232/ricyde.
Chestnutt, I., & Robson, K. (2001). Focus groups–what are they? Dental Update, 28(4), 189-192.
Cleland, J., & Cashmore, E. (2014). Fans, racism and British football in the twenty-first century: The
existence of a ‘colour-blind’ideology. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 40(4), 638-654.
Cleland, J., & Cashmore, E. (2016). Football fans’ views of violence in British football: Evidence of a
sanitized and gentrified culture. Journal of Sport and Social Issues, 40(2), 124-142.
Cleland, J., O’Gorman, J., & Webb, T. (2018). Respect? An investigation into the experience of referees in
association football. International Review for the Sociology of Sport, 53(8), 960-974.
Creswell, J. W., & Clark, V. L. P. (2017). Designing and conducting mixed methods research. Sage
publications.
Cuskelly, G., & Hoye, R. (2013). Sports officials’ intention to continue. Sport Management Review, 16(4),
451-464.
Devís-Devís, J., Serrano-Durá, J., & Molina, P. (2021). “The referee plays to be insulted!”: An exploratory
qualitative study on the Spanish football referees’ experiences of aggression, violence, and
coping. Frontiers in psychology, 12, 656437.
Driscoll, D. L., Appiah-Yeboah, A., Salib, P., & Rupert, D. J. (2007). Merging qualitative and quantitative
data in mixed methods research: How to and why not. Ecological and Environmental
Anthropology, 3(1), 19-28.
Drury, S., Stride, A., Fitzgerald, H., Hyett-Allen, N., Pylypiuk, L., & Whitford-Stark, J. (2022). “I'm a Referee,
Not a Female Referee”: The Experiences of Women Involved in Football as Coaches and Referees.
Frontiers in Sports and Active Living, 3. doi:10.3389/fspor.2021.789321.
Forbes, A., Edwards, L., & Fleming, S. (2015). ‘Women can’t referee’: exploring the experiences of female
football officials within UK football culture. Soccer & Society, 16(4), 521-539.
Hall, & Prentice, M. (2000). Krueger, RA and Casey, MA (2000) Focus groups: a practical guide for applied
research. Sage Publications.
Kumar, R.(1996) Research Methodology: A Step By Step Guide for Beginners. Longman. Leedy, P and
Ormond, JE (2001) Practical Research: Planning and Design.
Lima, R. F., Camões, M., Clemente, F. M., Castro, H. d. O., & Silva, B. (2022). Exploring the motivations and
expectations in the amateur football referee. Journal of Physical Education, 33(1), e-3310.
doi.org/10.4025/JPHYSEDUC.V33I1.3310.
Litwin, M. S., & Fink, A. (1995). How to measure survey reliability and validity (Vol. 7). Sage.

32
Livingston, L. A., & Forbes, S. L. (2016). Factors contributing to the retention of Canadian amateur sport
officials: Motivations, perceived organizational support, and resilience. International Journal of
Sports Science & Coaching, 11(3), 342-355.
Lomax, R. G., & Hahs-Vaughn, D. L. (2013). An introduction to statistical concepts. Routledge.
Marín-Montín, J., & Bianchi, P. (2022). “Go and Wash up!”: Gender Violence in Female Refereeing and Its
Media Coverage in Brazil and Spain. Communication & Sport.
doi.org/10.1177/21674795221129197.
Meckel, Y., Balikin, K., & Eliakim, A. (2020). Pre-and mid-season repeated sprint ability of soccer referees
from the first and second divisions. International Journal of Sports Science & Coaching, 15(1), 82-
90.
Mendes, S., Travassos, B., & Oliveira, E. (2020). Career development and perception of factors to the
excellence of the football referee in Portugal. RETOS-Neuvas Tendencias En Educacion Fisica,
Deporte Y Recreacion, 37, 694-701.
Nordstrom, H., Warner, S., & Barnes, J. C. (2016). Behind the stripes: female football officials' experiences.
International Journal of Sport Management and Marketing, 16(3-6), 259-279.
Papanikolaou, Z., & DimitriosRousis, M. A. (2020). The effects of pre-competitive anxiety in men’s soccer
referees of Greek super league and football league and in women’s referees of all categories.
International Journal of Physical Education, Sports and Health, 7(3), 112-111.
Passero, J. G., Barreira, J., Junior, A. C., & Galatti, L. R. (2019). Gender (in) equality: a longitudinal analysis
of women's participation in coaching and referee positions in the Brazilian Women’s Basketball
League (2010-2017). Cuadernos de Psicología del Deporte, 19(1), 252-261.
Philippe, F. L., Vallerand, R. J., Andrianarisoa, J., & Brunel, P. (2009). Passion in referees: examining their
affective and cognitive experiences in sport situations. Journal Sport Exercise Psychology, 31(1),
77-96. doi.org/10.1123/jsep.31.1.77
Plummer-D'Amato, P. (2008). Focus group methodology Part 1: Considerations for design. International
Journal of Therapy and Rehabilitation, 15(2), 69-73.
Potrac, P., Hall, E., & Nichol, A. (2022). Why do football referees quit officiating? Insights and implications:
Final report (March 2019). Retrieved 29 mar 2022 from https://uefaacademy.com/wp-
content/uploads/sites/2/2019/07/2019_UEFA-RGP_Final-report_Potrac-Paul.pdf
Praschinger, A., Pomikal, C., & Stieger, S. (2011). May I curse a referee? Swear words and consequences.
Journal Sports Science Medicine, 10(2), 341-345.
Reid, K., & Dallaire, C. (2019). “Because there are so few of us”: The marginalization of female soccer
referees in Ontario, Canada. Women in Sport and Physical Activity Journal, 27(1), 12-20.
Reid, K., & Dallaire, C. (2023). “Because There Are So Few of Us”: The Marginalization of Female Soccer
Referees in Ontario, Canada. Women in Sport and Physical Activity Journal, 27(1), 12-20.
doi.org/10.1123/wspaj.2017-0031.
Ridinger, L. L., Kim, K. R., Warner, S., & Tingle, J. K. (2017). Development of the referee retention scale.
Journal of Sport Management, 31(5), 514-527.
Roberts, & Paula. (1997). Planning and running a focus group. Nurse Researcher, 8, 45-59.
Samuel, R. D., Galily, Y., Guy, O., Sharoni, E., & Tenenbaum, G. (2019). A decision-making simulator for
soccer referees. International Journal of Sports Science & Coaching, 14(4), 480-489.
Schmidt, S. L., Schmidt, G. J., Padilla, C. S., Simões, E. N., Tolentino, J. C., Barroso, P. R., . . . Costa Filho, R.
L. (2019). Decrease in attentional performance after repeated bouts of high intensity exercise in
association-football referees and assistant referees. Frontiers in psychology, 2019. 10: p. 2014.
doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02014.
Silva, J., & Assis, S. (2010). Focus group and content analysis as methodological strategy qualitative
research clinic in developmental disorders. Cad Pós-Grad Dist Desen [Internet]. 2010 [access in
2017 Sep 21]; 10 (1): 146-51. In.
Sim, J., & Snell, J. (1996). Focus groups in physiotherapy evaluation and research. Physiotherapy, 82(3),
189-198.
Stewart, D., Shamdasani, P., & Rook, D. (1990). Focus Groups: Theory and Practice Sage Publications,
Thousand Oaks, CA, US: Sage Publications, Inc. 153-153.
Szymski, D., Opitz, S., Pfeifer, C., Rupp, M., Angele, P., Alt, V., . . . Krutsch, V. (2022). High injury rates and
weak injury prevention strategies in football referees at all levels of play. Scandinavian Journal
of Medicine & Sports, 32(2), 391-401.

33
Tausch, A. P., & Menold, N. (2016). Methodological aspects of focus groups in health research: Results of
qualitative interviews with focus group moderators. Global Qualitative Nursing Research, 3,
doi.org/10.1177/2333393616630466 .
The International Football Association Board. (2022). Laws of the game 21/22. Retrieved 29 mar 2022
from https://downloads.theifab.com/downloads/laws-of-the-game-2021-22?l=en
ÜNGÜR, G. (2021). Investigation of soccer referees’ personality profiles according to their career positions.
Bozok International Journal of Sport Science, 2(1), 135-145.
Valenti, M., Scelles, N., & Morrow, S. (2018). Women’s football studies: An integrative review. Sport,
Business and Management, 8(5), 511-518. doi.org/10.1108/SBM-09-2017-0048.
Van Biemen, T., Koedijker, J., Renden, P. G., & Mann, D. L. (2018). The effect of blurred perceptual training
on the decision making of skilled football referees. Frontiers in Psychology, 9(1803), 1-10.
doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.018031803.
Webb, T., Dicks, M., Thelwell, R., van Der Kamp, J., & Rix-Lievre, G. (2020). An analysis of soccer referee
experiences in France and the Netherlands: Abuse, conflict, and level of support. Sport
Management Review, 23(1), 52-65.
Webb, T., Rayner, M., & Thelwell, R. (2018). An explorative investigation of referee abuse in English rugby
league. Journal of Applied Sport Management, 10(2), 6.
Weston, M. (2015). Match performances of soccer referees: the role of sports science. Movement & Sport
Sciences-Science & Motricité, 87, 113-117.

34