2026 New Referees 18 & Over
The New Referee Registration and Certification for the 2026 USSF Registration year will open on July 3rd, 2025. Once all requirements are completed, your new US Soccer Referee License will be valid until December 31, 2026 and you WILL be eligible to referee this Fall 2025 Season. To recertify for 2027, referees will need to complete the 2027 recertification, which will open on July 3rd, 2026. Referees will have until the beginning of the 2027 Spring season to get recertified to be eligible to referee the 2027 Spring Season.
7 Easy Steps
1
Please complete this Supplemental Google Doc Form. Once submitted, NCSRA will send you a follow up message to validate your email, as well as provide additional info for your New Referee Journey!
Next, create your Arbiter Sports Account and complete the NCSRA Registration and annual payment. Arbiter is the state-wide assigning system used for all USSF matches here in NC. You will need a valid credit card and your own unique email address.
The 2026 Annual Referee Registration fee is $140.00, which will be charged to the credit card you provide. The NCSRA/Arbiter registration can be accessed directly from this link: 2026 New Referee Registration.
2
Create a free US Soccer Learning Center Account (USSF). Instructions on how to do this can be found from this link: Learning Center Account Set Up Instructions. To access the Learning Center and create your account use this link: Create a Learning Center Account. Please use the same email that you used for your arbiter account as the primary email. You can add a secondary email (parents email) during your account set-up.
3
Complete the US Soccer 1st Time New Referee Course. This course is separated into 6 sections, so you can complete one section at a time. After you complete a section, the status bar will update to reflect that section has been completed. Once you complete all 6 sections, the status bar will reflect 100% completion. This course is run by US Soccer. Any issues with this course please contact them directly at referee@ussoccer.org.
4
Complete the US Soccer online Safesport Training Course, accessed through your US Soccer Learning Center Account. Login to your Learning Center Account and from the landing page, go to the "Safe Soccer" tab (Phase 1 of Safe Soccer) and then select the Safesport Training Course. Once completed, please email the completion certificate to the NCSRA Office at ncsra@ncsoccer.org. (This email address is only a certificate collection email. Any issues, contact NCSRA Administrator Erick Varone). We (NCSRA) will run your required Background Check each year. You DO NOT have to submit a Background Check on the US Soccer Website and pay the additional $, as this is included in your NCSRA registration. This course is also run by US Soccer. Any issues with this course please contact them directly at referee@ussoccer.org.
5
Complete the US Soccer Safe and Healthy Playing Environments Course, accessed through your US Soccer Learning Center Account. Log in to your Learning Center Account and from the landing page, select "Safe Soccer"(Phase 1) and then select the Safe and Healthy Playing Environments Course. Once finished, this will show as completed in your Learning Center Account. You ONLY have to complete Phase 1 in Safe Soccer. You DO NOT have to complete Phase 2 OR Phase 3 in the "Safe Soccer" section. This course is run by US Soccer. Any issues with this course please contact them directly at referee@ussoccer.org.
6
Complete EITHER an in-person on-field training session or an online interactive webinar session via zoom. On-field sessions will be scheduled in all 8 regions across the state before the start of each season, AND WE RECOMMEND ATTENDING AN ON FIELD SESSION IN YOUR AREA IF AVAILABLE. If not available for an in-person session in or around your area, there will be webinar sessions via zoom scheduled each month. All upcoming training sessions will be posted on our website, www.ncsra.org, under the "Referees Tab" labeled "Referee Training Sessions". There is no additional fee to attend either an on-field and/or zoom session, (or both) as they are all included in your registration fee. To be assigned to a training session and receive additional information, please contact NCSRA Administrator Erick Varone.
7
The last requirements to complete your certification are the NCYSA Policies and Procedures Tutorial, (10 minutes or so in length) the 2026 NCSRA New Referee Test (50 questions) and the 2026 NCSRA Tournament Sign Up Instructions. Links to all 3 of those are below. For the New Referee Test, please use the same 1st name, last name and email you used to set-up your arbiter account when registering for the test. 70% is the passing score for the test. If you do not get 70% or higher, please email NCSRA Administrator to have the test reset for you.
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Once these 7 steps are completed YOU MUST contact NCSRA Administrator Erick Varone at michaelsofficial14@gmail.com to confirm your completion and process your new referee certification, as this is a manual process for the NCSRA office. The NCSRA office will then get you in touch with your local referee assignors letting them know you are a new referee in their area. You will also receive information on how to order your new referee uniform from our NCSRA/Capelli online store (or any store that you choose to order from). The NCSRA office will also mail you an initial registration packet containing your 2026 USSF referee badge, (under 18 referees will receive a green referee badge to indicate you are a minor referee) a Velcro backing to attach your badge to your referee jerseys, an NCSRA flipping coin, and an NCSRA warm up tee-shirt. Congratulations on completing your new referee requirements.
Welcome To The North Carolina Soccer Referee Community!