Home »
Misc »
How much do college basketball referees make
How much do college basketball referees make
How Much Do NCAA Referees Make? (Quick Answer)
Referees are a huge part of sports. While their main objective is to regulate the game, the ref’s goal is to go relatively unnoticed in their efforts to control the pace and rules of the game. We all know, however, that sometimes they have to make tough calls that could swing the game one way or the other.
For all of that responsibility, including staying in shape in order to keep up with these world-class athletes, they must be compensated pretty nicely right?
An NCAA basketball referee is compensated pretty nicely for their efforts, although the pay range for every working official varies between $10,000 to over $200,000 per season.
Why are the salaries so different, and what does their schedule look like to get such a hefty salary? We will cover all of that and more below.
Quick Navigation
Breaking Down Referee Schedules
An interesting aside on the referee lifestyle is that most of them have a full-time job on top of their officiating gigs.![]()
In a world where sports is everything, it is worthy of reminding yourself that these guys (and gals) usually come from another job to make some of the most crucial calls during a college basketball season.
Sports Illustrated did a piece on legendary referee John Higgins and his enormous workload. At one point during the season, Higgins traveled 4,800 miles in three days while reffing three different games! In the piece, Higgins called himself a “professional traveler” and joked that the games he refs was the easy part of his job. Oh yeah, Higgins owns and operates two businesses on top of reffing.
In a roughly 5-month NCAA basketball season, most refs officiate between 70-100 games. That breaks down into up to 20 games per month! Referees make their own schedules meaning they can officiate as many (to an extent) or as few contests that they want. The only catch is that if you turn games down, you may get called less to officiate.
This makes referees independent contractors which means no benefits from the NCAA.
If they hurt themselves or have to take time off from the sport, they are not compensated in any way. No pensions and definitely no health coverage if they go down on the job. Most referees use their full-time jobs as methods of retirement and health insurance and roll the dice out on the court.
Referee Pay Breakdown
While the top-tier refs make up to $2,000 for a regular-season game, their counterparts in the smaller conferences aren’t so lucky. The average salary for NCAA refs across the board is only $33,000, before taxes. It seems like a lot of hassle for that amount of money, but many in the business simply love it enough to make the sacrifices.
Referees in a small conference can still make up to $50,000 doing a better side gig than washing cars or delivering pizzas. Also, just because they aren’t playing or coaching, being assigned to a big game is a rush for the officials too.
Power conference refs – those in the ACC, Big East, SEC, Big 12, Pac 12, and Big 10 – can pull in up to $2,000 per game and free travel and hotel expenses.
Their jobs are higher profile which leads to more scrutiny on the media and fans’ parts, but big time refs can’t complain about the pay.
If you are lucky enough to be selected to ref in the first three rounds of the NCAA tournament, you will get around $1,000 per game. NCAA Regional games will get you $1,400 a game and Final Four contests are worth about $2,000.
How Much Do Other Refs Make?
NCAA Football
NCAA basketball is the second most popular college sport behind football, so you might be wondering how much their refs make. It is no secret the millions of dollars college football brings in each year, so even though their season is one third of an NCAA basketball season, the referees still do very well.
The averages are fairly similar, albeit the college football officials workload is significantly less. College football refs make between $11,000 and $300,000 per year. Newer officials in the power conferences can take home around $800 per game. Their travel and expenses are usually covered as well.
NBA Referees
The life of an NBA ref is much different than a college hoops official.
Reffing at the professional level is a full-time seven-month out of the year job. With 82-game seasons for all 30 NBA teams, not including preseason and the playoffs, an NBA referee could be on the road up to 25 days a month. You may be thinking, “I’ll take a seven month a year job!” The NBA schedule, however, is no joke and can take a huge toll on a referee’s body.
Luckily they are compensated nicely.
An entry-level NBA official makes $600 per game and can bring home around $250,000 a year. Once you move up, your pay increases. Senior officials can make up to a half-million dollars a year! You also get ranking bonuses as a ref, based on your performances throughout the year. Essentially, if you are good at your job, you get paid more on top of your per-game salary. Read more from our NBA refs salary article.
Also Read: How to Become an NBA Referee in 9 Steps
Below are some other referee salary numbers in case you are curious:
- Major League Baseball umpires: Approximately $300,000/year
- NFL referees: Approximately $205,000/year
- NHL referees: Approximately $275,000/year
Final Thoughts
While being a referee has plenty of drawbacks – the scrutiny and harassment you can get on a nightly basis jumps out first – you are being compensated quite nicely for your troubles.
By design, referees are behind the scenes as much as possible. It makes what they do a mystery, especially in NCAA basketball. They seem to just show up out of nowhere, officiate the game, and then disappear as fast as they came. No publicity, no pre and post-game press conferences. Nothing. Hopefully you learn a bit more about their schedules and salary from this piece.
Have you ever known a big-time college or professional referee? What did they have to say about their schedules and pay? Let us know in the comments section below!
How Much Do NBA Refs Make? – Basketball Officials' Salaries
NBA referees are arguably the best officials in the world, but their pay pales in comparison to that of top-flight pro players.
Where elite NBA players can make up to $50 million annually, pro basketball officials are estimated to earn between $200,000-550,000 per year, plus travel reimbursements and a courtside seat for games.
But getting to the NBA is hard as there are thousands of basketball referees across North America and across the planet, so the chances of ever reaching the top end of the salary bracket are slim.
From the big leagues to lower levels, here’s a breakdown of how basketball officials are compensated.
The Big Leagues There are about 80 on-court officials in the NBA, and as many as three work each of the 1,230 regular-season games and playoffs.
The lead official is the crew chief, and he or she is joined by two umpires that keep control of the game.
Veteran NBA crew chiefs make upwards of $550,000 per year — paid out to about $7,000 per game over about 80 games per regular season.
The best of the best earn playoff assignments, which could net them an additional $9,000 per game, and if they are chosen for NBA Finals games that pay could jump by threefolds.
Less experienced NBA umpires can still make six figures but more like $3,000 per game.
These officials still receive first-class travel arrangements, hotel reimbursements and per diem.
Plus they still get to be on the floor for NBA games.
Officials have been covered by a union, the NBA Referees Association (NBRA), since 1973.
In 2017, the union expanded to cover officials of the NBA G League and WNBA.
WNBA officials make about $500 per game and nearly $200,000 per season. G League officials make less than that.
The NBA also relies on replay, which means it needs officials at its video operations room in Secaucus, New Jersey each night.
Those operators make about $21 per hour, according to Glassdoor.
College The NBA is the majors, but where do the pros pull their talent from?
College, of course.
Officials of college games are not covered by unions but still can make more than six figures — around $2,500 per game in major conferences like the Big East, Big Ten or Big XII — according to Sapling.
Though college basketball plays far fewer games than the pros do, which means the earning potential is less in college even though the per-game cost can be more.
The median income for a college basketball official is about $36,000, with food and travel expenses reimbursed, which is a nice income supplement for those who officiate college or professional football games in the fall — former NFL referee and current CBS commentator Gene Steratore and current NFL official Bill Vinovich each have officiated college basketball games during their offseason.
Those who are chosen to officiate NCAA Tournament games can make $1,000 per game more, or $2,000 per game if they reach the Final Four.
Lower Levels There are thousands of girls’ and boys’ basketball games played every day, including high school, AAU, youth and even adult men’s leagues. These games need officials too as tempers flare up and the sport doesn’t police itself.
For high school games the pay is less, but still can be lucrative, particularly as a side job on nights and weekends.
Officials for AAU games can make $70 apiece.
High-end high school refs can make between $40-$60 per game, according to Dunkorthree.com, and on weekends could officiate two or more games per day
Youth referees can make a little less than high-school refs, roughly $30 per game, but again can work multiple games per day to boost their earnings.
So now you know how much basketball officials make, why not find out how much NHL referees make too?
Share this:
90,000 how much do these judges get? - Article
Article
upper-limit-leaders' >
Major League Baseball umpires have been in the news constantly after a series of questionable calls throughout the postseason. While the refereeing teams have gotten bigger in the postseason, which includes two additional AMPs in the outfield, it seems that the excessive number of calls has gone wrong.
All of these oversights have sparked a renewed debate about whether baseball should use instant replay.
How can AMPs suppress so many calls that are so obvious when viewed in slow motion? Aren't these guys trained professionals? Are they richly rewarded? What do we really know about men in blue anyway? After an accidental refereeing in the NFL last fall, we dug into the officials of the four major sports. Here's what we found:
They make good money
An NFL referee can make between $25,000 and $70,000 a season, although since most games are played on Sundays, he may also have other jobs during the week. (We'll get back to them in a minute.) However, this money comes with obligations. In addition to passing calls to teams and fans, the referee is also the head of the team or head of the seven-member referee team, which also includes the referee, field judge, back judge, linesman, side. judge and chief judge.
Officials in other sports collect more loot but have a much more grueling schedule...
when was the first CD released?
'¢ Baseball.
According to MLB.com, Major League Baseball umpires make about $120,000 when they start playing in the big leagues, and senior games can earn over $300,000. Between spring training, the 162-game schedule, and the postseason, the job of an MLB head coach takes up most of the year. However, they are well taken care of on the road. Each bandit gets $340 per diem for room and board, and when they fly it's always first class. Postseason work could bring in an extra $20,000 plus expenses. They also receive four weeks of paid leave during the regular season. These guys hold onto their jobs too; on average, only one opening for a new major league referee opens each season.
Basketball. NBA referees are also well paid. They earn between $100,000 and $300,000 in an 82-game season. There are also some nice additional benefits; When referee Tim Donaghy admitted to helping players fix games, the NBA asked him to pay back other perks he received during his 13-year career, including $750 worth of running shoes and $4,500 worth of free tickets.
Hockey. If you can skate and survive the occasional lockout, an NHL referee is unlikely to be a bad job. Referees earn between $110,000 and $255,000, while linesmen earn between $72,000 and $162,000. (Plus free trips to Columbus and Raleigh!)
'¢ Women's basketball. Not all referees receive such a generous reward. As you might guess, judges in less popular sports receive a smaller salary. According to a 2007 article on the sports website scout.com, WNBA referees earn between $600 and $800 per game during a 32-game league season. That's a minimum of $19,000 a year for some pretty hard work. As noted in the same article, women's hoop umpires are better off officiating a college game at a major conference for $1,200 apiece than working on WNBA tilt.
NFL referees have a day job
Since NFL referees only work one day a week, can they have a "real" ?? jobs to supplement what they earn on any given Sunday. Some of them have really interesting jobs.
'¢ Mike Carey , my personal favorite, entrepreneur and inventor who holds eight patents for winter sportswear. He founded and co-owns the ski clothing company Seirus Innovation.
'¢ Walt Coleman (pictured) is infamous in Auckland for being the referee in the 'tactic rules game', ?? but he is also a fifth generation dairy farmer who once served as president of the Arkansas Dairy Association.
'¢ Walter Anderson became a league official in 1996 and was promoted to referee in 2003. Before becoming a referee, he was better known as Dr. Walt Anderson, a dentist.
'¢ Tony Corrente is probably used to dealing with unruly crowds of guys from his day job as a high school social studies teacher.
Raiders of the Lost Ark small change
'¢ If Jeff Triplett It seems hard to scare on the field, probably because he has seen worse. He was a colonel in the Army Reserve during the Gulf War, where he was awarded a bronze star.
'¢ Bill Leavey just as tough; For 27 years he worked as a policeman and firefighter in San Jose.
'¢ Ron Winter not only is he a referee, he is also an assistant professor of physics. Sciences at Western Michigan University. ed. department.
'¢ Gene Sterator gotta love the way it looks in stripes. In addition to being an NFL umpire, he manages NCAA hoop games and has completed March Madness assignments in previous seasons.
And when Ed Hochuli isn't training or serving the game, you can find him in the courtroom. He is an attorney with the Arizona firm of Jones, Skelton & Hochuli, which has over 80 attorneys.
It's a long way to the top
How to become a referee? Most of these guys have humble beginnings as officials. Carey began managing Pop Warner games in 1972 and gradually worked his way up the college ranks. He eventually became an NFL touchline judge in 1990 and was promoted to NFL referee, the pinnacle of football refereeing, in 1995.
Hochuli began his career as a judge for Pop Warner in the early 1970s; he was a law student who needed a little extra pocket money. He then slowly worked his way through high school, junior college, and a small convention ball before landing a gig at the Pac-10. He eventually made it to the NFL at 1990 year. It's a slow build, but if you last long enough and have some natural talent, you can pat it on the head to signal the wrong receiver.
Still not sure if this is a tough ride? Read this article that former baseball commissioner Fay Vincent wrote for The New York Times last weekend. He cites the measly salaries of minor league mats: just $9,500 for a five-month season for junior referees and just $20,000 a season for guys who have risen to the Triple A level.0003
Ethan Trex is one of the contributors to Straight Cash, Homey, the internet's undisputed premier source for photos of people wearing Ryan Leaf T-shirts.
why the Hill Street blues was canceled
Sports professions.
PartⅠ-Referee Edition II "Basketball referee
Due to the rapid development of basketball, the position of an arbitrator in this game, and especially a qualified master of his craft, is always in demand. If you want to know more about the profession, read the article!
A little introduction
Knowing how to play basketball is good. But in order to understand and understand all the nuances of the game, you need to go through the school of a basketball referee. Only there you can study, and in the future, correctly perceive the gestures of the referee, as well as look at the game with their independent eyes. At the same time, basketball will cease to be a game of a beloved and someone else's team, words of praise for the work done will be replaced by outbursts of anger and booing of fans, before your eyes there will be not a ring into which you need to throw the ball, but a set of basketball laws, from where one by one you need to draw out the appropriate rule for a particular situations on the floor.
And for the automaticity of this process, years of practice and constant training are required.
How to get a position as an arbitrator?
At the moment there are many basketball referee schools, the doors of which are open to everyone and fans of this sport. First of all, this is due to the lack of personnel in the globally growing game. It is best to start your career with 15-16 years old . You can later, but then it will be difficult to gain the necessary experience. FIBA has established a limit for qualifying as an international referee under 35 years of age. Although the age of some basketball referees exceeds 50 However, it is better to start early for a successful career.
In order to take part in refereeing city and regional championships, you need to have a referee license. It is issued for one year and after successfully passing the basketball rules test and the Metronome general physical fitness test.
How does a career start?
Talented personnel in basketball are required everywhere and there are practically no problems with employment.
But you will have to develop your abilities first from judging children's, youth, and then adult city competitions. With an increase in the amount of accumulated experience, the council of the regional federation on a competitive basis can recommend for the championships of the regional level. Aphorism "hard to learn, easy to fight" applies to a basketball referee as it is. After all, the weaker the level of the game, the more difficult it is to judge. It's all about preparation - a less technically savvy athlete allows more marriage - hence there are more violations. Only daily work on yourself: studying the rules, consulting and discussing controversial and interesting points in the game with other referees, can give you a chance to get into such leagues as VTB and FIBA . There is a lot of methodological material on the Internet for this, various video lessons, recordings from referee seminars.
Basketball referee salary!
Hmm... If we take the basketball federations of Ukraine and Russia, then this issue is not so simple.
The bottom line is that the referee's salary should be paid by the state association, but in fact the money comes to him from the clubs participating in the championship. In this regard, the arbitrators have no social. packages and pension, as such. And the fees themselves remain in the shadows. Hence the question: how honest are the referees, whose salary depends on the teams?
Salary of the chief referee of the Ukrainian Super League - 800 dollars per match.
The salary of the chief referee of the European League - 500 dollars per match.
In NBA everything is much simpler, more transparent, and the amounts are more impressive:
• the contract of the novice referee is 200 thousand dollars per year;
• The contract of senior arbitrators with experience reaches 550 thousand dollars per year.
Per game playoff referee in NBA can receive from 4,500 to 25,000 dollars, it all depends on the stage of the match in the tournament - from the first to the final.
The nuances of this profession
If you have reached the level of a professional and refereeing has ceased to be a hobby, then you probably already know how basketball referees live. And if only at the beginning of your career path, then this spoiler is for you.
Referees spend most of their lives away from home. About 3.5 weeks a month they take trips from city to city, from hall to hall. During this time, they manage to serve from 12 to 15 basketball games. It's also interesting to know that referees rarely sleep at night. After the game, they sort out mistakes and unclear situations, and many communicate with other referees, discussing each other's matches. Referees sleep more during the daytime and get up a couple of hours before the game. A true professional refereeing a match always struggles with doubts about the correctness of his refereeing. And only after reviewing the game, drawing conclusions and sorting out the mistakes, he can sleep peacefully. You can't always be right, but you can strive for it!
Basketball referee - a conductor with a cool head
Why did I choose this title for the article? The answer is simple.
