Quote:
Originally posted by Green
Money is NOT the reason most officials officiate, itÂ’s the love of the sport and being involved with a game they/we can no longer play. When I started officiating football 35 years ago, the fee for a varsity game was $20 and now itÂ’s $56 which will increase to $59 next year. I drive 35 miles one way (my choice, not complaining with no travel fee) to most game sites. The cost of living in California (Silicon Valley) is high, where home values are in the area of $500k plus.
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I agree that money should not be the main reason people officiate or not, but it is a big reason that can keep people out of it. It is expensive to get started and to maintain their ability to officiate. Gas prices are going up. Schools or leagues do not like to pay when we officiate, it can make it difficult to convince younger officials to maintain their schedules when it is getting harder and harder to get paid. For us that are already involved it might not be a problem. For those that have not started, it can be a really big problem.
Peace