How far does an official run/walk during a typical game?

[CMHCoachNRef]

Originally Posted by Nevadaref

Nice calculation work. Those numbers seem quite reasonable to me, maybe even a little low for soccer. I typically average 5-7 miles for a HS varsity soccer game in my area, and on the 2OT State Final it was over 10.

There is no doubt that soccer refs run far more than basketball. People claiming that basketball officials do five miles a game is laughable to me.

Nevada,
To put things into perspective, if a one of us basketball officials were running CONSTANTLY during the 32 minutes, covering five miles would require a slightly more than 6 minute mile pace.....

I don't know many basketball officials capable of ONE 6 minute mile, much less five in a row. Of course, there is some ground that gets covered while the clock is not moving -- reporting fouls, getting teams out of time outs, getting ready for inbounds plays, etc. But five miles is probably a bit of a stretch.

For soccer, the center referee is in almost constant motion for 80 (NFHS) or 90 (USYSA U-17/U-18). ARs can be sprinting up and down the line all match long -- especially if a team is running an offside trap.