Essex referees are getting ready to officiate in affiliated football matches, with re-registration now open for the 2021/22 season via our website.

Referees are able to complete their annual re-registration online via The FA’s Whole Game System (WGS), which is much simpler than in previous seasons, and it cuts down on unnecessary paperwork and administration. Officials can login with an E-Mail address and password.

Annual registration with a referee’s parent County FA is a requirement in order to be appointed to games by leagues and other competitions, including friendlies as competitions are forbidden from appointing unregistered referees to games under any circumstances.

Referees who will be officiating under 18s matches or below must have an in-date FA DBS (Disclosure & Barring Service) before registering each season, and all referees require an in-date FA Safeguarding Children Certificate. These both last for three and two years from the date of issue respectively.

On the FA Referees Course, individuals will have already completed an FA Safeguarding Children Certificate. Support is available from the Essex County FA Referees Team for anyone who needs to renew or complete an FA DBS.

To find out more about re-registering as a referee for 2021/22, or if you’d like to become a new match official, browse the 'Referees' menu above. Information is also shared by @EssexCountyFA and @EssexReferees on Twitter, and by searching for ‘EssexFootball’ on Facebook. Online learning and development can also be found on our YouTube channel.