TEAMS

1. Preseason emails will be sent to teams several weeks before schedules are due. Your conference or league are expected to do similarly.
Please pay attention. If you do not receive an email from the RSV Team Liaison, please contact the Liaison HERE.

2. Match requests are due by August 1 for the Fall and February 1 for the Spring. We understand that planning can be challenging, but this is essential to being able to secure enough referees to cover assignments. If you submit a request past these dates, your entry will be marked late and subsequently be de-prioritized. Match requests submitted after the due dates will be subject to escalating additional fees. Postseason matches/playoffs that are out of the home teams’ control are exempt.

3. Team contact information must be updated HERE. We will use the team email that was used to submit match requests and any contact information uploaded above to contact teams, as necessary. Failure to update team contact information may incur additional fees or result in communication difficulties for which RSV does not accept any responsibility.

4. Teams are responsible for contacting their referee by Wednesday night before the match, using the contact information found HERE. If there is a communication issue, please let the Scheduler know at THIS EMAIL ADDRESS. Failure to communicate by Wednesday night may result in referee re-assignment and/or additional fees.

5. Canceling a match without informing the referee will result in the assessment of the full match and mileage fees.

6. TEAMS MAY NOT CONTACT REFEREES FOR UNASSIGNED MATCHES. Teams may not contact referees directly to ask them to referee matches that have not been assigned by the RSV. If the RSV Scheduler has communicated that the society cannot provide a referee for a specific match, a team could contact nearby societies (Potomac RRS, SERRS) to see if they have availability. Failing that, please reschedule the match. The RSV has a policy that we will not provide referees for certain matches (prom dress, most alumni games) because of safety concerns; please do not ask referees to participate in anything unsafe. Teams may ask if the RSV has a referee in the area who would be willing to attend team practices and referee scrimmages.

COACHES AND TEAM ADMINISTRATORS

1. Referee abuse is subject to a zero-tolerance policy. Investigations of referee abuse will be conducted by the RSV Executive Board and may be referred to the appropriate competition’s organization. Referee abuse is any behavior by a coach, team, player, team staff, or team administrator which makes a referee reasonably feel disrespected, devalued, intimidated, unsafe, uncomfortable, or otherwise unable to referee the match in a safe, enjoyable manner. Fan behavior is subject to the referee abuse policy if there is no separation between fans and the pitch (i.e., stands, ropes, or other enforced physical barriers). Referee abuse can occur before, during, or after the match.

Please be aware that well-meant referee “coaching” can constitute referee abuse if it is delivered immediately before, during, or after a match, in an emotionally elevated manner, or otherwise makes the referee feel disrespected, devalued, intimidated, unsafe, uncomfortable, or otherwise unable to enjoy the refereeing experience.

2. Referees do not handle competitions matters. Please refer all concerns regarding rosters, match scheduling, or other matters directly relating to competitions to the appropriate competitions governing body.

3. Communication is critical. If administration turnover is an issue, please proactively monitor team communication and be engaged so new admins understand the procedure.

WHEN YOU SUBMIT A MATCH REQUEST

The chart below shows the matrix the Scheduler uses to assign referees to your match. Feel free to find ways to improve the likelihood that the RSV will be able to provide a referee for you.