What are the positions and duties of soccer officials?

Answer 1

There is one referee in any soccer game played under the IFAB Laws of the Game, the rules the world plays by. The referee keeps the sole official record of time, score, and sanctions for misconduct. He is the final arbiter of all points association with the game at-hand, and his authority begins the moment he arrives at the field until he leaves, including periods before and after the match itself.

There are also two assistant referees (ARs) wielding flags and running along the touch lines to watch for offside infractions and assist calling out of bounds and nearby fouls. The ARs do not have the power to stop play directly; their role is to assist and advise the referee. In practice, however, the referee will almost always echo the decision of an AR, unless he has seen something that causes him to decide otherwise.

In professional matches, there is also a fourth official (4O, or 4th) posted between the benches to assist with substitutions and other duties the referee might assign, including taking over control of the match if the referee becomes incapacitated or otherwise unable to fulfill his duties. In some matches, there are also reserve assistant referees, who are on-hand to replace ARs if they are unable to perform their duties, but otherwise do not participate in the match.

There is also an experiment authorized in very few areas to use two additional assistant referees (AARs) posted near the goals to assist with goal-line decisions and watch a reverse angle for fouls in the penalty area. This is an experiment and not part of the Laws of the Game, and so you should not expect to see them. By most accounts, the addition of AARs has produced only marginally positive results, and so their future in soccer is uncertain.

You can expect to see one referee in youth games (and some adult amateur games) that do not apply the Offside law or are considered not important enough to pay for three officials. You can expect to see three match officials (one referee and two assistants) in most games played under the Laws of the Game. You will see four officials (R, AR, AR, 4O) in most professional matches, and six officials (R, AR, AR, 4O, AAR, AAR) in a few matches played under the auspices of the FIFA experiment.