Raymundo Frasquillo File Photo/Gila Herald: Working as a high school official can be a lonely business. The verbal abuse by fans is one reason there is a shortage in Arizona and why the AIA has asked football teams to play at least one Thursday night game.
By David Rodish/Cronkite News
PHOENIX – Anne Montgomery started her officiating journey over 40 years ago. She officiated football, hockey, and baseball among other sports before retiring in 2019.
Sustaining a four-decade-spanning career is rare. To do it as a woman is even rarer. The Arizona Interscholastic Association said most officials quit around the three-year mark, and the most common answer to why is verbal abuse from fans and parents. One of the problems isn’t that it’s happening – it’s getting worse.
The AIA has had to ask high schools to schedule one varsity football game on a Thursday to help alleviate the number of games that are played on Fridays. This is because of the shortage of officials as more quit or retire to avoid verbal abuse from fans, coaches, or players.
“The number one concern is abuse, fan abuse in particular,” AIA director of athletics and officials Tyler Cerimeli said. “It’s very difficult to get people to come out and work when half the people there aren’t going to like you very much.”
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