Why Aren't AFL Umpires Full-Time?

[Damon_3388]

This question isn't prompted by any current topic or "issue of the week", just something I'm wondering.

Surely in the current professional era, it makes sense for the umpires to be full-time, like players, coaches, etc. It would allow them greater time to work on improving their craft, their understanding of the rules and latest interpretations, tendencies of players and trends in the game, fitness, organisation and positioning, etc. Would also provide greater job security

So, why is umpiring at AFL level not a full-time gig?

 

[Mad_Hatter]

Why aren't they?
Because the AFL is still an amateurish backwater competition too busy with self interest and agendas instead of actually improving the game.
Umpires should have been full time 20 years ago.

 

[Boston tiger]

What would they do all day ?

 

[master bate]

Because it would drastically limit the number of people willing to become AFL umpires if it became a full time career that required them to sacrifice other ongoing careers.

At the moment they can work other jobs and build up their non umpiring careers - at whichever pace they choose - whilst progressing through the umpiring ranks. As they make the AFL umpiring ranks it becomes a well paid 2nd job that requires a heavy but not impossible time commitment, similar to a lot of semi-professional athletes like Olympians.

Make it full time and you'll get state league umpires starting to progress to the top ranks in their mid to late 20's when they also are likely to have to start making stronger career choices and that becomes a difficult decision.

What will you pay umpires? 70k? 100k? And on what kind of contract? 1 year? 2 years? 5 years? Guys might choose that over careers when they are 25 but by the time they've done 100 AFL games and are really set for 10 years of prime umpiring at age 30 they'll probably think they need to go back to their business career and start establishing themselves before they become a 40 year old umpire earning 80k a year on year to year deals and about to retire from that profession.

I'm not opposed to making a number of full time slots. Maybe up to 12. You can give 4 umpires a year 3 year deals. Rotating 4 jobs every year allows the best 12 get some job security. But I'd still like to a large part of the elite umpiring group part time so the lawyers, finance guys, IT workers, passionate teachers etc etc can stay in their jobs and keep umpiring.

 

[telsor]

Because they don't want to be and there would be little benefit in them being so.

Most umps have professional careers, which they aren't going to put on hold for a 'career' as an umpire. So by forcing them to be full time, you'd either need to throw a LOT of money at them, or most would walk away.

The pool of potential umps isn't huge, so making the job even less attractive would do a hell of a lot more damage to the overall qualify than the extra hours doing whatever would help.

What do you think the umps would actually do with those extra hours? Watching 20-30 hours of videos every week for 6 months is more likely to induce sleep than improve standards....and god knows what you'd have them do during the off season.

Perhaps they should study the rules more...Because long debates over the implications of the comma in rule 43, subsection 12 is what the game is all about.

 

[Tulip]

What would they do all day ?

Send them to AFL and state level training? Create an elite umpiring pathway and let the current lot do some educating?

 

[telsor]

Let's see...we have 3 umpires/game (assuming we're only talking field umps), and you need some backups, so we're talking over 40 umpires, probably closer to 50.

Full time job offer sufficient to tempt them away from long term careers as accountants, teachers, lawyers, etc....probably needs to be at least $200K/year for 4-5 years.

200K * 40 umps = $8M/year...Add in taxes and costs, along with the additional support staff and you're probably looking $20M/year and that's the bare minimum....Just for the field umps.

 

[Damon_3388]

Because it would drastically limit the number of people willing to become AFL umpires if it became a full time career that required them to sacrifice other ongoing careers.

I'd see far more incentive for people to get into it (both young people and ex-players) if you could make a full-time living or career out of it.

Let's see...we have 3 umpires/game (assuming we're only talking field umps), and you need some backups, so we're talking over 40 umpires, probably closer to 50.

Full time job offer sufficient to tempt them away from long term careers as accountants, teachers, lawyers, etc....probably needs to be at least $200K/year for 4-5 years.

200K * 40 umps = $8M/year...Add in taxes and costs, along with the additional support staff and you're probably looking $20M/year and that's the bare minimum....Just for the field umps.

Well what are they getting paid now?

I doubt every umpire is on $100K+ outside of footy, too.

Perhaps the lifestyle and actual work they're doing would also be a consideration too. It's not always a salary vs. salary consideration.

 

[telsor]

I'd see far more incentive for people to get into it (both young people and ex-players) if you could make a full-time living or career out of it.



Well what are they getting paid now?

I doubt every umpire is on $100K+ outside of footy, too.

Perhaps the lifestyle and actual work they're doing would also be a consideration too. It's not always a salary vs. salary consideration.

I'm sure they're not, but if you're going to leave your job and put you career on hold (if you can even get back into it at all...) for a short term gig that will be lucky to last 10 years, then you're going to want to make sure you're getting paid a hell of a lot more than you're on now.

I kinda doubt looking for a job as an accountant or IT guy in your late 30s with the last 10-15 years of your resume saying "AFL umpire" would get you the job all too often.

 

[Dirty Bird]

It’d do more harm than good.
State leagues might win out and get an upgrade of umpires. But the afl will lose too many

Answer me this. Why put your profession on hold for an undetermined amount of time while gaining experience in a role which won’t have a huge benefit in most career.s

There’s a shit load of teachers, a few personal trainers, a lot of managers (including a Bank manager), a few accountants, even 2 engineers who are field umpires.

You think engineers will decide to go to full time field umpiring?
Is it secure? There’s 3 umpires who did 1 game in 2014, never again. 2 games from 2003-05, one who’s done 20 games over the last 5 years.

The security isn’t there, so many potential umpires will happily top out at state level and use it as a second form of income.

It was only in the last deal the nfl put together 2 or 3 teams of full time officials, they have 18 or 19 squads of 7. So what’s that, 20 out of 140 officials are full time?

At the end of the day. The problem isn’t the umpires*, it’s the idiots telling them what the current interpretations are and what the rule of the week is.

*unless you’re Troy pannell.

 

[Xtreme]

What would they do all day ?

Learn how to bounce the ball for a start

 

[Lavender Bushranger]

This question isn't prompted by any current topic or "issue of the week", just something I'm wondering.

Surely in the current professional era, it makes sense for the umpires to be full-time, like players, coaches, etc. It would allow them greater time to work on improving their craft, their understanding of the rules and latest interpretations, tendencies of players and trends in the game, fitness, organisation and positioning, etc. Would also provide greater job security

So, why is umpiring at AFL level not a full-time gig?

Doesn't matter.

They're already pretty good - it would just mean they'd get awesome at officiating shit rules that other dickheads dream up.

 

[Kram]

Why aren't they?
Because the AFL is still an amateurish backwater competition too busy with self interest and agendas instead of actually improving the game.
Umpires should have been full time 20 years ago.

Pretty they aren't full time in the NFL.

 

[Frank Gallagher]

Considering most people think they'd do a better job without any training i don't see the point, should boundary and goal umpires become full time as well? Ludicrous idea.

 

[Demonic Ascent]

So, why is umpiring at AFL level not a full-time gig?

Because the AFL is still an extremely amateur run league.

 

[Demonic Ascent]

What would they do all day ?

Review tape. Focus on specific players and the way they attempt to circumvent the rules. Review their decisions, application of interpretation and ways to better umpire the game so it flows better. Heaps of stuff they could be doing.

 

[Seedsfan]

Why aren't they?
Because the AFL is still an amateurish backwater competition too busy with self interest and agendas instead of actually improving the game.
Umpires should have been full time 20 years ago.

Because umpires are money hungry field umpires already get 125k a year but want more to go full time

 

[omit]

It's tradition. They've never been professional. You can't just go ahead and change a tradition of the game on a whim.

 

[ItsAllAboutMe]

Because they dont want to be and need to establish careers for life after football.. Unlike AFL players who when de-listed can walk to any suburban or local club and get a cushy job where their lack of experience and education doesn't seem to matter because they can run around for a local team kicking goals... This wont happen to ex umpires... Most umpires get onto AFL lists at around 25yo.. we would then expect them to give up careers and lets say they are on the list for 10 years and then get delisted.. They walk out as 35yo with no real life experience and have to find a job. They will also struggle to get mortgages etc on fixed term contracts with no guarantee of income unless they are then signed to say 5year deals..

 

[Mad_Hatter]

Because umpires are money hungry field umpires already get 125k a year but want more to go full time

If they are on 125k then that's full time money anyway, just greedy if they do that AND keep a separate full time job.

 

[bkozican]

Full time umps? Might give them time to run some drills and experience full contact at full speed and get an understanding of how accidents happen, how players are made to make a split second decision in the heat of battle

 

[Wojcinski]

Even if not full time they still earn enough that they could just umpire and do nothing else if they wanted. What would making them full time achieve?

According to this article: https://www.theage.com.au/sport/afl/pay-rise-for-afl-umpires-20121207-2b0qg.html

• Field Umpires - $150,000
• Goal Umpires - $60,000
• Boundary Umpires - $60,000
  
  
  

 

[Oscarman]

Pretty they aren't full time in the NFL.

NFL are starting to go down the full-time path, but it's a bit difficult as the season goes less than half the year, and many of them make enough in their full-time jobs to not want it.

 

[Seeds]

This question isn't prompted by any current topic or "issue of the week", just something I'm wondering.

Surely in the current professional era, it makes sense for the umpires to be full-time, like players, coaches, etc. It would allow them greater time to work on improving their craft, their understanding of the rules and latest interpretations, tendencies of players and trends in the game, fitness, organisation and positioning, etc. Would also provide greater job security

So, why is umpiring at AFL level not a full-time gig?

what exactly so you want them to do for the middle 5 days a week? And what do you expect them to do career wise when they are in their mid thirties?

 

[Seeds]

Even if not full time they still earn enough that they could just umpire and do nothing else if they wanted. What would making them full time achieve?

According to this article: https://www.theage.com.au/sport/afl/pay-rise-for-afl-umpires-20121207-2b0qg.html

• Field Umpires - $150,000
• Goal Umpires - $60,000
• Boundary Umpires - $60,000
  
  

Thats not enough to justify a career which ends in your thirties.