How to obtain copies of USSF post-match assessments?

[Bootsy Collins]

The above -- anyone know how would I go about obtaining copies of assessments?

[Statesman]

Ask your assessor...

[USSF REF]

That depends.

If you were the one being assessed, you will be provided with a copy of it.

Otherwise, you could become a member of the professional referee development team in USSF or you could be a State Director of assessment, or be the assessor.

However, if you are any other person and you want this info -- you can't have it. It's confidential and for the referee and adminitrations eyes only. Of course, you could ask the referee to show it to you, but I think you will find that to be of no use.

[Bootsy Collins]

However, if you are any other person

That would be me.


and you want this info -- you can't have it. It's confidential and for the referee and adminitrations eyes only. Of course, you could ask the referee to show it to you, but I think you will find that to be of no use.
Thanks. Is the USSF a tax-exempt organization under any section of 501 (c)?

[USSF REF]

I don't think assessments fall under the freedom of information act. Also, as far as I know, USSF pays taxes, but I could be wrong about that.

I suppose you could get a court order to release them, but you would probably have to show a legitimate reason. I would guess they are very similar to medical records. They are only seen by the people that NEED to see them, they are no one elses business.

Trust me, if a referee fails an assessment FIFA, the MLS or the USL takes this into consideration. The evaluations impact the referee.

In any case, for what purpose do you want to see someone's assessment?

[USSF REF]

Whats more, when full assessments are done on referees. The referee isn't even provided with the numerical scoring of the assessment, they simply receive a pass, maintain, or fail grade depending upon their numerical performance and the opinion of the asssessor. So even the match referee's aren't privy to the FULL assessment data, just the pass/fail and comments regarding strengths, weaknesses, and a plan of action to correct weak points.

So if refs don't see the full thing, I can't imagine they want the public seeing it too.

[njref]

I don't think assessments fall under the freedom of information act. Also, as far as I know, USSF pays taxes, but I could be wrong about that.

I suppose you could get a court order to release them, but you would probably have to show a legitimate reason. I would guess they are very similar to medical records. They are only seen by the people that NEED to see them, they are no one elses business.

Trust me, if a referee fails an assessment FIFA, the MLS or the USL takes this into consideration. The evaluations impact the referee.

In any case, for what purpose do you want to see someone's assessment?


The Freedom of information Act only applies to Federal governent agencies (which USSF is not) and has exceptions for private information in any event.

I am too lazy to look up whether USSF is a 501-c-3 charitable organization (my guess is that it is) but even if it is, private individuals do not have the right to access its records, other than summary financial reports.

Bottom line, asssessments are private and confidential. If you must see a referee's assessment, your best bet is to break into the assessor's office. :+)

[Bootsy Collins]

I don't think assessments fall under the freedom of information act.

I'm sure they don't, since the FOIA only deals for requests for government records. Tax-exempt non-profits do have public disclosure requirements, but those requirements typically only apply to issues of organizational and financial management, neither of which would likely include USSF referee assessments. And at any rate, if they pay taxes, it's moot. So it's almost certainly a blind alley; but no harm in checking.



I suppose you could get a court order to release them, but you would probably have to show a legitimate reason.

I don't think my interests here would qualify.


Trust me, if a referee fails an assessment FIFA, the MLS or the USL takes this into consideration. The evaluations impact the referee.

In any case, for what purpose do you want to see someone's assessment?
Not "someone's" -- anyone's and everyone's. In a conversation I was having recently, a friend and I were discussing the seemingly broad range of quality of refereeing seen in MLS -- some referees seem much better than others; while referees that have fantastic matches one week can have a howler two weeks later and vice versa, with stronger variation than you'd expect from a good ref having the occasional bad match or a bad ref having the occasional good match. A friend argued that the refereeing standard has basically been constant in the league for a while, at least since Esse Baharmast left the pitch for the office. And that got me wondering about the assessments. Are assessments at MLS matches only rarely negative in tone (which would at least partially explain any lack of evolution in the standard)? Has their been any evolution in the tone of the assessments (e.g. more frequently negative in the past, or more frequently negative now), which would indicate an interesting disconnect between how many fans see the evolution of league refereeing and how the assessors see it? To make it short, I'm not interested in any one referee as much as a more holistic view of how assessors see (and have seen) the state of refereeing at that level.

[billf]

Not "someone's" -- anyone's and everyone's. In a conversation I was having recently, a friend and I were discussing the seemingly broad range of quality of refereeing seen in MLS -- some referees seem much better than others; while referees that have fantastic matches one week can have a howler two weeks later and vice versa, with stronger variation than you'd expect from a good ref having the occasional bad match or a bad ref having the occasional good match. A friend argued that the refereeing standard has basically been constant in the league for a while, at least since Esse Baharmast left the pitch for the office. And that got me wondering about the assessments. Are assessments at MLS matches only rarely negative in tone (which would at least partially explain any lack of evolution in the standard)? Has their been any evolution in the tone of the assessments (e.g. more frequently negative in the past, or more frequently negative now), which would indicate an interesting disconnect between how many fans see the evolution of league refereeing and how the assessors see it? To make it short, I'm not interested in any one referee as much as a more holistic view of how assessors see (and have seen) the state of refereeing at that level.

What you discuss here is the nature of being a referee. Some games go well because you're doing a good job. Some go well despite you. Other's go down hill because either you're having a stinker or because the game is a mess like the Holland-Portugal match at the world cup. A performance from referee to referee and game to game can vary for a million reasons.

That said, the assessments at that level are pretty tough from what I have heard. Referees do fail their assessments and you can get a sense of how well a ref is regarded, in part, by the number of assignments he recieves, the type of games he gets (i.e. is he getting Chivas v. LA or Chicago-DC or a match between teams close in the standings), and the playoff assignments.

The assessments are primarily for the referee's development and I don't think they'd really give you the type of insight you're looking for.

[DadOf6]

Not "someone's" -- anyone's and everyone's. In a conversation I was having recently, a friend and I were discussing the seemingly broad range of quality of refereeing seen in MLS -- some referees seem much better than others; while referees that have fantastic matches one week can have a howler two weeks later and vice versa, with stronger variation than you'd expect from a good ref having the occasional bad match or a bad ref having the occasional good match. A friend argued that the refereeing standard has basically been constant in the league for a while, at least since Esse Baharmast left the pitch for the office. And that got me wondering about the assessments. Are assessments at MLS matches only rarely negative in tone (which would at least partially explain any lack of evolution in the standard)? Has their been any evolution in the tone of the assessments (e.g. more frequently negative in the past, or more frequently negative now), which would indicate an interesting disconnect between how many fans see the evolution of league refereeing and how the assessors see it? To make it short, I'm not interested in any one referee as much as a more holistic view of how assessors see (and have seen) the state of refereeing at that level.

You may want to browse the public area of ussoccer-data, especially the conference call summaries.

[USSF REF]

You may want to browse the public area of ussoccer-data, especially the conference call summaries.

Thats a fantastic point. There is a lot of stuff mentioned that the league wants to change or USSF wants to change, praise or reinforce. That may give you an idea on negative or positive trends picked up by assessors.

[Claymore]

I understand you're upset with Abby, but...let it go. :D ;)