Football Refereeing has been studied by different authors and in different areas. In a research conducted in the Web of Knowledge, Scopus and PsycINFO, limited to the last 20 years, we found 205 articles relating to football refereeing. Physical (78) and technical performance (78) of referees and assistant referees are the most studied subjects. The results of this study suggest the need to broaden the scope of empirical investigations in refereeing while calling attention to the need to produce theoretical refereeing development models that may guide the referees training. In Portugal, we have tried to find a map that leads us to excellence and we have been introducing materials and methodologies in the training context to help the referees achieve high levels of performance in the shortest possible time. Inspired by the work of Mascarenhas, Collins, & Mortimer (2005), Mascarenhas, O'Hare, & Plessner (2006), MacMahon, Helsen, Starkes, & Weston (2007), Myers, Guillén, & Dithurbide (2012), Weston et al., (2012) and Slack, Maynard, Butt, & Olusoga (2013), among many others, we will present examples of how we try to link theory with practice. Specifically, we discuss issues such as: i) the training of referees trainers; ii) the training of referees observers; iii) the stages and processes of mentoring; iv) integrated training programs; v) referees psychological analysis; and vi) other relevant referees development contents.

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football refereeing,training,excellence,mentoring