Umpires, referees, and other sports officials
SOC Code: 27-2023
Umpires, referees, and other sports officials carries a 42% AI exposure score (High automation risk), with a median annual wage of $38,820 and +5.7% projected employment growth from 2024 to 2034 (BLS), affecting approximately 19,300 workers. Full task breakdown, skills, and employer data are below.
Proportion of tasks susceptible to AI automation (O*NET analysis)
At 42% AI exposure, Umpires, referees, and other sports officials sits 5 points above the 37.2% average across 832 U.S. occupations - more exposed than 75% of them. Most of its core tasks still require human judgment.
Career outlook score
40/100
Umpires, referees, and other sports officials, weighted across 3 of 3 tracked dimensions
A weighted composite of median wage, projected growth, and AI-automation security (inverted exposure), each benchmarked against every other tracked occupation. It describes this occupation's standing across those three dimensions, not a guarantee of future outcomes.
- Median wage F $38,820
Annual median wage, percentile rank vs all tracked occupations
- Projected growth A- +5.7%
Projected employment change, 2024-2034, BLS Employment Projections
- AI exposure (inverted) F 42% exposure
Lower O*NET task-automability scores lower risk; this dimension scores security, not exposure
Home health and personal care aides is #1 of 832 occupations by employment (4.3M, AI exposure rank #392 at 35%) vs. Bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks #1 by AI task exposure (95%, employment rank #17 at 1.6M).
Automation-risk inventory
Exclusive cut of 832 occupations by PlainWorkforce automation-risk band. Orthogonal to the continuous AI-exposure distribution chart below and to this occupation's single risk badge, this is the corpus band mix, with Umpires, referees, and other sports officials in the High band.
Credential × growth standing
Open entry with non-declining BLS pace
Umpires, referees, and other sports officials keeps an HS / some college bar (333 of 832) and sits in Average (378 of 832). Lower formal gates with a non-shrinking employment line - skill and AI desks matter more than credentials here.
Where Umpires, referees, and other sports officials sits among all occupations
AI-exposure score distribution across 832 U.S. occupations (O*NET task analysis). This occupation is marked in rose.
Where Umpires, referees, and other sports officials sits by AI exposure
AI-exposure score distribution across U.S. occupations (O*NET task analysis)
42% Around the middle lower than 25% of 832 occupations
Occupations, banded by AI-exposure score
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more occupations. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source O*NET task data (U.S. Department of Labor) · BLS 2024–2034
Source: O*NET task data (U.S. Department of Labor); AI-exposure scores are PlainWorkforce's analysis. As of BLS 2024–2034.
Umpires, referees, and other sports officials vs. its occupational neighbors
AI exposure (horizontal) vs projected 2024–2034 growth (vertical) for occupations in the same SOC group. Umpires, referees, and other sports officials is marked in rose; the top-left corner is the most future-proof.
Source: BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034 (growth) and O*NET (AI-exposure analysis by PlainWorkforce).
Employment Projections
Where This Score Comes From
Umpires, referees, and other sports officials's High automation-risk tier is computed from O*NET Database 30.0 task-level analysis, where each documented task the occupation performs is evaluated against current generative AI, robotic process automation, and machine-learning capabilities. A score in the 40–70% range indicates meaningful automation pressure on specific task categories, but the role as a whole still requires human judgment for coordination, exception handling, or client interaction.
The employment, wage, and education figures above come from a second, separate federal source: BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034, matched to the O*NET task data by Standard Occupational Classification (SOC 27-2023) code, with the wage figure cross-validated against the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024 survey. BLS figures are presented exactly as published, with no adjustment on our part; the SOC-code match is what lets Umpires, referees, and other sports officials be compared directly against every other tracked occupation on the same basis, not just roles that happen to share a job title.
For career planners, this profile should be read alongside the task, skill, and knowledge breakdowns below and the list of employers whose workforce composition includes Umpires, referees, and other sports officials. Adjacent occupations shown further down offer lateral moves that preserve industry knowledge while potentially reducing exposure.
Education & Entry Requirements
Top Tasks (O*NET)
- 1. Officiate at sporting events, games, or competitions, to maintain standards of play and to ensure that game rules are observed.
- 2. Judge performances in sporting competitions to award points, impose scoring penalties, and determine results.
- 3. Inspect game sites for compliance with regulations or safety requirements.
- 4. Resolve claims of rule infractions or complaints by participants and assess any necessary penalties, according to regulations.
- 5. Verify scoring calculations before competition winners are announced.
- 6. Signal participants or other officials to make them aware of infractions or to otherwise regulate play or competition.
- 7. Teach and explain the rules and regulations governing a specific sport.
- 8. Start races and competitions.
- 9. Inspect sporting equipment or examine participants to ensure compliance with event and safety regulations.
- 10. Compile scores and other athletic records.
Key Skills Required
- Speaking
- Critical Thinking
- Active Listening
- Judgment and Decision Making
- Monitoring
- Reading Comprehension
- Active Learning
- Learning Strategies
- Social Perceptiveness
- Coordination
Knowledge Areas
- English Language
- Education and Training
- Administration and Management
- Customer and Personal Service
- Psychology
- Communications and Media
- Mathematics
- Computers and Electronics
- Transportation
- Administrative
Frequently Asked Questions
Will AI replace Umpires, referees, and other sports officials?
Umpires, referees, and other sports officials has an AI exposure score of 42%, indicating a high level of automation risk. Some tasks in this role can be augmented or partially automated by AI, but core responsibilities require human judgment.
What is the job outlook for Umpires, referees, and other sports officials?
According to BLS Employment Projections 2024-2034, Umpires, referees, and other sports officials is projected to grow by 5.7% over the decade. Current employment stands at approximately 19,300 workers.
What skills are needed for Umpires, referees, and other sports officials?
Key skills for Umpires, referees, and other sports officials include Speaking, Critical Thinking, Active Listening, and others. Typical entry-level education is High school diploma or equivalent.
How much do Umpires, referees, and other sports officials earn?
The median annual wage for Umpires, referees, and other sports officials is $38,820, according to BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2024). Actual earnings vary by location, experience, industry, and employer. The BLS publishes detailed wage percentiles by region in its Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program.
What education is required for Umpires, referees, and other sports officials?
The typical entry-level education for Umpires, referees, and other sports officials is High school diploma or equivalent. Employers generally expect None of related work experience. On-the-job training typically involves Moderate-term on-the-job training. Requirements can vary by employer and specialization.
Which companies employ Umpires, referees, and other sports officials?
Umpires, referees, and other sports officials roles exist across many industries and employers. Workforce composition is estimated from BLS industry-occupation employment distributions matched to SEC-registered public companies.
AI Exposure Rating
High automation risk based on 10 analyzed tasks. A moderate share of tasks may be augmented by AI tools.
Nationwide occupations with similar workforce profiles
Two data-derived peer sets for Umpires, referees, and other sports officials: AI-exposure neighbors and BLS 2034 growth neighbors (distinct comparison neighborhoods, cross-occupation).
Similar AI exposure score
Nearest O*NET task-automability scores nationwide (42% here).
- Career/technical education teachers, postsecondary · AI exposure 42%
- Dispatchers, except police, fire, and ambulance · AI exposure 42%
- Flight attendants · AI exposure 42%
- Hairdressers, hairstylists, and cosmetologists · AI exposure 42%
Similar projected growth (2024–2034)
Nearest BLS employment change rates nationwide (+5.7% here).
- Business teachers, postsecondary · growth +5.7%
- Financial and investment analysts · growth +5.7%
- Materials engineers · growth +5.7%
- Tire repairers and changers · growth +5.7%
Peers are nearest-neighbor matches on published BLS + O*NET metrics among occupations with ≥10,000 workers in 2024; corpus ranks above sort the full tracked set.
Related Occupations
Showing 6 of 12 occupations with a comparable automation-risk profile.
What to do with this
Use Umpires, referees, and other sports officials' numbers above to compare, not just read in isolation.
- Compare Umpires, referees, and other sports officials side by side against another occupation on wage, growth, and AI exposure. Workforce comparison tool
- Understand how the AI exposure score above is actually calculated before treating it as a verdict. Reading AI exposure scores
- See the full ranked list of occupations with the lowest automation exposure nationwide. Safest occupations from AI
AI exposure scores estimate task automatability from O*NET data; they are not a certainty of job loss, and BLS growth projections are estimates, not guarantees.
Data sources: Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections 2024–2034 and O*NET Database 30.0. Employment figures are rounded. Wage data from BLS Occupational Employment Statistics (OES).