Striving to Develop World-Class Solutions for Referees
The digital age is reaching all sectors of the game as the latest app helping to maintain organization on the pitch is developed for referees. RefLIVE, a newly developed app for smartphones/watches, makes its way onto the scene brining officials into the digital age.
Soccer News: The skills required to be a referee are not always acknowledged by those watching from the sidelines.
Maintaining the flow of the game; keeping track of players and coaches; keeping communication with your assistants; as well as being aware what is happening off the ball are just a few things a referee must keep track of while on the pitch.
Moving forward, the solution for a more innovative way to organize a referee’s work on the pitch has hit the market — RefLIVE — designed for referees of all levels and helps take their productivity to the next level.
What is it? An app that can be downloaded from the Apple Store or Android.
Created with simplicity, intuitiveness and efficiency in mind, RefLIVE allows for teams and match details to be seamlessly entered through your smartphone, in-game events recorded into a smartwatch or smartphone and then exported.
RefLIVE eradicates paperwork administration from the game and implements a digital replacement for all levels with a smartphone and smartwatch app.
Simon Murphy, RefLIVE Founder and CEO, explains the goal was to create a digital platform for soccer referees, citing the most efficient way was through an app for smartwatches.
As a former referee, Murphy notes that his background helped him understand the problem and what solution was required. He further explains that having also been a player, coach and administrator, he has been able to get an insight into the problems involved in administrating the game from a holistic perspective.
“I am really passionate about soccer having been involved in so many roles and having played in college in the U.S. as well as semi-professionally in Australia until recently,” said Murphy. “I also consider myself a natural entrepreneur. With that combination we have been able to create a great product that is very rewarding for myself and our team to be contributing back to the game and helping to develop its progression.”
RefLIVE brings technological innovation to the pitch during an era that is witnessing the disappearance of old school forms of media. This digital age has people seeking the latest alternative for efficiency, which has finally hit the referee sector of the beautiful game.
“It was hard to believe that there was no functional alternative to using a pen and paper to record match details in this day and age,” said Murphy. “We wanted to create a digital solution for leagues and associations to better manage their match day administration more efficiently.”
Throughout the development process, referees have remained extremely inclusive in order to provide feedback for new features and implementations. RefLive welcomed the input of all levels of officials, including FIFA licensed as well as community referees to provide feedback for improvement.
“We wanted to make a product that could be used by soccer officials at every level and improve the current processes for match day administration and time keeping,” said Murphy.
As RefLIVE made its way onto the soccer scene, consumer responses have influenced the development of alternate languages.
“Our growth continues to be astounding,” said Murphy. “Very quickly we had users from all over the world inquiring about different languages and new features. We reacted quickly and have since added Spanish, French and Japanese versions to iOS and have been used in over 25 countries.”
RefLive is also working with soccer associations in the United States to partner and supply them with the new app.
Murphy cites one of the biggest areas of concern for referees was the pre-match and post-match administration work they’re subjected to. RefLIVE is dedicated to cutting down on the record of data in order for referees to focus on the game and their development, which is the first and most important thing for referees.
“The simple and functional user interface of the app allows for referees to track time and record details quicker and easier,” said Murphy.
RefLIVE cuts down the time it takes to record details and then allows the submission of information to be completely digital, rather than the double or triple amount of time required when using paper based records.
RefLIVE Features
Pre-Match Features:
- Adding teams and players
- Customization of half length
- Location of match being played
- Ability to add, remove and edit codes for yellow and red cards
- Option to record substitutions
In-Game Features (Smartwatch and Smartphone):
- Two timers with one that can be started and stopped that reminds you when the time is paused and the other recording the total elapsed time
- Record goals with the option of penalties and own goals with scores automatically updating on the home screen
- Record cards with the codes relevant to your association and quickly check any players cautioned or sent-off just below the timers on the home screen
- Record subs with the amount of dots shown on the home screen next to the elapsed timer indicating subs made and the players coming off and on shown below the cautioned and sent off players on the home screen
Post-Game Features:
- A match report is generated from the details that have been entered from the game. You can use this information to complete paper match records or email the report. You can edit the details after the match if any mistakes were made.
Check out a brief demonstration of RefLIVE:
