Interview with football referee Emilia Miter

Emilia Miter, a district referee with four years of experience, shares her journey from club referee to officiating seniors. Despite the challenges she has faced along the way, Emilia has remained committed to her mission. In this interview, she talks about her experiences, from dealing with the first screaming fans to finding support and growing as a referee. With determination and authority, Emilia has overcome obstacles and has a long-term goal of continuing to officiate and seeing how far she can go.

– Hello Emilia. How long have you been refereeing football?

– I took the course in 2018 and had my first match in 2019 if I remember correctly, so I've been refereeing as a district referee for 4 years now. Before that, I refereed for a year as a club referee. I officiated there for a year, then my mom came and just said, "You're going to Malmö tomorrow." "Oh, really?" I replied, "What am I going to do there?" She said, "You're going to referee training." "Wow, that sounds fun," I replied, remembering the feeling that I would get to officiate for the A-team and seniors. It was a great feeling. She knew I liked refereeing, and I took several matches every weekend and was always available. During those years, I played at the same time as I refereed, but now I haven't played for about 2 years. I'm an old goalkeeper.


– And as a club referee, do you remember why you started then?

– I think everyone in my team had to take the course themselves, but then you didn't have to continue refereeing if you didn't want to. But I felt it could be fun to at least try. After the first match, I thought it was fun, it went well. I don't think I got much negative comments as a referee in the beginning; it came a little later when I started officiating seniors. But I clearly remember getting quite a bit of encouragement there, from parents and leaders who told me they thought I was good. It was pretty easy to continue then.

– Negative comments, as you say, as a referee has become more common. At least if you read the reports around. What about you as a person, do you find it easy to "brush off" if you hear something?

– I actually think that first time someone yelled at me, I started crying after the match. I remember it clearly. Then I took it to heart and dwelled on it a lot because they were yelling at me. Now, a couple of years later, I've learned and don't take it to heart at all. Now I know they might be yelling at the decisions, that they disagree with me, and they're not yelling at me as a person or referee. So I don't take it to heart anymore.

– Many referees quit after such an incident. Getting negative comments and literally going home and crying after the match, especially younger referees like you were. A major contributing factor to the referee shortage. But... what made you continue officiating from there?

– He came and apologized after the match, and I just said "okay." But then I called my coach, Jimmy Christiansson, after the match and talked it out. I told him what had happened and that I felt bad, and so on. He then said that he thought I should try to get through it and go to the next match. So I did, and it helped. It was a bit tough in those matches afterward, but I learned that they're not yelling at me. I got good support, and that was important. I thank Jimmy; I can still call him after matches today if things haven't felt completely right or if there's something on my mind. Then I call him and vent, and then it feels better afterward.

– What do you consider your best attribute as a referee, on the football field?

– I would probably say my determination. I've toughened up quite a bit over the years, and when I do speak up, I do it properly. A good mix of authority and determination, I would say, are my best qualities.

– Do you have any referees you look at a little extra? Role models for you?

– I like Mohammed Al-Hakim. I love his authority as a referee; it's clear and straightforward. I like that. Then I also want to mention a female referee, or two. At first, I watched and liked Tess Olofsson a lot. Then I had a match with Sara Persson and got a completely different view of leadership. She became a role model for me after that match. I watched her a lot after that and picked up some things.

– If we step into one of your matches, what spins extra in Emilia's head?

– It depends on what kind of match it is, of course. But if it's teams I've refereed before, then I know a bit about them. I don't like to do too much research beforehand about the teams, how they stand, and all that; I want to go out without any preconceptions. As a referee, I don't like if there are any underdogs or the like beforehand, for me. I've just passed step 3 and officiate many more new teams for me and have been a bit nervous beforehand. But once the match starts, it all fades away, then we go! Then I step into my role and I'm pumped for it.

– Do you have any goals with your refereeing?

– I want to see how far I can go. If I go up high, I'll do it. I want to give it a chance and see how far it can go. That's probably my goal. Officiate as long as it's fun and continue to evolve as a referee.


– Thank you Emilia and good luck.