The Respect Our Referees (ROR) program is designed to reduce verbal abuse and inappropriate/unacceptable behavior involving soccer referees and to positively influence behavior around the soccer pitch. The goal is to provide a fair, safe, and enjoyable environment for everyone involved: players, coaches, spectators, and referees.

The North Texas State Soccer Association (NTSSA) publishes Bylaws and Rules, which cover everyone involved in our soccer program, and clearly identify the responsibilities of all parties and the implications of those failing to comply with these rules. The Bylaws and Rules specify the terms “verbal and physical abuse” – but for this Program, the term “verbal abuse” relates to language and behavior that demeans and dissents the referees’ decisions and their performance on the pitch.

The ROR program is covered by the NTSSA Bylaws and Rules and is intended to provide information for leagues, teams, coaches, and referees. The program will also provide tools to enable referees to deal with instances of abuse and to report them when necessary. These reports will then be handled by NTSSA and its procedures, including the Appeals & Disciplinary (A&D) committee if required.

North Texas Soccer has created Respect our Referee signs, which are available to all of its member associations.

In addition, North Texas Soccer has offered four different design templates for member associations to use. The PDFs are a preview of the sign, while the EPS documents are the documents required for printers to create the signs. All of these and more can be found on North Texas Soccer's Referee Resource Page.