ATLANTA, GA. – The U.S. Soccer Refereeing Department has announced its 2026 Continuing Education Lifelong Learning (CELL) Webinar Series. The sessions will run throughout the year and will focus on practical education for referees and referee coaches.
The series is part of the department’s work to support match officials during the season. By running sessions across the year, referees, mentors, and referee leaders can stay connected to current guidance and continue developing between matches.
Each month will focus on a specific refereeing topic linked to the U.S. Refereeing Way. The sessions will look at situations officials regularly face during matches and provide guidance on how to recognize and manage them on the field.
Referee sessions will be open to all referees with an active license, as well as Mentors, Mentor+ participants, and members of State Referee Committees (SRCs). The aim is to ensure everyone involved in referee development is hearing the same messaging and guidance.
Separate sessions will also be delivered for referee coaches. These sessions will focus on the content being taught to referees and how coaches can deliver the material within their referee programs. Coach sessions will be by invitation and limited to those who hold referee coach licenses.
All sessions will begin at 7:30 PM Eastern and will be delivered online. The first webinars of the year will be hosted in March and will continue throughout the year. Interested attendees can register through email invites sent prior to each event.
Participation is limited to 3,000 attendees, and registration will be available on a first come, first served basis. Referees are encouraged to register only if they are able to attend the full session.
The 2026 CELL webinar topics include:
March: Positioning and Movement – Set Plays
April: Game Management
May: Teamwork and Assistant Referee Involvement
June: Handball
July: Positioning and Movement – Penalty Area
August: Assistant Referee Movement
September: Technical Area Management
October: Offside
November: Teamwork with Communication
Registration information will be shared each month ahead of the sessions. Referees with questions can contact referee@ussoccer.org with the subject line “CELL Webinar – 25 March.”
