ussf assignments help desk page

2017 Assignor Grades:

• Grade 3 - National Assignor
• Grade 8 - Assignor

Assignors service leagues and tournaments at a variety of competitive levels.  National Assignors are selected directly by the U.S. Soccer Referee Department.

2018 registration began July 1, 2017 and will be open until June 30, 2018.  For 2018 requirements, click the link below.

• Referee Certification Requirements

Assignors and the assignment of officials is an important part of the U.S. Soccer Referee Program. The purpose of the assignment program is to provide all affiliated games with registered and certified officials that employ the diagonal system of control. Assignment is also an important component of retention and development.

There is one assignor grade:

• Grade 8 – Assignor

Although there is only one grade, assignors service leagues and tournaments at a variety of competitive levels.

The State Assignment Coordinator is responsible for the coordination of the assignor network within the State Association. Assignors should be selected by the affiliated competitions being served with advisement from the State Referee Committee.

Assignor appointments should be made for a period of at least one year and assignors should be familiar with the registration and certification processes for officials.

Assignor Appointments

Assignors should be selected by the affiliated competitions being served with advisement from the State Referee Committee.

When an assignor is also a referee, they should not officiate in any competition where they also serve as an assignor (unless in an emergency situation).

Assignment Priority

While each U.S. Soccer Match Official is expected to keep the assignments they accept, there are certain occasions where a individual should be released from a lower level assignment to officiate in a higher level competition.

To this end, the following games are listed by priority for assignment:

• International and National Team games assigned by U.S. Soccer
• Games assigned by the Professional Referee Organization (PRO)
• Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup assigned by U.S. Soccer
• Youth National Team games assigned by U.S. Soccer
• US Youth Soccer
• US Club Soccer
• U.S. Soccer Affiliate Members
• State Adult Associations
• State Youth Associations
• League games assigned by U.S. Soccer

Please note that this policy does not apply:

• Within 72 hours of the scheduled game time unless an emergency situation exists
• When a substantial financial commitment has been made for the assignment (e.g., non-refundable airline tickets)

Responsibility of officials:

• Keep the lines of communication open about upcoming national and international appointments as far in advance as possible
• Communicate the receipt of a higher priority appointment to their assignor, State Referee Administrator, and U.S. Soccer (if applicable) as soon as possible
• Report an assignor that refuses to release the official for a higher priority assignment to their State Referee Administrator and the U.S. Soccer Referee Department

Responsibility of assignors:

• Identify the highly experienced officials on your assignment roster who are likely to be assigned to a higher priority assignment and always be prepared to fill these slots on an emergency basis
• Cooperate with officials and other assignors on those rare occasions when the game priority policy is invoked
• Report any concerns regarding officials to the State Referee Administrator

Equal Opportunity

Referee assignors must offer equal opportunity to all qualified referees and avoid discrimination against any individual or group regardless of age, race, color, religion, gender, national origin or disability.

Directory of Registered Officials

A directory of currently registered and certified officials must be furnished to registered and certified assignors by the State Referee Administrator and this directory may not be transmitted in any way to any outside third party. Assignors should review the directory prior to making any assignment and prior to the start of each season.

A directory of currently registered and certified officials must be furnished to registered and certified assignors by the State Referee Administrator and this directory may not be transmitted in any way to any outside third party.  Assignors should review the directory prior to making any assignment and prior to the start of each season. 

Rotation of Assignments

Assignors and referees must recognize that officiating where familiarity or family relationships with coaches or players exist should be avoided. Assignors should limit the number of times a referee officiates for any one team or club.

Referees and assistant referees should be rotated on a regular basis among all the assigned leagues and all the teams within a league. No referee should be assigned to any one league or club exclusively.

Feedback on Officials

A standardized rating system should be documented by the assignor with updated input from developmental and formal assessments, coaches' reports, mentors, evaluations and other sources of information made available.

Assignors are encouraged to listen to complaints about officials. When the complaint concerns an official who has demonstrated bias, unfair officiating or incompetence, the assignor should direct that the complaint be filed in writing to the State Referee Administrator and all such reports should be investigated.

In some instances, an assignor may want to work with the State Director of Assessment to obtain an objective assessment in response to complaints about an official's performance.

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Space Force assigns 21 national security missions to ULA and SpaceX

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Updated Nov. 1 with additional comments from U.S. Space Force Col. Doug Pentecost

WASHINGTON — The Space Systems Command on Oct. 31 announced 21 launch missions have been assigned to United Launch Alliance and SpaceX as part of the National Security Space Launch (NSSL) Phase 2 contract the companies won in 2020 .

These missions assigned for fiscal year 2024 mark the fifth and final year of the Phase 2 contract. Of the 21 missions, ULA received 11 and SpaceX 10. These missions are projected to launch over the next two to three years.

Over the five years of the Phase 2 contract, the Space Force will have ordered a total of 48 missions — substantially more than the 34 missions originally estimated — although only one has launched so far . 

“Under our Phase 2 contract, ULA and SpaceX have been committed partners, and our combined team remains dedicated to delivery of critical assets to our warfighters as we complete this phase of the NSSL program and embark on NSSL Phase 3 starting in FY25,” said Col. Chad Melone, senior materiel leader for mission solutions at the Space Systems Command.  

A total of 48 missions in Phase 2

Of the 48 missions assigned for Phase 2, only USSF-67 launched, aboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket in January 2023. ULA’s first Phase 2 launch will be USSF-51 on an Atlas 5 rocket, a mission projected for no earlier than March 2024. 

SpaceX’s upcoming NSSL missions include USSF-52 ( awarded in 2018 and not part of Phase 2) and USSF-124 , a Missile Defense Agency mission that is part of the Phase 2 contract. 

ULA’s new rocket, Vulcan Centaur, was selected by the Space Force to launch all Phase 2 missions but the vehicle has been beset by delays . Vulcan’s two certification flights are scheduled in the coming months and its first NSSL Phase 2 mission, USSF-106 , would fly sometime after both certification launches are completed. 

ULA originally won 60% of the Phase 2 missions and SpaceX 40%. Based on these latest assignments, ULA ended up with 54% and SpaceX with 46%. 

Col. Doug Pentecost, deputy program executive officer for assured access to space at Space Systems Command, noted that under the 60/40 split, ULA in the fifth year of the contract would have been assigned 13 missions and SpaceX would have gotten eight.

The final 11/10 split took several issues into account, Pentecost said in a statement to SpaceNews . 

“The government considered multiple factors in the mission assignment analysis process, including the launch system maturity assessment process, production capability and capacity, and the ability to meet the order year launch demand,” he said. Based on that assessment and in accordance with the terms of the NSSL Phase 2 contract, the Space Force assigned 11 missions to ULA and 10 to SpaceX.

Missions assigned to launch providers

The following 11 missions were assigned to ULA: GPS 3-9, NROL-73, NROL-56, STP-5, SILENTBARKER 2/NROL-118, GPS 3F-1, NROL-100, USSF-95, NROL-109, SDA T2TL-B, and USSF-25. 

The following 10 missions were assigned to SpaceX: SDA T1TL-F, SDA T1TR-A, USSF-57, NROL-77, SDA T1TR-E, GPS 3-10, USSF-75, SDA T2TL-A, SDA T2TL-C, and USSF-70.

• The NROL-77, NROL-73, NROL-56, NROL-109, and NROL-100 missions are for the National Reconnaissance Office.
• SDA’s launches are batches of small satellites for the Space Development Agency’s low Earth orbit constellation that includes a Transport Layer of data communications satellites and a Tracking Layer of missile-detection sensors.
• USSF-57 will launch the first of three multibillion-dollar Next Generation Overhead Persistent Infrared geostationary satellites designed for missile warning.
• SILENTBARKER 2/NROL-118 is a joint NRO and Space Force mission to provide space domain awareness for DoD and the intelligence community.
• USSF-25 will launch the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA) Demonstration Rocket for Agile Cislunar Operations ( DRACO ) nuclear thermal spacecraft.
• USSF-95 will be the first launch of a missile-tracking prototype satellite in medium Earth orbit. 
• STP-5 is a mission for the Space Force’s Space Test Program (STP). It will launch two satellites in support of the Department of Defense Strategic Capabilities Office.

Sandra Erwin

Sandra Erwin writes about military space programs, policy, technology and the industry that supports this sector. She has covered the military, the Pentagon, Congress and the defense industry for nearly two decades as editor of NDIA’s National Defense... More by Sandra Erwin

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Sharing my journey through Air Force Officer Training School (OTS) and beyond.

• Application
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13S Assignments

13S Assignment Team Portal

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As an officer it is extremely valuable to have the information you need or know how to find it.  There is an outstanding resource available to officers in almost any career field in the Air Force Portal.  If you search “Assignment Team” you will likely find a page with information specific to your career field.

Here is the Air Force Portal link to the 13S Space Operations Assignment Team page.  On this page you will find information regarding Professional Military Education (IDE/SDE), contact information, DO/CC board results, career milestone charts, etc.  It basically contains links or information to anything which may be relevant to managing your career.

Officers are expected to manage their own career, not follow the path the Air Force set out for them.  Instead of getting the next assignment by luck or AFSC slots available, you will tell AFPC where you want to go and decide for yourself what is good for your career.  Ideally you will have mentors who can help you along with this process but in my opinion it is best if you can figure out 90%-95% of it out yourself, and seek mentorship for the last little bit.  If you do this it is harder to be left behind by the dynamic and competitive nature of officer careers.

Here is the link:

https://www.my.af.mil/gcss-af/USAF/ep/globalTab.do?channelPageId=s2D8EB9D6386BFB8B0138A52CC72F0D4D

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