Referee

Experienced Officials Claim Federation’s Inaugural Awards Recognizing U.S. Soccer’s Top Referees 

CHICAGO (Jan. 9, 2025) – U.S. Soccer Referees Kathryn Nesbitt and Guido Gonzales Jr. have been voted the 2024 U.S. Soccer Female and Male Referees of the Year after outstanding campaigns officiating at the highest levels of American soccer. The inaugural awards were launched in 2024 as part of U.S. Soccer’s continued mission to foster the best playing environments and grow the number of referees nationally.

“As we continue to emphasize the importance of refereeing to our game, U.S. Soccer is proud to recognize the significant contributions of Kathryn and Guido, who represent the best of officiating in American Soccer,” said JT Batson, U.S. Soccer CEO.

“Growing referee participation across the country is a key goal for the Federation, and these awards recognize referees’ service to the game and give aspiring officials even more to strive for as they continue their referee careers,” said Cindy Parlow-Cone, U.S. Soccer President.

The first person to work both a Men’s World Cup Final (Qatar 2022) and Women’s World Cup Final (Australia/New Zealand 2023), Nesbitt has been a member of the FIFA Panel since 2016 and was an AR in 18 MLS matches, including three MLS Cup Playoffs matches in 2024. Nesbitt’s other high profile assignments during 2024 include officiating a quarterfinal match at the Women’s Olympic Football Tournament, Second Round Concacaf World Cup Qualifiers, Copa América Group Stage matches, 2024-25 Concacaf Nations League Group Stage and Play-In matches, the 2023 Concacaf Nations League Third-Place Match, Concacaf W Gold Cup Quarterfinal and Semifinal, Concacaf Champions Cup First Round and Quarterfinal and Concacaf Central American Cup Semifinal.

“I am humbled to be the first U.S. Soccer Female Referee of the Year,” Nesbitt said. “It’s such an incredible feeling to have years of hard work acknowledged and respected by my peers and the broader U.S. Soccer community. Thank you to everyone for the support and recognition.”

An MLS Referee since 2018, Gonzales officiated 24 matches in 2024, including the MLS Cup Final between the LA Galaxy and New York Red Bulls, as well as the MLS All-Star Game in which the league selection took on the top players from Liga MX. Gonzales has served as the Referee in over 100 MLS matches and is now eligible for international assignments after being appointed to the FIFA Panel for 2025.

“I am extremely honored to receive the U.S. Soccer Male Referee of the Year award,” Gonzales said. “This recognition reflects the years of dedication, preparation and passion for the game we all share as referees. I am grateful for my family, mentors and fellow referees that have and continue to share this journey with me. Thank you for this incredible honor — it’s a privilege to serve the beautiful game.”

The awards were determined via weighted vote from PRO Referees, National Referee Coaches, U.S. Soccer Board of Directors and U.S. Soccer Referee Committee members (45 percent); National Professional and International Referees (25 percent); State Referee Committee members (15 percent); and U.S. Women’s and Men’s National Team players that earned a cap in 2024 (15 percent).

For Female Referee of the Year, Nesbitt emerged from a list of nominees that included fellow FIFA Assistant Referee Brooke Mayo, as well as FIFA Referees Alyssa Nichols, Tori Penso and Natalie Simon, winning 26 percent of the weighted vote. For the Male Referee of the Year Award, Gonzales won 29 percent of the weighted vote among a list of nominees that included FIFA Assistant Referees Kyle Atkins and Corey Parker, PRO Referee Ismir Pekmic and FIFA Referee Armando Villarreal.

About the U.S. Soccer Federation

Founded in 1913, U.S. Soccer has been the official governing body of the sport in the United States for more than 100 years. As U.S. Soccer looks toward the future amid an unprecedented moment of opportunity, it has aligned its efforts around five strategic pillars: Grow the game by increasing youth and adult participation and accessibility to the sport; Foster best playing environments through quality of referees and coaches, and commitment to participant safety; Develop winning teams through solidified pathways and success of professional leagues; Grow the soccer economy to fuel reinvestment by increasing membership, fandom and commercial success; and Create a world-class organization through revitalized structure and culture, best-in-class talent, progress in DEIB, and more. For more information, visit ussoccer.com/ourvision.

– ussoccer.com –