Being selected to umpire any of our Region or World Series Tournaments is an opportunity earned by highly performing umpires, many of whom have invested in years of training and development to enhance their knowledge, skills, and performance. Little League® seeks to train, develop, and select highly performing umpires to umpire each of its Region and World Series Tournaments each year.
Here are some steps you can take to be considered for selection to umpire a Region or World Series Tournament:
Step One: Be Active
- Umpires should be actively umpiring games as a volunteer umpire at a local league and/or district.
Step Two: Invest
- Selected umpires often invest earnestly in their training and continuous development to improve knowledge, skills, and performance. Some ways to do that include:
- Sign up and be actively engaged on the Umpire Registry, the free, online hub for umpire-related communications and resources.
- Attend the various in-person training events, including Outreach Clinics, Mechanics Clinics, and Umpire Academies. See the full calendar of events in the Umpire Registry.
- Serve as an umpire at the district, sectional, and state level of the Little League International Tournament.
Step THREE: Take Feedback
- Make sure you are open to and actively encouraging feedback at training events and tournaments. This feedback tracks what you do well, what you need to work on, and how to work on those things to help achieve your goals as an umpire.
Step FOUR: Apply
- Umpires must be members of the Umpire Registry, where they can submit their request to umpire a Region or World Series Tournament each fall.
- Any eligible umpire must have an approved background check, which can be conducted through the Umpire Registry, as well as complete the annual Abuse Awareness Training (LittleLeague.org/AbuseAwareness).
Many umpires who are seeking to umpire a Little League (Majors) Division Region or World Series Tournament often take the steps outlined above in addition to attending an ID Camp held across the country each fall.
Umpires are eligible to register for an ID Camp once they have umpired a Region Tournament, in any division. Many umpires have found that umpiring any Region Tournament and attending an ID Camp, in addition to the steps listed above, have placed them in the best position to succeed when umpiring a Little League (Majors) Division Region or World Series Tournament. The Selection Committee strongly encourages umpires aspiring to umpire a Little League (Majors) Division Region or World Series Tournament to consider taking a similar path.
Although attending an ID Camp is not a requirement for selection, our Selection Committee will more strongly consider selecting those umpires that have progressed through the above path and those it witnesses in action, which can be done through these camps.
Selecting umpires to all our Region and World Series Tournaments is a task our Selection Committee does not take lightly. The goal is to maximize the experience for all participants, including players, managers, coaches, spectators, and umpires. The Selection Committee has a responsibility to accomplish this goal by leveraging the pathways discussed herein to put umpires in the best possible position to succeed.