19,628 referees registered with sports federations in 2024.
Up 8.4% from 2023.
How many referees are registered with sports federations?
Explore the data
Referees by sport: men and women
2024
- Men
- Women
Show the data as a table
| Sport modalities | Men | Women |
|---|---|---|
| Football | 5,218 | 705 |
| Automobilism | 1,874 | 455 |
| Others | 1,778 | 552 |
| Basketball | 880 | 726 |
| Karate | 858 | 263 |
| Swimming | 704 | 1,194 |
| Judo | 659 | 174 |
| Athletics | 434 | 312 |
| Handball | 365 | 90 |
| Shooting | 217 | 11 |
| Volleyball | 186 | 155 |
| Tennis | 179 | 24 |
| Roller skating | 153 | 176 |
| Gymnastics | 149 | 502 |
| Cycling | 113 | 49 |
| Table tennis | 99 | 19 |
| Columbofilia | 89 | 0 |
| Sport fishing | 86 | 6 |
| Sailing | 82 | 11 |
| Rugby | 40 | 4 |
| Golf | 21 | 16 |
Number of referees over time
2018 to 2024
- Total
- Men
- Women
Show the data as a table
| Period | Total | Men | Women |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 16,060 | 12,218 | 3,842 |
| 2019 | 16,410 | x (Not available) | x (Not available) |
| 2020 | 13,881 | 10,408 | 3,473 |
| 2021 | 13,652 | 10,263 | 3,389 |
| 2022 | 16,581 | 12,123 | 4,458 |
| 2023 | 18,108 | 13,117 | 4,991 |
| 2024 | 19,628 | 14,184 | 5,444 |
Conventional signs:
- x
- Not available
Referees by district and autonomous region
2024
Show the data as a table
| Geographic localization (Distrito) | Number (No.) |
|---|---|
| Porto | 3,349 |
| Lisboa | 2,984 |
| Braga | 1,367 |
| Setúbal | 1,208 |
| Faro | 1,159 |
| Região Autónoma dos Açores | 1,098 |
| Coimbra | 1,096 |
| Aveiro | 1,079 |
| Leiria | 930 |
| Santarém | 915 |
| Região Autónoma da Madeira | 775 |
| Viseu | 517 |
| Vila Real | 505 |
| Viana do Castelo | 464 |
| Castelo Branco | 346 |
| Évora | 315 |
| Guarda | 266 |
| Portalegre | 264 |
| Beja | 254 |
| Bragança | 150 |
About these data
Show sources, notes, calculation rules and citation
Sources, units, dates, notes, calculation rules, citation and provenance of every chart and table on this page.
- Reference
- Measure D05 of the list of selected indicators: Referees enrolled in sports federations — number
Comparison with the previous period
Change calculated by the project from the published values (2024: 19,628; 2023: 18,108): (19,628 − 18,108) ÷ 18,108 × 100 = 8.4%, rounded to one decimal place. Not a value published by Statistics Portugal.
Referees by sport: men and women
- Period
- 2024
- Unit
- Number (No.)
- Data as of
- 3 November 2026
Source
- Portuguese Institute of Sports and Youth: Refrees affiliated (No.) to sport federations by Sex and Sport modalities, source last updated 12 December 2025. View in the Statistics Portugal database (0014369)
Suggested citation
Statistics Portugal. Sport in Numbers: “Referees by sport: men and women”. http://localhost:4321/en/desporto-em-numeros/d05#x-D05-modalidade-sexo. Data as of 3 November 2026; accessed 4 November 2026.
Provenance
- Version
INE:0014369@2026-11-03T19:51:03.826Z- Observations checksum (SHA-256)
63ce01a3e0c4c2131f34cc66be16a71c62d46f52166babcf947e3c6acfc8fea9
Number of referees over time
- Periods
- 2018 to 2024
- Unit
- Number (No.)
- Sport modalities
- Total
- Data as of
- 3 November 2026
Source
- Portuguese Institute of Sports and Youth: Refrees affiliated (No.) to sport federations by Sex and Sport modalities, source last updated 12 December 2025. View in the Statistics Portugal database (0014369)
Suggested citation
Statistics Portugal. Sport in Numbers: “Number of referees over time”. http://localhost:4321/en/desporto-em-numeros/d05#x-D05-evolucao. Data as of 3 November 2026; accessed 4 November 2026.
Provenance
- Version
INE:0014369@2026-11-03T19:51:03.826Z- Observations checksum (SHA-256)
63ce01a3e0c4c2131f34cc66be16a71c62d46f52166babcf947e3c6acfc8fea9
Referees by district and autonomous region
- Period
- 2024
- Unit
- Number (No.)
- Sex
- Total
- Data as of
- 3 November 2026
Source
- Portuguese Institute of Sports and Youth: Refrees affiliated (No.) to sport federations by Geographic localization (Distrito) and Sex, source last updated 12 December 2025. View in the Statistics Portugal database (0014368)
Suggested citation
Statistics Portugal. Sport in Numbers: “Referees by district and autonomous region”. http://localhost:4321/en/desporto-em-numeros/d05#x-D05-distritos. Data as of 3 November 2026; accessed 4 November 2026.
Provenance
- Version
INE:0014368@2026-11-03T19:51:10.051Z- Observations checksum (SHA-256)
cc6cf8105b60efc91728c815897510da9a2d333c1d989adad8a8d90b1712514f