Current News
Banquet Tickets, Membership Renewals, and COA Merchandise Are Now Available Online
Create Your New COA Website Profile Today
- Join us for the 2023 COA Banquet on Friday April 28th at Fountain Blue Banquets. Buy your tickets now!
- COA 2023 dues can now be renewed online. Renew today!
- Shop from a selection of new COA branded gear. Shop now!
About the COA
The C.O.A. is a not-for-profit organization which trains and instructs football and basketball officials and interprets the rules of both sports in an effort to make such interpretations uniform. Our primary objective is to promote and encourage the avocation of sports officiating.
The Central Officials Association is one of the oldest and largest officiating groups in not only the State of Illinois but also the United States. The association was incorporated in 1929 and consists of two divisions; Basketball and Football.
Today there are more than 425 active officials in the organization working all levels of each sport, from grammar school to NCAA Division I. There are also many professional officials in both football and basketball who began their careers as members of the Central Official Association.
Our Services
Pay COA Dues
Renewal of your COA annual membership opens on March 20th 2023. Dues renewal is now online in the COA Shop. Any member who is unable to pay because they are out of work or any other financial difficulty can request a dues waiver by emailing Tim Owens with your request. Annual dues are $55 for a single sport and $75 for two sports. If you have any questions or problems making payment or navigating on the web site please use the “contact us” link to explain the problem.
COA Apparel Orders
We are happy to announce that COA Apparel is now available in the COA shop. An inventory of options is available through April 7th 2023. All orders can be submitted directly through the site. Orders will be available for pickup at this year's COA Banquet on Friday April 28th 2023. Orders not picked up at the COA Banquet will be distributed at the COA spring Football and Basketball meetings.
COA Scholarship
The COA Board is excited to announce that applications for the "LT Bonner" Football and "Rich Weiler" Basketball Scholarships are now available. Applications should be turned in as early as possible prior to the camp or clinic you intend to attend and will be reviewed by the scholarship committee. Awards will be disseminated at the discretion of the board. There is a total of $500 of dedicated dollars available per sport. To be eligible, applicants must: 1) Must be a dues paying member of the Association for the sport you are seeking a scholarship. 2) Must have attended at least 75% of the rules interpretation meetings conducted by the football or basketball committees. 3) Must be willing to make a presentation on what you learned at the camp or clinic at a football or basketball rules interpretation meeting during the next season.
Basketball Officials Registering for Arbiter
In order to be assigned games, all officials must register for The Arbiter. There are now two arbiter sites for Chicagoland Basketball Officials to get game assignments. If you are registering for HIGH SCHOOL ONLY, you will need to register through the Chicagoland High School Basketball Assigners website. Information on the arbiter site for NON-HIGH SCHOOL GAMES can be found here.