Original research Identification of key performance characteristics of elite Australian football umpires Aden Kittel 1 , Paul Larkin 1 , Nathan Elsworthy 2 and Michael Spittle 1 Abstract This research aimed to present a hierarchy of key attributes for Australian football umpires. Elite Australian football umpires (n ¼ 19) and their coaches (n ¼ 5) participated in this study. A list of attributes necessary for sports officiating was obtained from past research and adapted specifically for Australian football umpires. Umpires were required to rate each attribute on a scale of 0–9 (least to most importance), and provide a justification of its importance to performance. A modified questionnaire was developed with attributes removed or added, according to the first survey round. This research identified two cognitive attributes: knowing the laws/interpretations and decision-making as the two highest rated attributes, respectively. Psychological attributes composure and concentration were rated highly by the umpires, ranked as number three and five, respectively. The game skill attribute of teamwork was rated as the fourth highest. Fitness was the only physical attribute to be rated in the most important category. Results highlight the importance of cognitive and psychological attributes to elite performance; however, participant feedback suggests that the integration of all attributes is critical. This knowledge establishes an understanding of the key attributes for expert performance, and this information could be used by coaches for the assessment and development of Australian football umpires. Keywords Australian football, coaching practice, expertise, performance indicators, sports officials Introduction Australian football is a complex invasion game with 36 players on the field at any time, with three field umpires ensuring the game is played in a fair and safe manner. In relation to sporting officials, Australian foot- ball umpires are classified as ‘interactor’ officials, who undertake high physical (i.e. running) and perceptual demands as part of their task. 1 Most research in Australian football umpires examines performance com- ponents (i.e. physical and perceptual-cognitive) in an iso- lated manner, with limited understanding of how each component contributes to the overall performance. Early studies in this cohort investigated the physical demands of officiating Australian football, 2,3 yet more recently the research has shifted to focus on cognitive components such as decision-making 4,5 and communica- tion. 6 Several studies have recently examined the relation- ship between the physical and cognitive domains of officiating. 7–10 While these studies provide an under- standing of the potential performance characteristics of Australian football umpires, there is no research presenting a framework identifying the importance of each attribute to the overall performance through the eyes of key stakeholders, such as elite umpires and their coaches. Therefore, a framework identifying the neces- sary attributes for performance would provide a greater understanding of the factors that contribute to elite per- formance. This knowledge will potentially enable more specific research in this unique group, facilitating future talent identification and training procedures. Reviewer: Dennis Werner. Donna O’Connor (University of Sydney, Australia). 1 Institute for Health and Sport, Victoria University, Australia 2 School of Health, Medical and Applied Sciences, Central Queensland University, Australia Corresponding author: Aden Kittel, Institute for Health and Sport, Victoria University, Footscray, VIC, 3011, Australia. Email: Aden.Kittel@live.vu.edu.au International Journal of Sports Science & Coaching 0(0) 1–8 ! The Author(s) 2019 Article reuse guidelines: sagepub.com/journals-permissions DOI: 10.1177/1747954119845071 journals.sagepub.com/home/spo