RACINE, Wis. — The National Football League Referees Association (NFLRA) was chosen as the 2023 NASO Mel Narol Medallion Award Recipient. The award will be presented in Riverside, Calif., on Tuesday, Aug. 1, during the Celebrate Officiating Gala, sponsored by Fox 40 International. The Gala caps the 2023 Sports Officiating Summit.
The NFLRA, founded in 1972, is the sole and exclusive bargaining representative of everyone employed by the NFL to officiate games played by the Member Clubs of the NFL.
“The NFLRA organizationally, and through its individual members, has been supporting NASO and its mission for decades,” said NASO President Barry Mano. “In fact, the NFLRA was the very first organization to enroll all of its members into NASO, at a time when few organizations gave NASO such consideration. In the intervening years, this group of professional football officials has stood shoulder-to-shoulder with NASO, working on the behalf of recognition and endorsement of just how important sports officials are to the equation we know as organized sports. The ‘RA’s’ support has been and continues to be invaluable.”
NFLRA Executive Director Scott Green served on the NASO Board of Directors from 2014-18 and will be in Riverside, Calif., on Tuesday, Aug. 1 to help accept the award on behalf of the group. “The award recognizes the contribution the NFLRA has made through the years,” Green said. “There’s obviously been a lot of involvement on the (NASO) board as well. You look back through the years, there have been guys like Jerry Markbreit and Bill Carollo who have served on the (NASO) board.”
Current NFLRA Vice President Carl Cheffers served on the NASO Board of Directors from 2018-21 and current NFLRA Board of Directors member Ron Torbert is currently serving on the NASO Board of Directors.
The Medallion recognizes an individual or organization that has made significant contributions to the betterment of NASO. These activities include organizational leadership, education, training, promotion of officiating and other events. The award is named for Mel Narol, a longtime legal columnist and consultant to NASO, who died in 2002. Narol received the award posthumously in 2003, when the Medallion was named in his honor.
Fox 40 International is the premier producer of officiating whistles. The complete line of Fox 40 products includes whistles for all uses, whistle attachments, Fox 40 gear, pro coaching boards, mouthguards and marine/outdoor products. Fox 40 continues to invest in new technology, designs and machinery, resulting in many new products being launched each year. Fox 40 has sponsored the Celebrate Officiating Gala for more than two decades.
