While preparing for the 2011 season, CEFL officials held an annual Officials’ Clinic, this time in Ljubljana, Slovenia. Officials from four countries participated in the event, whose goal was to, as always, improve the level of officiating in the CEFL and to get all of the officials to be up to date with the latest changes in NCAA regulation, which are applied in CEFL play.

The clinic was held by Zoran Tadić, who will be in his second full year as the Head of CEFL Officiating. In his words, other than the usual corrections that are made every year, this year they focused also on the relevant changes from the 2010 NCAA fall season, which are the rules that will be applied in the CEFL this season.

These include changes to the way forming of the “wedge” during kickoffs is officiated, since it will no longer be allowed for more than two players to form the wedge. Also, players will be more severely penalized in case they use the top, or crown, of the helmet against an opposing player.

The officials were from Serbia, Slovenia, Austria and Croatia, and they will be the backbone of the CEFL’s officiating crews in 2011. CEFL Officiating was formed in 2009, meaning this will be the third year in which the league has its own independent crews available. Prior to that, officials were assigned from national officiating associations.