An umpire is an official in the sport of Australian rules football who adjudicates the game according to the "Laws Of The Game", the official handbook of Australian Rules Football. Umpiring the game of AFL across all leagues be it professional or juniors just starting have been subject to long history of abuse, in 2022 the AFL a long all the other associations have stepped up to help stamp out that abuse. Origins Unlike many other codes of football, where the official is called a referee, in Australian rules football the officials are called umpires. Tom Wills, one of the founders of the Australian game, was the earliest known umpire of a football match in Australia. At first the captains of both teams shared the duty of officiating games, but as the game became more professional in the 1880s, umpires became an important aspect of the game. Abuse Banter and questioning the umpires decisions at events have been around the sport since the sport began. That questioning has at times has commonly become extreme to the point where umpires have declined to umpire at various grounds. In 1920 the VFL requested that police escort umpires off the field after games. Comments in the press about abuse of umpires and their competency has arisen in a range of locations and eras. Types There are four different types of umpires and one type of steward in a typical game of Australian Football: Field umpire - the field umpire (also known as a central umpire) is responsible controlling general play, and is positioned within the field of play. The field umpire is the only type of umpire permitted to award free kicks or initiate stoppages in play, and he executes ball-ups to restart play. Originally, only one field umpire was used. In 1976 a second field umpire was introduced in the Victorian Football League, and in 1994 this was expanded to three field umpires in the then-renamed Australian Football League. Amateur, suburban, junior and semi-professional matches can be policed by any number from one to three field umpires. Goal umpire - Goal umpires are responsible for all adjudications relating to the goal-line, to determine whether or not a ball has scored a goal, behind, or failed to cross the goal-line. Goal umpires also serve as the official score-keepers for the match. A goal umpire signals a score at his end of the ground