James Mainwaring, assistant referee at the 2026 World Cup, shares his favourite fitness exercise and fitness experiences during the World Cup. It was a fantastic experience for him and now he prepares for the new season. The fitness exercise he shares with us is intense. “I know that if I can get through this one, I can do anything.” Right after the World Cup he passed his fitness test, before he could take his annual leave. After 7 weeks abroad, he’s glad to have time off with his family. But that doesn’t mean he can just sit back and relax at the pool. “I am still training. I’ve been given an adapted training plan, so I can still prepare for the start of the season” The assistant referee only got his FIFA badge in 2024. On.June 20th, The Netherlands versus Sweden. That was the first ever World Cup game for James Mainwaring. ”It was a very special moment, because 2 years ago a World Cup game seemed so far away.” An injury gave James the opportunity to join Michael Oliver’s team, where following a successful season and Club World Cup, he remained alongside Stuart Burt. Staying fit during the World Cup Miami Beach was the basecamp for all referees. James Mainwaring has been there before for the Club World Cup in 2025. “They have good fields, a good physical team and our training-load was well-monitored.” The referees needed to be fit for games, but everyone had different schedules. Every day the officials filled in an app about sleep, muscle fatigue and how they felt. Appointments were made a few days before the game, but the referee department led by Pierluigi Collina and the physical trainers would adapt your schedule based on their plans. Training sessions were in the morning, if you hadn’t received a message to have a rest day. After breakfast they took a 30 min ride to the training pitches. “They let you know which pitch you should go to, because not every team was on the same schedule”. Training sessions shortly before or after games were different than the ones 5 days before a game. On my blog I mentioned match-simulations sessions, but during the World Cup they made the preparation for the matches very realistic. Local teams were brought in and given specific instructions. “They replicated the team tactics of the teams we were going to officiate”, says James Mainwaring. “For example the build-up tactics, so we could practise positioning. You had a chance to replicate match movements.” How James Mainwaring gets ready for the season James Mainwaring hopes to continue this journey, with the next goal the 2026 European Championships. “That would be fantastic”. But first the new season. Pro Ref provided him with a bespoke training plan to undertake whilst on holiday that enabled and allowed him to refresh and hit the ground running for the 2026-2027 campaign. Pro Ref is the new name for the PGMOL, who are in charge of the referees in English top level football. “That’s a fair expectation of course. I can’t do nothing for two weeks and expect to perfom at a level the Premier League deserves and demands.” He gets his fitness schedule on an app and tracks it with his Polar watch and GPS monitor. The heat in southern Europe is not a problem. “I got used to the heat in Miami”, he, laughs. He knows exactly where he can do a 400m run nearby and which route suits a longer run. How this exercise makes the difference for him AND you “I prefer exercises where at the end you need to sit down to rest.” He likes the physical feeling that he just did a session. “You have to think: this was worthwhile. And you know your tired, because you’re out of breath.” James Mainwaring says these exercises are the ones where mentally you might be tempted to quit. He also refers to the start of his career and mentions the readers of the blog who want to reach the top. “Without somebody checking your fitness stats, you can easily quit” And everyone can think of an excuse: too tired, busy work day, did it last week. “Nobody will know it, but completing it is what makes the difference.” And why this exercise is also a good one for James Mainwaring himself. “I know that if I can get through this one, I can do anything.” What’s the exercise A few things that summarize the exercise: It’s a long-burner High-intensity pitch-based session Working on aerobic training, but exposing you to high-speed running James Mainwaring says that assistant referees also profit from more acceleration and speed work, but this exercise helps him a lot to remain fit. And it’s perfect for referees: “Especially with end-to-end runs with a lot of counter-attacks. It prepares you to be able to make a decision from a close distance also in 90 mins plus 3”. Explanation of James Mainwaring’s favourite fitness exercise The exercise uses the whole pitch and covers a lot of meters. The aim is that you have 15 minutes above 85% Heart Rate Max. So how does it go: You start at the corner flag. Then you do a high-intensity run through the penalty area and you end at the corner of the penalty area (about 50m) Walk to the other corner flag on the goal-line where you started (about 20m) From there you go run to the other half at high-intensity and you end this run at the edge of the penalty area Walk to the corner flag Now run through the other penalty area and finish at the edge of the penalty area Walk to the corner flag nearby Then the last high-intensity run of that lap: cross again the halfway-line Walk to your starting position To complete the first repetition, do this in opposite direction To complete the first set, you do 2 repetitions (so 4 laps) After 1 set, rest for 90 seconds. Do 4 sets (16 laps) in total.
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