You may have heard recent news about a "referee" being hit at a high school football game in San Antonio. The official was actually the "umpire" at the game.
Umpires are prevalent at baseball games. Referees are what you see at basketball games.
Football games have both, but there is only one of each.
The referee is in charge of the entire officiating crew. He or she is the one the fans see make calls for penalties, and maybe you hear his or her voice over the PA system. The referee is the "good guy" and wears the white cap. It's a subliminal message to the crowd.
The umpire wears a black cap and often has a "U" on the back of his or her uniform. He or she has perhaps the toughest job of all the officials. He or she stands a few yards in front of the football on the defensive side, and is often caught in the middle of the action. While every other official is on the periphery of the game, the umpire is right in the middle. It has gotten so dangerous in the NFL that the professional league now has the umpire standing on the offensive side of the ball, like the referee, but on the other side of the offensive formation.
There are other officials in the game. There is a back judge and a linesman. Depending on the level of game, there could be a field judge, a side judge, a head linesman. College and NFL games have larger crews than high school games.
They are all officials at football games, but there's only one referee.
