Auckland's Football Federation is blaming anti-social behaviour for the decline in the number of referees.

The nationwide shortage is forcing young refs with little training or experience out of their depth, and those involved in club sport say it leads to mistreatment.

Auckland Football Federation chief executive Steven Upfold told Kate Hawkesby it's a vicious cycle.

"There's multiple reasons why people are exiting the game, some of them related to abuse. The football itself has got to figure out how we can make the game more appealing because we've got some challenges that come with growth."

One football ref claims he was spat on and had to lock himself in the changing room until help arrived.

Upfold says it demonstrates a scary normalisation of anti-social behaviour.

"I think we have to have some frank and open discussions with ourselves and the different stakeholder groups about what's acceptable on the sports field that wouldn't be acceptable in a school or a workplace or in any other environment."