Former official sues the NFL for discrimination and harassment in a bombshell civil complaint

A lawsuit has been filed by former NFL official Robin DeLorenzo against the NFL, former senior vice president of officiating Walt Anderson, and former officiating trainer coach Byron Boston, alleging patterns of “discrimination, humiliation, and retaliation” during her 3-year career as an NFL official. In 2022, DeLorenzo was one of 10 officials hired by the NFL, and became the third woman to serve as a permanent game official.

The 32-page complaint details numerous allegations of mental abuse and career sabotage at the hands of Anderson and Boston. DeLorenzo was dismissed after the 2024 season, and was one of three officials that were relegated back to college conferences.

“Season one really set the stage for what was to come, and that’s kind of the theme here,” said DeLorenzo’s attorney Krista DiMercurio. “This idea of diversity, equity, and inclusion, you see it in the introductory paragraph [of the complaint], that the NFL holds itself out as being that, and Robin’s case, I think, tells a different story.”

DiMercurio and Mark Magarian, partners of the Irvine, California, based Magarian & DiMercurio law firm specializing in employment and discrimination, are representing DeLorenzo. The complaint was filed Friday in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, and according to DiMercurio, the league is the process of being served.

Currently, most of the league’s executives are in Phoenix for the annual owner’s meeting. The NFL responded to Football Zebras after publication, “The NFL is committed to providing a fair and supportive environment for all of its game officials. Ms. DeLorenzo was terminated following three seasons of documented underperformance. The allegations in this lawsuit are baseless, and we will vigorously defend against them in court.”

The complaint alleges that Anderson directed DeLorenzo several times to wear her hair in a ponytail so it would show a woman official was working on the field. DeLorenzo also claims that the NFL was not able to provide properly fitting uniforms, forcing her to purchase and essentially make her own gear to match those provided to other male officials.

A rookie hazing incident is also alleged in the document. She recounts that at Steelers training camp, she was made to sing in front of the players and her crew — similar to a ritual then-Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said his rookie players do. Anderson is accused of recording a portion of it against her will, despite telling him not to in advance; the complaint states that Anderson deleted the recording at her request.

The filing also singles out veteran referee John Hussey, DeLorenzo’s crew chief in her first season. When she discussed her concerns about Anderson’s suggestion about her hairstyle, Hussey allegedly responded, “Who do you think you are? You are to listen to your boss. … Are you crazy?”

DeLorenzo claims that Hussey subjected her to verbal abuse, including aggressive hand gestures and instances where he allegedly told her multiple times to “shut your fucking mouth.” Specifically, an offensive pass interference call by DeLorenzo was cited in the complaint that “when she goes to report the foul to Hussey, he tells her to ‘calm down’ and ‘stop,’ gesturing with his hand to shut her down. He literally ignored every word she said, and gladly spoke to her male peer who had also thrown a flag, before announcing the purpose of the flag.”

In her season, DeLorenzo was moved to line judge and paired with veteran down judge Derrick Bowers. Bowers was injured in the first game of the season, and replaced by swing official Fred Bryan for the remainder of the season. Bryan had only worked at the umpire position. The complaint shows that this limited training opportunities to have a veteran who had line-of-scrimmage experience.

Upon completion of the second season, the complaint states, “Anderson told [DeLorenzo] that she needed to join the Frozen play on Broadway, and learn to sing ‘Let it Go,’ because her ‘issue’ was a ‘mental one.'”

DeLorenzo alleges that Anderson and Boston further retaliated against her by forcing her to attend a “low-level” college officiating clinic for training, which DeLorenzo claims was unprecedented for an on-staff NFL official. The clinic was focused on NCAA rules and mechanics. The NFLRA, the officiating union, filed a grievance in support of DeLorenzo, which was successful and resulted in the league reimbursing her for expenses and ending her probationary period a year early. DeLorenzo was a clinician at the Gulf-Atlantic officiating clinic in Jacksonville that season, as witnessed by Football Zebras editor Ben Austro.

During her third season, she was evaluated under a new grading system implemented by new vice president of officating Ramon George. The complaint alleges that this system, which utilized graders still loyal to Anderson and Boston, graded her unfairly and that her male counterparts received more favorable grades on “apples-to-apples” comparable calls.

The complaint has 12 causes for action against the NFL: gender discrimination, harassment, and retaliation each under Title VII of federal civil rights law and the civil rights laws of New York State, New York City, and New Jersey. Anderson and Boston are alleged to have violated the same, except not under the federal law, for their personal conduct. The complaint states that the Title VII charges require a filing to the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and the Commission issued the required administrative notice on Dec. 31, 2025.

Hussey and George are not named as defendants.

On Feb. 18, 2025, DeLorenzo was terminated by the NFL and Ramon George. DeLorenzo claims that her firing was not based on performance, but was the culmination of a discriminatory grading process that was designed to push her out. DeLorenzo is seeking reinstatement, back pay, and compensatory and punitive damages.

The NFLRA did not respond to a request for comment.