Was that directed at just sports officiating? The tax law only mandates reporting income of $600 or more. I wonder if these organizations just decided to send a 1099 to everyone to make it easier (see regs below).
From the IRS website:
“If you pay independent contractors, you may have to file Form 1099-NEC, Nonemployee Compensation, to report payments for services performed for your trade or business. If the following four conditions are met, you must generally report a payment as nonemployee compensation.
You made the payment to someone who is not your employee;
You made the payment for services in the course of your trade or business (including government agencies and nonprofit organizations);
You made the payment to an individual, partnership, estate, or in some cases, a corporation; and
You made payments to the payee of at least $600 during the year.
Note: Beginning with Tax Year 2020, you must use Form 1099-NEC, Nonemployee Compensation, to report payments of nonemployee compensation (NEC) previously reported in box 7 on Form 1099-MISC. The separate instructions for filers/issuers for Form 1099-NEC are available in the 2020 Instructions for Forms 1099-MISC and 1099-NEC.”