Soccer…..it's the mostly widely played sport in the United States with almost 12 million kids involved in organized soccer leagues, and yet it's one of the most widely misunderstood and poorly coached youth sports in the country.
BETTER COACHES = BETTER PLAYERS, the best coaches continually learn about the ever-evolving game rather than relying on anecdotal excuses like "I played in high school" or "I played a bit in college" more than 10, 15 or 25 years ago. The game has changed - to be successful - coaches must also change and develop their soccer knowledge. Formal coaching education and a player-centric focus are what builds successful coaches, not striving to win at all costs to feed a coach's massive ego.
There are literally thousands of online resources, camps, or retailers willing to sell you things to make you a better coach. The goal of this site is to give coaches access to as much FREE coaching and training information as possible to prepare them for license courses and to help them become better sports leaders. Additionally, it also provides coaches a place to share their success stories and experiences with their peers. In short, this site is dedicated to helping create better coaches.
Why is education important, why can't I just win at all costs….?
Research indicates that 75% of players on a U12 team will quit by U16, research from the Positive Coaching Alliance shows 70% of youth athletes quit sports altogether by the 8th grade. In 1997, researchers from the Youth Sports Institute surveyed 10,000 children aged 10-18 regarding their feelings about sports and identified the reasons why they play and reasons they quit:
The 10 most important reasons I play my best sport:
(In order of importance)
1. To have fun
2. To improve my skills
3. To stay in shape
4. To do something I’m good at
5. For the excitement of competition
6. To get exercise
7. To play as part of a team
8. For the challenge of competition
9. To learn new skills
10. To win
The 11 Most Important Reasons I Stopped Playing a Sport:
(In order of importance)
1. I lost interest
2. I was not having fun
3. It took too much time
4. Coach was a poor teacher
5. Too much pressure to win
6. Wanted non-sport activity
7. I was tired of it
8. Needed more time for study
9. Coach played favorites
10. Sport was boring
11. Over-emphasis on winning
The study underlines a number of truths about children and sports:
1. Fun is critical; if not “fun", young people won’t play a sport.
2. Skill development is a crucial aspect of fun; it is more important than winning even among the best athletes.
3. The most rewarding challenges of sports are those that lead to self knowledge.
4. Intrinsic rewards (self-knowledge the grows out of self-competition) are more important in creating lifetime athletes than are extrinsic rewards (victory or attention from others).
5. Fitness is critical and youth sports provides one of the few answers to a growing obesity problem. According to the US Army Recruiting Command, 1 in 20 recruits was obese in 1982, by 2008, that number skyrocketed to 1 in 4.
