Thank you so much for your interested in volunteering to coach youth soccer. Coaching children is a very rewarding experience. And coaching your own child's team or a relative can be one of the most rewarding experiences of all! Do you have little or no experience with soccer? No problem! We are here to help and provide you with all the resources to make it a great experience for you and your team!
Coaches are essential to the game. They not only teach children soccer skills but they help develop a healthy, positive attitude, teamwork and good sportsmanship. Coaching is a rewarding experience because you have the opportunity to build a child's self-esteem, help them learn new skills and just have a lot of fun.
Q&A
(1) Can I still be a coach with no soccer experiences?
Yes! We provide training and materials. Being a coach involves skills you probably already have!
(2) What is the time commitment?
Junior Coaches (4-6 year olds) run one weekday practice and Academy Classic Coaches (6-11 year olds) run two weekday practices and a game on Saturday. You will be able to decide your day, time and location of practice. Coaching is all about teaching and encouraging kids, and having a lot of fun. You will have a team parents help with the team's organization tasks.
(3) Why do we play small-sided games?
Read here why small-sided soccer is so important for the development of a soccer player: Small-Sided Soccer
Coaches are essential to the game. They not only teach children soccer skills but they help develop a healthy, positive attitude, teamwork and good sportsmanship. Coaching is a rewarding experience because you have the opportunity to build a child's self-esteem, help them learn new skills and just have a lot of fun.
Q&A
(1) Can I still be a coach with no soccer experiences?
Yes! We provide training and materials. Being a coach involves skills you probably already have!
(2) What is the time commitment?
Junior Coaches (4-6 year olds) run one weekday practice and Academy Classic Coaches (6-11 year olds) run two weekday practices and a game on Saturday. You will be able to decide your day, time and location of practice. Coaching is all about teaching and encouraging kids, and having a lot of fun. You will have a team parents help with the team's organization tasks.
(3) Why do we play small-sided games?
Read here why small-sided soccer is so important for the development of a soccer player: Small-Sided Soccer
Helpful Websites
- Small Sided Game Resources and Activities
- US Youth Soccer Coaching Lesson Plans
- US Youth Soccer - Help I Volunteered to Coach
- U5-U16 Weekly Practice Plans/Coaches Corner
- Soccer Training Activities Ages 5-12
- Importance Of Developing Both Feet
Here are some training plans:
U6 LESSONS.doc
U8 LESSONS.doc
U10 LESSONS.doc
U14 LESSONS.doc
Here are some training plans from USYS:
US Youth Soccer Practice Activities for U6/8
US Youth Soccer Practice Activities for U10
US Youth Soccer Practice Activities for U12
NCYSA has a ton of great resources!
Here is a page that has a lot of resources for coaches. The first page has links to coaching videos and the additional tabs at the top of the page include age and skill specific training plans.
Other resources: (If you have more, please send to me and I will add to the list.)
Link to US Youth Soccer Resources for Coaches
Soccer XPert (specifically the soccer drills by age group)
NCYSA Parent Articles and Education
Soccer soloshot provides free, good quality content for coaches/parents looking for information on soccer drills. Each drill has a corresponding Youtube link along with a printable PDF for use during practice. The idea is that along with this high quality content we are also exposing people to the Soloshot 3 camera, which can be used as a tool to improve performance.
Here is the link: http://soccer.soloshot.com/soccer/drills/