Coaching Philosophy – Your Guide as You Teach Your Players
by, Monte F. Bourjaily, IV, ASA Coaching Commissioner

April 24, 2003

To be an effective soccer coach, you need a set of principles to guide you. These principles are general beliefs you hold, for example: how children should be taught; how the game of soccer should be taught; what well played soccer looks like; how to cultivate within young players their natural love of soccer; and what young players should take away from their soccer playing experience. These principles are your coaching philosophy.

Your coaching philosophy serves as your guide and provides you with direction in all that you do as a coach. It is your starting or reference point when you set team goals for the season and help players set their goals. It supports you when you plan your practice and when you need to improvise, because the plan is not working out. It is a powerful tool, when articulated and consistently applied, for shaping player and parent attitudes about youth soccer.

Developing your coaching philosophy takes time. It evolves and deepens as you gain more coaching experience. To develop your coaching philosophy, start by asking yourself three questions:

1. Why am I coaching?
2. What do I believe the players should get from their experience playing soccer?
3. How can I help them get that soccer playing experience?

Don’t worry that you are still learning about the game. Every good coach is, regardless of their experience with the game or as a coach. Over time, you will refine your philosophy.

As you develop your philosophy, the important thing to remember is that you are a youth coach. This means that you are a teacher of children. Their needs are different from those of professionals and elite teenage athletes. Your job is to introduce the game of soccer, nurture your players’ natural desire to play and help them develop the skills required to play the game well. You also have a bigger responsibility of helping your players grow up to be productive, independent, positive and engaged adults. Keep these points in mind as you develop your coaching philosophy.

Additional Resources

• The Baffled Parent’s Guide to Great Soccer Drills, by Tom Fleck and Ron Quinn (Ragged Mountain Press – 2002)

• Developing Youth Soccer Players, by Horst Wein (Human Kinetics – 2001)

• Positive Coaching: Building Character and Self-Esteem Through Sports, by Jim Thompson (Warde Publishers – 1995)

Updated:  04/28/2008