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Coaching Education

By Tom Goodman, M. Ed.
President - World Class Soccer
Former National Director of Coaching Education

Since accepting the position as US Youth Soccer Director of Coaching Education, I have become a road warrior and ambassador for coaching education and player development throughout our country. As of this writing, I will have visited 25 different states in less than 6 months, in an effort to work with our State Directors of Coaching as they strive to prepare more instructors of parent-coaches. We are also working to provide continuing education for more advanced part-time and full-time coaches, as well.

I have also been working very hard to help our state associations understand the benefits of playing small sided games under the age of 12. Much of this work involves providing good information for implementation of small sided games.

US Youth Soccer is composed of 55 National State Soccer Associations. Each National State Association is unique in its structure and in its needs. Some National State Associations are relatively small geographically, but have a player membership of 80-100 thousand; while other National State Associations are very large geographically with a player membership of 10-20 thousand.

The total player membership of US Youth Soccer is approximately 3.2 million players, while the total coaching membership is approximately 175 thousand. With so many players and coaches, belonging to US Youth Soccer, involved in the game, the need for coaching education is gigantic! Therefore, we have taken the lead in providing coaching education opportunities for our member coaches in coordination with US Soccer.

At the state level, the following coaching courses are available:

  • Level I Module for Coaches of U6/U8 players Focused on 3v3 and 4v4 play
  • Level II Module for Coaches of U8/U10 players Focused on 4v4 and 6v6 play
  • Level III Module for coaches of U12 players Focused on 8v8 play.

These courses are designed specifically for parent coaches who play a very important part in the first soccer experiences of our young soccer players and in their early development. The courses provide classroom and field sessions specific to the age group listed. Cognitive, psycho-social and psychomotor developmental theory of each age group is discussed in the classroom sessions and put into practice in the field sessions through the presentation of age appropriate activities. Each Module runs for about 3-6 hours.

In addition to the Modules described above, the following courses are available at the state level:

  • E License Course for coaches of U13+ players Focused on 11v11 play
  • D License Course for coaches of U13+ players Focused on 11v11 play.

These courses are designed specifically for coaches of U13+ players who will be engaged in the 11v11 game. The E License course runs for 16-18 hours, while the D License Course runs for 34-36 hours. The D License Course involves testing. D License candidates will receive one of two designations after completing the course…the National D License or the State D License. The National D License is required in order to take the National C License Course.

At the National Level, US Soccer provides the following National Licenses:

  • The National Youth Certificate Course (coordinated through US Youth Soccer)

This is a 6 day course designed for State Level I, II, and III Instructors. The curriculum offers detailed classroom and field sessions specific to the U6, U8, U10 and U12 age groups. Coaching Candidates are video taped as they work with each age group. The video tapes are evaluated each evening with each candidate. The curriculum also involves presentations and group work on “Teaching Adults” and “How to Present”.

•C License Course
For coaches of competitive teams.
Focused on coaching in the area around the ball.
•B License Course
For coaches of competitive teams.
Focused on coaching functional (positional) play in the thirds of the field.
•A License Course
For coaches of competitive teams.
Focused on coaching 11v11 team play through the thirds of the field.

As you can see, there really is something for everyone. But our biggest challenge at US Youth Soccer and throughout our National State Associations, is getting the word out and attracting people to these wonderful coaching courses.If you are interested in attending a course or finding out about courses in your state, contact your State Soccer association or contact US Youth Soccer. Coaching education is extremely important in the development of our young players.