Last week, Seattle United reached out to United Soccer Coaches with a contemporary question. Since then, many other youth coaches and clubs have asked us the same question. How can we engage andencourage our players while training in person is suspended?
Youth coaches have long considered ways to keep their players connected to the game beyond weekly training and games through various forms of “soccer homework.”These efforts are especially relevant now when players are not getting in-person contact with the coach and teammates.
There are many potential answers to fit the various contexts of eachcoach and team. I reached out to colleagues and friends who are fostering engagement in creative ways. From their experiences and my own, here are five ideas to engage players who are home alone.These solutions are not exclusive and the list could be longer. What follows is a nice mixture of options that might engage the body, the mind, and the “spirit” of a youth player:
1.Many websites offer excellent “how to” videos with narration. These challenge the player by providing clear images of techniques they might execute alone. Some sites set “levels” of achievementfor self-referenced improvement, and others gamify the experience. Many of these resources are “open source,” that is, free, while others offer features that can be purchased. DaveJervis and his staff coaches at New York Red Bulls, Abby Katz and Richard Scott, shared with me this impressive site the club has developed:
3. While I cannot speak from personal experience, Coach Educator Vince Ganzberg suggested asking players to enter the “practice mode” inthe FIFA video game. Certainly the player is not getting off the couch in this solution, but the game in this mode engages the player’s creativity and imagination. Players can also save theirhighlights and share with their teammates.
4. One of my favoriteideas comes from James Brown, a colleague in Pennsylvania, who built a kick wall for his son and then shared the costs and specifications on Twitter. A garage door, a wall, or anyrigid surface offers a rebounder for a youth player. James’ website shows how to use multiple rebound surfaces and how to build a kick wall that gives the player more freedom to create techniqueand skill challenges. It also provides instructions on how to build a kick wall.
5. Finally, I am eager to promote a creative and contextual way to put players in virtual field scenarios where they must make strategic choices. The UnitedSoccer Coaches website offers this activity in the form of multiple choice quizzes I have created. In each scenario the player is asked, “What would you do?” The player then chooses anaction from among several options. Sharing responses electronically within the group creates a shared learning experience, because players can give and receive feedback on their ideas. See the picturebelow for an example. To access this resource for free, go to the United Soccer Coacheswebsite and search “quizzes” in the Online Resource Library. Alternatively, coaches can create their own game scenarios by using any session planning software.
Online Resource Library | United Soccer Coaches (search or filter: “quizzes”)
When engaging players online, it is important thatparents are made aware of all forms of electronic communication, and that players feel safe sharing their soccer videos, thoughts, and ideas within their team. Coaches must make clear that all rulesand standards of interaction on the field apply to online engagement as well.
When in-person training and games are not possible, the coach can still coach. For little to no cost, technologiesand social media can keep individual and team connection high. Ideally, soccer homework will be self-directed with coaching support. And of course, players should also be encouraged to stay physicallyactive.
(Ian Barker, the United SoccerCoaches‘ Director of Coaching Education, previously served as men’s head coach at Macalester College, director of coaching for the Minnesota Youth Soccer Association (MYSA),and assistant coach at the University of Wisconsin when it won the 1995 NCAA Division I title. Barker has served on the national instructional staff for United Soccer Coaches, U.S. Soccer and U.S.Youth Soccer)
Ian, great ideas — I especially like the kick wall. Thanks for sharing.
Ok since many of us are not able to work and no schools, but that don’t mean we can’t go to the soccer fields or the park to play w our daughter/son and kick a ball around as long as it’s only the 2 of us doing it.
so that’s what we continue to do.
dont need the youth to be in prison at home just use commerce sense when outside.
Thanks Ian! I just shared Red Bull’s Skill Challenge of the Week with my TEAM. Thanks to Red Bull for making this available to all.
Love the kick wall, too, … possibly the best training partner out there: 1) quality of return pass = to the quality of the ball played, 2) as quantity quality increases, the more fun it becomes (one of the reasons pros love repetitive fundamentals time with the ball)