soccer coaching philosophy and codes of conduct for players, parents and coaches/officials

This is an extract of the coaching philosophy and codes of conduct used by my club.

You can download the complete Word document as a zip file by clicking here

Our coaching philosophy

The coaching staff and officials of [your club name] understand that children participate in football (or soccer) to have fun. If children don’t have fun playing football, they’ll soon pack it in.

We never forget that the game of football is just that - a game. It’s not about how many wins and losses are accumulated. And, it is surely not about how many trophies are collected. It’s not about how many goals we score or concede. It’s all about enjoying the game and, at the same time, learning and developing football and life skills.

Proper football development requires that children play age appropriate activities so they are able to experience, comprehend, and execute the game as it relates to where they are at their own stage of physical and mental development.

It is about playing in different positions so the player learns all the skills necessary to develop in the game.

It’s about receiving equal playing time, so the players are all given equal opportunity to learn.

It’s about learning the techniques of the game through a variety of fun games where players have as much contact with a ball as possible and learn at their own rates.

Code of conduct for parents/carers

Be your child's best fan and support her unconditionally.
When you take your child home after a match or training session, please be supportive and always focus on the positive aspects of her game.
Develop a responsibility in your child to pack her own kit, clean her boots and take a drinks bottle (full of water or squash only) to practice and games.
Respect the facilities at our opponents’ grounds.
Do not criticise your child’s coach to your child or other parents. If you are not happy with the coach you should raise the issue with the coach.
Encourage your child to speak with the coach. If your child is having difficulties in training or games, or can’t attend training etc. encourage her to speak directly to the coaches. This “responsibility taking” is a big part of becoming a mature person. By handling off the field tasks, your child is claiming ownership of all aspects of the game.
Help your child to focus on the performance and not the result. Remember - winning is not as important as the performance.
Support all the players in your child's squad. Do not criticise anyone. Remember – children don’t mean to make mistakes.
Do not criticise the opponents, their parents or their officials.
Never audibly dispute a referee’s decision. They will make mistakes occasionally. We all do. If you abuse or shout at the referee you are breaking the rules of the game and risk generating a fine for the club. In extreme circumstances we could even be expelled from the League, be forced to play all our games away or play without any spectators present.
Parents/carers must not coach from the touchline during matches or training. Leave this to the manager/coach or you may cause confusion and erode your child’s confidence.
Parents/carers must not enter the field of play.
Please remember – the game is for the children. It is not for the glory of the coach, manager or parents.

download the complete soccer coaching philosophy and codes of conduct for parents, players and coaches/officials (zip file)

an U9 players code of conduct by Chris White