A coach can be the most influential person in a child’s life

In AYSO, Positive Coaching is a fundamental philosophy because of the crucial role that a coach has. Coaching in AYSO is a chance to spend quality time with your own child but you’ll also provide an important role model for all the children on your team. In fact, the joy of coaching is so meaningful, that many AYSO coaches continue coaching long after their own children have moved on from AYSO. Soccer knowledge is a plus, but AYSO provides training and materials so that even a soccer novice can coach effectively by starting in the younger age divisions.

Being a coach involves skills you probably already have in addition to specific soccer knowledge. If you are uncertain, try being an assistant coach. Our region's Coach Administrator will be happy to try to match you up with somebody with a little more experience.

As a head coach, not only are you allowing more children to play, you also get to:

• Choose the day and location of practice
• Choose the uniform color/style
• Choose your assistant coach (who may be the parent/guardian of your child's best friend) 
  
• Coach more than one team and your games will be scheduled so there are no conflicts

No experience is necessary and all training is provided. Learn what others find to be such a rewarding experience.

AYSO has developed different programs to help coaches learn how to teach soccer to children at the different ages. The basic understanding of the AYSO program is taught through the following mandatory courses. There are four (4) main requirements - coaching skills, referee basics, safetyand a volunteer form, which vary at the different age levels.

• Everyone, regardless of division, must submit a Volunteer application  and a background check which needs to be renewed every 12 months.
• To protect our volunteers and our children, Safe Haven is a mandatory requirement for all AYSO coaches, assistant coaches, and referees.
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• Besides the AYSO program, there are many different other opportunities for coaches to learn as much as they want about teaching soccer (see practice sessions for ideas and some good links, or just surf through the internet).
  

Please send questions Coach Administrator Iain Blackwood at [email protected].