Soccer Coaching Quotes: 180 Inspirational Soccer Coaching Philosophies
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Soccer is a team sport, and the team that wins is the one that works together the best. One of the best ways to encourage teamwork reinforce good mental notes. Having your own soccer coaching quotes can help with that.
How many of you coaches have sat down and told your team what your philosophy was and also how your coaching was going to go about implementing your philosophy?
In the same way, how many of you coaches set goals (hopefully based on what your team wants to achieve) and communicate them to your teams?
Have you ever asked your players for feedback on whether they think you are effectively coaching within the guidelines set forth in your coaching philosophies?
What if your coaching philosophy differs from the beliefs and objectives of your players?
Would you do something different then?
If you don’t talk to your team and ask them what they want and what they think you are providing them, you will never know if the players are happy or not.
What about if you are a player, have you ever asked a coach for his coaching philosophy? Don’t you think this could be important? Have you ever told your coach what YOU want? Have you ever told your coach how YOU plan on achieving this? Don’t you think YOU should take some responsibility for what happens to YOU and YOUR team?
Coaching philosophies can be valuable if they are shared by the coach to his players. They can be even more valuable if the philosophy could be a team philosophy rather than simply a coach’s philosophy.
Over 180 One-Sentence Coaching Philosophies.
These unique and inspirational quotes come from coaches and soccer players themselves. I have organized them into memes so you can save and share them with anybody who needs them!
1. My players can and will learn.
2. On good days we play good soccer, on bad days we TRY to play good soccer.
3. Developing skill, sportsmanship and the value of team working without sacrificing fun.
4. Success is something we strive for and victory by training.
5. When we have the ball, the entire team attacks. When the other team has the ball, our entire team is on defense.
6. Soccer coaching (teaching) philosophy is bringing a collection of young people together in a common setting of instructing them on the basic fundamentals of the game and instilling in them, through that process a personal sense of self-worth to themselves and their selves to the common good of the team and the team’s goal for the season.
7. It doesn’t matter what the game’s score is at the end, if you have learned something NEW, then you have WON the game anyway.
8. Improve skills and have fun.
9. Don’t give the ball away cheaply, if you have the ball the opposition can’t score.
10. My coaching philosophy is to teach the basic skills, encourage aggressive play beginning at a young age, and make the game fun.
11. Soccer is chess with a ball.
12. Especially in younger ages, teaching and mastering fundamental skills and verbally reinforcing/recognizing proper technique, form, and performance should be an essential element in coaching.
13. Fun, learning, sportsmanship.
14. I do whatever I can to develop my players so that they have great skills and attitudes, are great team players, and are great human beings.
15. I wish to enhance my players’ love for the game.
16. Fun, Skills, Work Rate, Tactics, in that order for any level !!
17. Have fun!!!
18. Respect and make use of the fact that the kids have chosen to be there, and always lead by example – physical conditioning (running/sprints) as well as skills.
19. To create a fun environment where players want to come to practice and games while facilitating each players soccer growth and development to the full extent possible.
20. As a team, we want to play hard, play smart, play with heart, have fun all the time, put constant pressure on the opposing defense and make sure that our goalie is the most bored player on the field.
21. Defend, defend, defend, the rest will follow.
22. Age-appropriate skill, conditioning, and decision making improvement and growth interwoven with FUN.
23. Fun, Fitness and Personal Best Performance.
24. The strength of the wolf is the pack and the strength of the pack is the wolf.
25. If you think winning is the only thing that matters in youth sports, maybe you should volunteer for something else.
26. Let the game be the teacher.
27. I like to build the team from the back line forward, keeping the ball in front of my best players and moving the ball up the field in a triangle to maximize our ability to outnumber the other side on the ball.
28. To share the knowledge I learn, the passion I have gained, and the potential I see; in every person who is willing to listen.
29. Plan what you are going to do, practice what you have planned, execute what you have practiced, and enjoy the fruits of your labors.
30. We will continue to develop strong minds and bodies for their future, while we build character on the field.
31. You never fail if you try your hardest.
32. Attempt to get the best from each individual on the team.
33. It’s not just winning and losing that matters; it’s how you teach your players to win and lose.
34. Attack and finish.
35. Never turn your back to the ball!
36. First one to the ball wins.
37. WORK HARD AND ALWAYS MOVE WITHOUT THE BALL.
38. The body will go wherever the mind will take it.
39. If the kids aren’t having fun while they learn at practice, then they aren’t “PLAYING” soccer.
40. Play soccer, have fun, get better, win. Repeat.
41. Individual development: coach and give the skills required to learn; then you will improve each player…
42. Create a desire to learn; they will learn to win.
43. Always use the proper technique no matter how easy or tough the shot is.
44. Laziness leads to being scored on.
45. Coaching youngsters is about imparting a love for the game and a love for playing the game well!
46. Soccer is a simple game confused by the human element.
47. Have fun while learning the game of soccer.
48. Good feet before any diving.
49. Coach at practice, not at games.
50. Winning isn’t everything, striving to win is.
51. My coaching philosophy for 11-14-year-old girls: lots of ball contact, technique drills that make them move and have fun, emphasize keeping the ball on the ground.
52. Stay focused, don’t be afraid to try something different & have fun doing whatever it is you want to do.
53. It’s not the money, it’s not the power…. IT’S THE KIDS STUPID!!!
54. I coach not only to teach the game but hopefully to instill in my girls a love for the “beautiful game”.
55. To build self-esteem in the children of our community by developing athletic skills and sportsmanship through fun and friendly competition.
56. To teach my players to play the game in the manner at which it is played at the highest of levels within the context of their particular age and level of development, while keeping in mind that virtually none of my players will ever turn pro, but will in all likelihood grow to become parents and hopefully coaches as well.
57. My philosophy is to offer committed players the opportunity to develop their skills both technically & tactically.
58. Both players and coaches should have high expectations of themselves and of each other and should do their best to meet those expectations.
59. Practice as you play, play as you practice.
60. To build character and bodies through the game of soccer.
61. I love Yoda’ s saying, “There is no try, just do.” Don’t try to play well, don’t try to do well academically, don’t try to be a good sportswoman, don’t try to be a teammate; DO!
62. Fun and success through fitness, skills and teamwork
63. Keep the game fun.
64. I strive as a coach to provide an environment where my players can improve their soccer skills, learn the lessons only a competitive, team sport can teach, and most importantly, enjoy the experience enough that they will stay involved with the game, in some capacity, for the rest of their lives.
65. I do not coach a sport; I coach kids!
66. KEEP IT SIMPLE SOCCER!!
67. Just because you don’t have the ball, doesn’t make you not in the play.”
68. DO YOUR BEST AND HAVE FUN.
69. DESIRE, TECHNIQUE. VISION, RESULTS
70. Working with the soccer athletes to maximize their strengths while helping them to learn how to minimize the impact of their weaknesses.
71. Athlete First, Winning Second.
72. To develop to the highest possible level the abilities, skills, performances, competitiveness, and accomplishments of the team and every player on the team through enjoyable and intense practices, and through spirited and competitive matches.
73. I believe in teaching kids how to play technically clean, skilled soccer in a manner that they can develop physically, mentally and emotionally at their own level, while enjoying themselves.
74. The game is the greatest teacher.
75. I try to combine a high level of fitness and technique in my training sessions using all 16 players effectively, so they all contribute on game day which I believe other teams have a hard time keeping up with.
76. To give each one of my players an equal opportunity to play in each game no matter what their skill level.
77. If you make it fun for the youth, they will continue to learn, and continue to love the game.
78. The more a player develops her technical skills; the more she will enjoy her sport participation.
79. The character of your players will win more games than anything else.
80. Winning is a byproduct of proper development, not the other way around.
81. Keep the ball on the ground and play to feet.
82. The Team passes, The Team receives, The Team shoots, The Team defends, The Team wins.
83. If you learn it right the first time, you won’t have to learn it again.
84. A coach must be so attentive as to move through each game as though the ball, and to make certain in whatever manner appropriate that this passage can be dissected and analyzed by the individual player, team and coach so that the collective contribution propagates improvement.
85. Build a strong Defense in order to attack.
86. Through my coaching, I attempt to guide a player, through reflective teaching, to the next obtainable level of their game to better advance the player and the team.
87. As a coach, you have to find your opponents weakness and work on it with your team’s strengths, that is how you defeat strong opposition.
88. Praise and encouragement.
89. A goalkeeper must always return to the fundamentals in order to excel at any level of play.
90. Some you win and some you lose, but there will always be juice boxes, teddy grahams, and pats on the back after every game…
91. Excellence over Success.
92. Let the kids have fun so they can learn, and later learn to win.
93. Keep it simple!!
94. To develop the player’s personal skills and team play at their age-appropriate level, so that they will be more complete players at higher levels, able to play almost any position on any team, and contribute significantly.
95. I would rather have a team who lost games, yet still enjoyed their soccer rather than a team who win all the time and don’t enjoy it, FUN is the keyword.
96. Games/Championships are not won by individuals or teams that score the most goals – they’re won by teams made up of individuals that support each other with conviction – both on and off the pitch
97. Attack from the back.
98. Discipline, fitness, and score more goals than the other team!
99. Practice how you play, play how you practice.
100. WORK HARD DURING PRACTICE AND HAVE FUN DURING THE MATCH.
101. Being an active resource to another individual for exploring, building and maximizing their potential
102. Coach us like men, treat us like women.
103. Carpe Ludum! (Seize the game!)
104. The most successful coaches will teach their players in a manner in which players find themselves practicing on their own to improve their skills and knowledge of the game.
105. Play hard and have fun.
106. We must continually strive for fair, equitable, and respectful treatment of all children in a learning environment. (Soccer and life).
107. Success isn’t always measured in wins and losses – it is when you see dirt on their kit, sweat on their forehead, and smiles on their faces when they know, and you know, they played as best as they could.
108. Play to learn. (For youth, especially U12 – games of all types are the best teachers and trainers)
109. When Preparing training sessions, keep it real, if it doesn’t happen in the game, don’t do it!
110. A controlled, analytical goalkeeper will succeed the out-of-control, reactive goalkeeper who is less attentive to details and seems to fight off even the most routine of saves.
111. You must do what you have to before you can do what you want to
112. The successful coach philosophy provides a goal-oriented environment in which all athletes can measure growth and internally strive to achieve self-motivated levels of success and instil a passion for the sport since a lost player is a failed coach.
113. My philosophy is to teach these kids how to learn and love the game of soccer, while still having fun doing it.
114. For rec soccer, coach the game soccer, not daycare soccer.
115. To play players only for their skills is to condemn players of fewer abilities forever to realize their true potential.
116. To create a safe, fun, challenging learning and playing environment for all players. Creating an environment where kids learn to love the work leads to excellent soccer and loads of fun, making them want to play and come back for more.
117. Tomorrow’s Success Is Founded On Today’s Preparation.
118. Good Enough is Not Good Enough
119. Keep soccer simple, and make it fun.
120. Coaching soccer is a little bit like jazz is to music, the coach lays down the beat and the rhythm, and like the jazz band, the team improvise around the melody of the game
121. First, techniques. Then, tactics. And finally, fitness to lift the speed of the game.
122. It’s how you play the game that counts.
123. Youth soccer coaches should measure themselves by how many kids return each year and if the kids are improving every year. Kids first, W-L records last.
124. To inspire each player to develop the confidence to maximize their potential, to value the team, and to love the game
125. Coaching soccer is a little bit like jazz is to music, the coach lays down the beat and the rhythm, and like the jazz band, allows the team to improvise around the melody of the game.
126. Develop players that will love the game for a lifetime.
127. Coach the fundamentals, develop the players and play with confidence.
128. Learn the game, play the game; learn to work, learn to play; learn to win, learn to grow from adversity, but most important, HAVE FUN.
129. Build from the Defense outward.
130. Form is temporary; class is permanent – concentrate on development.
131. Helping players develop through knowledge, environment and fun
132. To instill life skills and social philosophy as well as sporting skills and physcology….winning is only part of the answer, harmony within self and group is my biggest motivator.
133. IF WE HAD FUN WE WON!
134. Winning is a consequence of doing the best you can. You never lose if you do your best.
135. Pressure on the ball (on the attack and defense); purposeful marking; own both penalty areas.
136. Mastery of the ball with vision and close control at game speed and under pressure.
137. Develop each players’ skills and love for soccer to the limits of each one’s ability.
138. Why dictate when you can educate?
139. If it isn’t fun, why do it?
140. Soccer, to every player, regardless of their level of play, should be a growing experience where they are able to learn the lessons of life through the game while improving their skill and having FUN!
141. On defense, the team must absorb the attack, neutralize their opportunities to finish their shots, gain control of the ball, and attack, creating opportunities to both retain possession and finish with shots on goal.
142. The ideas I convey to my kids, at the first meetings, are to have fun, learn the sports, and develop teamwork as the season progresses.
143. Give them what they need to succeed without you.
144. I tell my team the following before every practice and every game: Play Hard, Do Your Best, Work as a Team, and Have Fun.
145. I want to see as many of the girls I coach on the field playing in my league in 9 years or so because they have found it to be as challenging and as rewarding as I do.
146. Promote and teach fundamental individual skills, good sportsmanship, respect for authority, loyalty to the team and a heightened sense of self-worth and fold them together into appropriate game tactics and winning team play.
147. Build skills within the coaching and not worry about the game’s outcome for the players shall do this on their own.
148. You need to play the game before you yell at your players to run harder go faster etc. once you have played the game, your outlook is a little different.
149. Coaching, is you giving to your players while they are youthful what it took you forty years to learn
150. Solid preparation upfront, economical-functional-tactical skills to goal, drop the reins and HAVE FUN!
151. To prepare today’s youth for the real world through teamwork and discipline learned on the soccer field.
152. To aid in the enjoyment and understanding of the skills and tactics of the game so as to achieve the best results possible.
153. I believe that first and foremost skill, fun, and off the ball movement are what the game is all about.
154. How you practice is how you play.
155. See goals, not obstacles; see possibilities, not limits!
156. Preparation, practice, persistence, patience, passion…PREPARATION PREVENTS POOR PERFORMANCE.
157. The ball moves faster than you can run, so use your brain.
158. Practices are for learning; games are for seeing if we learned.
159. Soccer is a game of possession and control.
160. To instil a passion so deep that regardless of the skill level of the player, that they are drawn to the game even when their playing days are over.
161. The responsibility of the coach is to perfect the organization of the team.
162. Soccer is a microcosm of life and how you train, play and deal with others goes a long way to say what kind of person you are and how you change to the person you will become.
163. Making the players want to play and always want to have the ball at their feet will help each player develop a presence on the field.
164. Your improvement will reflect the effort made.
165. I believe that if the players and the coach are enjoying training, so long as the coach has a sound understanding of the game, that more can be achieved.
166. Dream big, dare to fail, execute
167. Youth soccer is for the kids; it’s our job to teach them HOW to have fun.
168. Practice easy, Game hard; Practice hard, Game easy.
169. I tell the kids (U10) to pretend they’re 2-years-old and think “it’s my ball, and you can’t play with it!”
170. For elementary-age youth teams – It’s never the other teams turn to have the ball!
171. Ensure all of your players both on and off the pitch know and trust you, desire to be part of something exceptional and are willing to work very hard to achieve it, and believe anything can be done if the right attitude and mental fortitude are present – because there is life in, around, and after soccer.
172. To provide my keepers with the skills, information and confidence necessary so that when they walk onto the field, they know that they can react to any situation which confronts them and deal with it in an appropriate and satisfactory manner.
173. DEFENSE wins games…If they can’t score, they can’t win !!!
174. When in doubt, kick it out.
175. You hear – you forget, You see – you remember, You demonstrate – You understand.
176. Succeed at the highest level possible without sacrificing fun and learning
177. To guide youth towards maximizing their potential as people first, then as players.
178. Do or Do Not…There is no try -Yoda
179. Everybody contributes, Everybody wins.
180. Put the ball in the other team’s goal, and often!
181. The wins were great, the losses unfortunate, the fun was real.
182. I’m there to give my players a chance to win. That’s my role in the context of coaching anyone.
183. Dedication, Determination, and Desire for the sport, which displays within the game of life!
184. No matter what the outcome, you are a success if you can walk off the field proud of yourself and with pride in your team!
185. If soccer were supposed to be played in the air, then god would have built fields in the clouds.
186. Soccer is a simple game, often complicated by those who play it
187. Kids are chaotic when in groups of more than two; let them be and then show them how to make order out of chaos.
188. If they’re not laughing and giggling, you’re doing something wrong.
189. I will judge my job coaching not by victories, but by the number of players who consider me their best friend for the rest of their life.
