The popularity of youth soccer in the United States has increased dramatically in recent years. The number of players and spectators has risen and soccer now rivals the more traditional American sports of baseball, basketball, and football. This is a study of current youth soccer training methods at professional clubs in Europe—where soccer is an extremely competitive sport—and a guide to applying those methods to young people in the United States. The author draws much of his information from personal observation of the FC Barcelona, Newcastle United, Glasgow Celtic, Munich 1860, and Slavia Prague professional teams in Europe, and provides an overview of the state of youth soccer in the United States. Chapters cover such topics as facilities, equipment, organization, and environment, player evaluation, training timetables and components, coaching, and philosophies of youth soccer. Also included are approximately 100 diagrams of soccer training exercises for youth coaches.

Kevin McShane is the head soccer coach at St. Albans School in Washington, D.C. He lives in Washington.

Kevin McShane
Format: softcover (6 x 9)
Pages: 208
Bibliographic Info: tables, diagrams, appendices, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2002
pISBN: 978-0-7864-1088-0
eISBN: 978-0-7864-8131-6
Imprint: McFarland

Acknowledgments     vii

Preface     1

1 The State of American Youth Soccer     7

2 Organization, Facilities, and Equipment     27

3 Player Evaluation     46

4 Training Timetable and Components     72

5 Coaches     97

6 Philosophy of Youth Soccer in Europe     113

7 Recommendations for the United States from European Clubs     129

Appendix A: Questionnaire about Youth Soccer Development Programs     147

Appendix B: Introduction to Training Exercises     150

Appendix C: Warm-Up Routines     152

Appendix D: Physical Training     156

Appendix E: Technical Training     165

Appendix F: Tactical Training     175

Annotated Bibliography     191

Index     195

“this is a must read”—The Goal.