5 Tips for First Time Soccer Parents!

As a soccer mom and assistant coach, we get a lot questions from first time soccer parents on what requirements their child will need. Even though ever sports team is different, here is a list of things we like to tell our soccer parents.

1) Be prepared for all practices. Shin-guards, clits (non-metal clits), water bottle and appropriate clothing are all required during practices. With appropriate clothing, anything they are comfortable in is fine but parents should keep in mind the weather. If it is a hot day, a child should be wearing shorts and not sweats - soccer is an active sport that requires a lot of movement.

2) Snacks. Most youth teams have a parent bring snack to a game. Check with your child coach and see if there is anything you can bring or assist with. After a game, it is nice for a child to receive a little treat but remember some children do have allergies to food.

3) Games and Practice schedule. Find out ahead of time what days and times the practices and games will be on. Most coaches keep practices at the same time each week but occasionally they can vary.

4) Helping out on and off the field. Understanding what goes on in practice can help your child out, it also gives them a chance to practice at home. On occasions, if parents were willing enough, we allowed them to assist us in doing soccer drills, which are extremely important in soccer. You can learn more about soccer drills and how to do some of the basic ones in the article Learn How to Do Soccer Drills in Four Easy Steps.

5) Make sure your child gets fair play. Not ever team is the same, nor coach, but we always made sure every child played in the game and no one got stuck playing the same position throughout. This is something I really recommend asking the coach about because no one wants to watch from the sidelines and it benefits your child more to understand all the areas of the field - not just one.

These five questions are things we are asked a lot and, and a parent a soccer player, I find are very important in soccer. Being active in your child's sport does not mean just watching the game, but actually being there to help out or assist him or her at home - plus the kids enjoy it when they can beat their parents!