Why Should Children Be Encouraged To Play Soccer?

In today's media we're constantly being reminded of a health time bomb that is intending to explode as kids today are not active enough.

You can find so many competing distractions for our children's attention, video games, endless channels to watch, these can all result in sedentary lifestyle in case they're not kept in check.

Soccer is the beautiful game, played by millions of little women and boys (aged six to 18) across many continents, whether it's on the shores of Rio, the back alleys of a major city nearby or perhaps the local park, you will find someone kicking a football around.

In today's society there has been a shift to more organised soccer practice for our youth players. Gone are the days of jumpers for goal posts, as streets are littered with automobiles and grass verges now have houses built on them.

Developing a more structured approach is both a very good and a terrible thing; on just one hand young players get structured education and development through willing volunteers who show them how everything from how you can warm up properly, develop their technical ability with the ball all the way through to skill development and organised small sided games to wrap everything up in concert to make a total learning experience.

Today time is limited and therefore there may be only one hour or perhaps two devoted to structured soccer practice during the week, what happens when practice is over?

Getting the child of yours to get involved in an organised soccer school or perhaps club is able to bring tremendous benefits to you and your child.

Soccer is able to help boost your child's self esteem, which feeds their self talk which ultimately drives the performance of theirs. Soccer pictures But soccer is not the sole winner, in many cases it could be seen that academic performance can increases to!

Studies have found that getting young kids involved in soccer at an early stage promotes a real healthy attitude towards this attitude and the game continues with them into adult life.

The top reason why children play soccer is always to have fun; if soccer is fun and enjoyable then players will have to continue playing. This benefits the overall physical fitness of theirs and reduces their health risks considerably.

Soccer is made fun by coaches worldwide who willingly give up their time voluntarily to organise youth soccer practice and coach teams.

Gone are the days when soccer, for the really young players, was an eleven a side game with no touches and offside rules of the ball for substantial periods of the game.

Youth soccer from the age of six to eleven is usually about having fun, playing small sided matches like four v four with no goal keepers, promoting a lot of touches of the ball and player interaction on the pitch.

Through playing soccer and encouraging children to take regular exercise a lot of the risk factors that are connected with heart disease like obesity and diabetes can be reduced significantly. It is stated that childhood obesity has increased by over fifty % since 1976, which happens to be a truly scary fact.

Getting your kid involved in soccer does not just improve their health. We have mentioned already the improvements at school.

Social benefits, like mixing with others, having to work as a team, contributing through individual effort to a collective goal, experiencing the highs and lows, picking each other up, competition, striving to end up being the very best, aiming to win and helping and supporting others are all by products of playing soccer.

Most of the life skills that the players learn through soccer are beneficial in life that is later, exactly how to develop and create relationships, developing a sense of co operation, how to lead people, how to deal with adversity, what commitment means and punctuality, are all key qualities that will benefit the players in adult life.

If your kid has already been playing soccer, great. But what can you do if you wish to have your kid involved in a local soccer team? Here are 7 must ask questions that you and your kid should think about when trying to locate a good club...

1) What level of commitment is needed in terms of practice sessions and games at the weekend?

2) When are the training sessions? At what time are games played, what's the format and just how much time will you have to devote?

Three) How far are you willing to travel to training as well as to matches? A number of clubs are going to operate travel teams where distances can be considerable, including overnight stops.

Four) What are the costs involved? Some clubs adopt a pay when you play, others a far more structured approach. The most expensive clubs aren't always the best, ask yourself is what your paying in the equivalent to what your child is getting out?

5) What do you and also your child want out of playing soccer? This must be aligned with the potential clubs philosophy, is it about having fun or winning?

Six) How best will your kid learn, develop and stay interested? Are they happy just to be involved or would they thrive in a considerably more competitive environment?

7)What is the clubs constitution and philosophy to soccer, how much time have they been in existence, the experience of the coaches, location, facilities etc.

When you have considered the above questions what are your next steps to locating a good club or soccer organisation for your child?

You can...

I) Get in contact with the local Soccer Association of yours by searching the internet or even looking in yellow pages. They should be competent to give you a list of organisations and clubs in the local area of yours.

ii) Ask other parents/guardians about local junior and youth soccer teams. You will be surprised at how many adults or their kids are involved.

iii) Encourage you children to ask their school mates just where they play their soccer. Knowing some of the team can be a tremendous advantage as players integrate themselves into a team.

iv) Ask your child's form tutor or headmaster if they know of any clubs or even organisations. Many clubs have formed relationships which are healthy with the schools over the years.

v) Read the local papers or perhaps local news internet sites you'll be amazed at how much coverage youth and junior soccer gets.

These five practical steps should enable you to get a club which meets yours and your child's soccer aspirations. Nonetheless, if there still is not a club near you that could satisfy a need why not look to set up the own team of yours!