8 Beginner-Friendly Soccer Coaching Books to Build Your Skills

What started as a desire to help volunteers and parents navigate the complexities of youth soccer coaching became a series of clear, approachable guides by Chris King. Drawing from over 30 years playing soccer and a decade of coaching experience, King breaks down how to organize fun, skill-building sessions for kids aged 5 to 10, even if you’ve never coached before. You'll find easy-to-follow drills and inventive games like "Space Invaders" and "Cops and Robbers," complete with diagrams to help you set up practices confidently. This book suits anyone stepping into grassroots coaching who wants practical, hands-on ways to engage young players without feeling overwhelmed.

Chris King challenges the conventional wisdom that coaching requires advanced certifications by delivering a straightforward guide tailored for amateur and volunteer soccer coaches. Drawing from over a decade of coaching men, women, and youth teams across the UK and Australia, King provides adaptable drills and full 90-minute session plans that cover critical aspects like playing out from the back and pressing from the front. You’ll find detailed diagrams and step-by-step instructions designed to keep players engaged while improving endurance, technique, and tactical awareness. This book suits coaches who want practical, ready-to-use training without getting bogged down in theory.

This tailored book explores the foundational principles of soccer coaching with a focus on beginner-friendly guidance built around your experience and goals. It covers essential coaching techniques, practice planning, and player development, presenting content that matches your background and progresses at your pace. By focusing on your interests and addressing your specific coaching challenges, this personalized guide removes overwhelm and builds your confidence step by step. You’ll discover how to design engaging training sessions, communicate effectively with players, and foster a positive team environment, all through a learning experience tailored to your comfort level. This approach ensures you gain practical knowledge without unnecessary complexity, making your coaching journey both enjoyable and effective.

Chris King's decade-plus experience coaching diverse teams across the UK and Australia culminates in this extensive drill collection designed for grassroots and amateur coaches. Here, you gain access to 110 drills, each carefully diagrammed and adaptable to various skill levels, focused on improving passing, pressing, defending, and attacking skills. You’ll find practical advice on training session planning and player development woven throughout, making it straightforward to organize effective practices. Whether you're handling a small youth squad or a larger amateur side, this book equips you with the tools to boost your team’s fitness, skill, and game awareness simultaneously. While it’s a hefty volume, the clear layout ensures you won't feel overwhelmed as you build your coaching foundation.

When Chris King first realized how overwhelming it could be for new coaches to design effective soccer training sessions, he created this book to simplify the process. You’ll find adjustable drills that cater to different skill levels and team sizes, helping you develop passing, pressing, defending, and attacking skills all within "on the ball" exercises that improve both technique and game awareness. The book also guides you through planning sessions and includes FIFA 11 warm-up drills to get your team ready efficiently. If you’re starting out or coaching at grassroots level, this book offers straightforward advice and visual diagrams that make coaching approachable and practical.

Booqooze addresses a common frustration among soccer coaches: managing the chaos of training sessions and player data without a clear system. This logbook offers a practical framework for organizing drills, tracking player progress, and planning matches using dedicated field templates and attendance sheets. You’ll find detailed sections for player profiles and match analysis, making it easier to monitor individual growth and team strategy across an entire season. It’s a straightforward tool designed for coaches at any level who want to bring order to their routines without getting bogged down in complex theory.

This tailored book explores effective methods for coaching children in soccer, designed specifically to match your background and goals. It reveals how to create engaging sessions that inspire young players by focusing on progressive, personalized learning experiences. The content addresses foundational skills and confidence-building techniques, paced to your comfort level, removing overwhelm often found in beginner guides. By concentrating on your interests and skill level, the book offers a clear, step-by-step path to developing young athletes with enthusiasm and care. It examines ways to nurture player growth through fun, targeted drills and motivational coaching approaches, all crafted to fit your unique coaching journey.

What started as a focused effort to enhance player speed led Vasilis Papadakis, an experienced soccer coach, to compile this targeted collection of drills designed for youth and amateur teams. You’ll learn to develop multiple facets of speed—sensing, decision-making, reaction, and running—through exercises tailored for players aged 14 to 18 and beyond. The book’s clear, full-color design makes it easy to follow each drill, helping you integrate speed training without overwhelming newcomers. This resource suits coaches looking to build foundational speed skills in developing athletes, emphasizing practical drills over theory.

Players 1st offers a fresh approach to coaching young soccer players, focusing on individual growth rather than immediate team success. Bill Dooley draws from his own journey starting as a novice coach to delivering practical insights for developing players aged 7 to 14. You’ll find guidance on fostering a "Go-for-It" mindset, embracing mistakes as learning moments, and nurturing confidence that extends beyond the field. The book emphasizes building stronger, responsible individuals, making it a thoughtful resource for coaches aiming to enrich both skills and character. If you're seeking a coaching guide that prioritizes player development over winning records, this book fits perfectly.

Agustín Peraita, a UEFA Pro Coach and Technical Director at FCBareclona Sao Paulo Escola, offers a detailed exploration of Pep Guardiola's tactical philosophy during his tenure at FC Barcelona. This book unpacks the complex tactical periodization, positional play, and weekly training schedules that shaped the 2009-2010 Barça team, focusing especially on preseason preparation. You’ll gain insight into structuring training that prioritizes ball retention and tactical adaptation, supported by over 50 illustrations and drills. While the language is technical, this work suits coaches ready to engage deeply with modern soccer coaching principles and develop a possession-based style similar to Guardiola’s team.