Steve Hoffman

Soccer NEWS:  STEVE HOFFMAN on U.S. Soccer Curriculum, Cal South and the Development of Youth Soccer Players  

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The new program outlines a the style of play: Offensive Style All teams will be encouraged to display an offensive style of play based on keeping possession and quick movement off the ball. Quick Transitioning and Finishing Speed of play, avoiding over-dribbling, looking for an organized and quick movement off the ball and finishing will be encouraged in all age groups. A team must be organized defensively, keeping their specific positions in the formation. However, players will look for spaces and movements to support forward when attacking by moving away from their original positions.  11v11 Teams will use the 4-3-3 formation, either in its 4-2-3-1 or 4-1-2-3 variations. Teams in the advanced stage (U15 onwards) can also use a 4-4-2 formation with a diamond in the middle. This system (4-4-2 diamond) provides more space in the wide areas of the field for the outside backs to move forward and join the attack. Teams playing 9v9 soccer are strongly encouraged to use the 3-2-3 formation. This formation helps players express the principles of play specified in this document. This system allows for better adaptation to a 4-3-3 formation as the players progress to 11v11.

Steve Hoffman, Director of Coaching and Player Development for Cal South on the changing landscape of youth soccer in America, player development

Steve Hoffman is Director of Coaching for Cal South’s 137,000 players, 14,000 plus coaches and more than 240 clubs.  A long time member of the youth coaching world, Steve Hoffman has helped player development evolve and the Olympic Development Program (ODP) produce great players. 

U.S. Soccer President Sunil Gulati announced the appointment of four-time World Cup veteran Claudio Reyna as the Federation’s Youth Technical Director in April, 2010.  One year later, Reyna brought out the new U.S. Soccer Curriculum designed to improve development of players in the organized player base in the United States. The new curriculum concentrates on creating a more organized, age-appropriate training sessions, developing better coaching practices and creating an environment that is fun for players. The new coaching curriculum signaled a new approach to developing youth soccer players in our country. 

U.S. Soccer hired David Chesler to help really implement the curriculum. Chesler, who holds a U.S. Soccer “A” Coaching License, has been a U.S. Soccer National Staff Instructor since 1996, and is helping run courses at the National Coaching Schools for A, B and C licenses. Chesler took over as head coach of the U.S. Under-18 Women’s National Team at the beginning of 2009, and coached in the Region IV Olympic Development Program for 17 years. Chesler was also a high school teacher for many years.

Steve Hoffman wants America to be #1 and is dedicated to providing the best player development programs possible for today's youth soccer players.  Hoffman knows that America needs to do better, and can do better in developing great soccer players.

“We are not producing enough top level soccer players. Who have we produced recently? Landon Donovan and Clint Dempsey are fabulous players but who do we have in the world's best soccer leagues such as La Liga?  And on the women’s side, we are #2 right now. We want to be #1 in the world. All the golden era women players all played with boys growing up.  Now the women’s team struggles when we play teams that are tougher. One of the biggest problems we have in this county is the size of the country and the new U.S. Soccer Curriculum is going to improve player development," says Hoffman.   

Understanding that our players can achieve more and that the game has grown, U.S. Soccer revamped the coaching guidelines. According to Hoffman, "U.S. Soccer has recognized the need for better coach training and education.  David Chesler's involvement clearly shows the emphasis and importance of teaching. The new curriculum requires more learning components before and after the regular coaching courses."

“Parents’ insatiable appetite for winning is one of our biggest challenges. U.S. Soccer doesn't have a magic wand.  How do you evaluate your club coach? It should be about development, not about how many tournaments or games your team has won.” Hoffman says, “It is an interesting time in youth soccer. What we need are better teachers to teach the game. The European model is being used and the approach is very professional." 

Just think back to the last time you were at a soccer field.  Did you hear a coach screaming instructions at a player? “We want kids to solve problems in the game, not have the coaches screaming what the players should be doing every two minutes,” says Hoffman.   

Coaches yelling instructions to players from the sidelines has been SOP (Standard Operating Procedure) for decades. How do we change behavior on the sidelines?  Hoffman recommends that coaches should have someone videotape them coaching a game. “Video taping a coach coaching from the sidelines is a great learning tool but coaches don’t use it enough.  When people see themselves, they can realize exactly what they are doing,” says Hoffman.

Young players need a good teaching environment and the old-fashioned screaming coach who dictates every step of action is not developing players, even if he is winning games.

This new approach reflects the deep shift in coaching guidelines set forth by U.S. Soccer.  The new focus is on training coaches to teach the game of soccer, not to have coaches who coach to win. 

Hoffman also believes that kids should be kids and play multiple sports. “If you look at the great players, most of the great ones, were developed in many sports.  We are specializing at too young an age. Kids should be diverse,” says Hoffman.

All too often, focusing on one sport, such as soccer, is the desire of the parents with the goal of replacing college funding. As Hoffman says, “Playing youth soccer should not be about college scholarships but about player development.  The preparation for the MLS is college.”  

Editor's note: If playing college soccer is a pre-professional stepping stone, then the top level college fields should not be filled with players who are there just to get an academic education at a discount but rather players who are dedicated to the future of the game. 

Education is the road to change and U.S. Soccer is determined to improve the coaching education levels in America. There are now new requirements in coach ing education. For example, for the basic E License, coaches must take an online RULES OF THE GAME test prior to the classroom course.  Plus there is a new, required course from the CDC (Center for Disease Control) on how to recognize and deal with concussion. Hoffman says, "We feel the CDC's course is essential for coaches."

U.S. Soccer is also focused on growing the sport in America and is looking at the youngest players, trying to determine what can we do to get more kids involved.

U.S. Soccer would like to grow the game at the youngest level.  According to USFF, the numbers of children playing soccer has doubled since 1990.  As reported in the NY Times, June 23, 2010 “The immediate effect of the World Cup on participation in soccer is harder to gauge, because people’s motivations are varied and often imprecise. Still, the number of youth soccer players in the United States has doubled, to 4.04 million players, since 1990, according to the United States Soccer Federation. At the same time, the number of high school soccer players has more than doubled since 1990, to 730,106 athletes, the fastest growth rate among any major sport, according to statistics compiled by the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association.”

Many of the top elite clubs’ girls players in So Cal are registered to play in both Cal South and US Club and this year many of these top teams will not participate in Cal South State Cup or National Cup because of conflicts.

According to Hoffman, “If you are an elite player you will find yourself on the elite player level.”  This elite track can be outside the traditional Cal South program. There are 4.3 million kids playing soccer and 78 U.S. Youth Development Academies throughout America.  If there are approximately 30 kids rostered on each academy and two teams per academy, then there is a total of less than 5,000 kids involved on this elite level. 

The impact of these top, elite level players leaving the mainstream youth soccer programs to play ENCL and Academy is not a problem, according to Hoffman who says, “These are the kids out of mainstream. Is it a loss to have these top tier players not participate in State Cup and National Cup? Absolutely. But if it is better for these kids, better for the game, then it is absolutely better.  And this provides the lower end of everyones roster to have more playing time and to develop."

What will be interesting? According to Hoffman, people complain about traveling to Lancaster, for instance, for State Cup competition and bad weather canceling games.  Now parents are going to travel to North Carolina with the rain there and possible cancellations? 

Hoffman says, “The new Southern California Development Soccer League, (SCDSL) is well liked by the coaches because it is really about developing players.”  SCDSL was formed this year by a group of Directors of Coaches from top clubs in Southern California.

“The rules in youth soccer are evolving to be more club centric and more focused on player development. For instance, a new rule provides greater freedom for coaches to change rosters within their own clubs allowing for better player development.   The ability to roster players at later deadlines provides the clubs freedom of player movement. This is a more professional approach to player rostering.”  More details on this Cal South roster deadline and other changes will be announced soon.

Hoffman says, “There are 4.3 million kids playing soccer in America. Cal South is the leading state for youth soccer in our country and we are working on some significant and exciting changes in ODP. This is a great time to be involved in youth soccer and I believe the new curriculum is going to improve player development for all our players.” 

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Updated at 10:40 AM