I Want To Coach In The Premier League One Day! What Types Of Soccer Coach Jobs Can Help Me Get There?

soccer coach jobs

So you're looking to see what types of soccer coach jobs are out there are you?

Well Mourinho as much as we'd all like to coach Real Madrid or nothing let me show you all the different types of jobs out there in the coaching world you may not even realize exist.

Each club only has one head coach for the senior team but most people don't know there are so many other coaching jobs within a club (professional or youth) that you're not even thinking about that you could be perfect for.

A wise coach once told me that the best coaches at a club coach the youngest ages because that's where all the real teaching and development happens. So even though your dream job may be to be the head coach of the senior team that isn't necessarily the pinnacle of soccer coach jobs within a club, younger ages, combined ages, girls, boys, coach, director and so many more jobs are available that just might suit you perfectly.

Before you start applying for all these jobs you're going to make sure you fit what they're looking for on paper before you get a shot at an in person or on field interview.

Licenses, experience, philosophy and education are a few things any credible club will look for and you can find more details about all the different requirements including the ones just listed in more detail below.

Well coach let's see if your dream job awaits you below, if not it's time to beef up that resume and keep developing as a coach on and off the field until that job opens up, and when it does you'll be ready.


Soccer Coach Jobs Videos


Which Types Of Soccer Coach Jobs Are There Within A Soccer Club?


1. Technical Director

  • This person overseas all operations of the club.  They hire, mentor and place coaches around the club in their necessary roles to get the club functioning at its highest level.
  • This role sometimes may even coach a team if necessary and if time allows.


2. Academy Director

  • The academy director overseas all teams and players in the youth academy and coach themselves a team or two in the youth ranks.


3. First Team Head Coach

  • This would be your senior teams head coach who overseas all decisions with regards to strategy, tactics, formations and player selection with the clubs top team.
  • Some think soccer coach jobs don't get better than this but the pressure and lack of security makes it a tough job for anyone to take on.


4. First Team Assistant Coach

  • This assistant role does just that, assists the first teams head coach with all duties that are necessary to run the senior team at the club.
  • Duties include coaching, working with segments of the team, set pieces, goal setting, practice planning etc.


5. Second Team Head Coach

  • Similar role here to the first team Head Coach the only difference being they work with the clubs second highest teams who's goal is to push and develop players to contribute to the first team in the short, medium and long term.


6. Second Team Assistant Coach

  • No surprise here this coach assists with all things to do with the clubs second team from the top, also known as the reserve team.
  • There are many more soccer coach jobs within a club such as all the youth team head and assistant coaches not to mention sports psychologists, nutritionists, strength coaches and therapists to name a few.
  •  All have coaching roles within the club to develop each and every player to their maximum potential.


Top 5 Qualifications All High Level Soccer Coach Jobs Require


1. 15+ Years Of Experience

  • The best coaches in the world just like the best keepers in the world typically grow better with age. Not only is the amount of experience vital to understand how to win, how to avoid losing etc but also the ability to test and try different things and get the answers year after year until you're comfortable with a certain game model.
  • The best coaches have used their various soccer coach jobs to try new things and figure out what works and what doesn't to get the result they are looking for.
  • Experience not used wisely can be a waste of 15 years so be sure to be constantly trying and testing new things or 1 year of experience while testing new methods is more valuable than 15 doing the same thing over and over again.


2. All Necessary Licenses

  • There are a lot of bad drivers on the road who have their license so coaching licenses alone don't make you a great coach but they do show what a college degree shows.
  • It shows you're dedicated, responsible and hard working as well as it gives your resume a shiny gold star and the respect of your peers and profession.
  • Even if you don't believe any of that you need them to be able to coach at certain levels so you're getting them one way or another.


3. Unique Coaching Shadowing

  • A key factor that separates all the coaches who have had similar coaching experiences and have similar licenses is the unique mentoring and shadowing opportunities where they get to learn from the best.
  • Imagine having a pre-season while shadowing Pep Guardiola, Mourinho, Bielsa or Antonio Conte? These would serve as incredible learning moments for any aspiring coach, the ability to watch them work on a daily basis makes your resume stand out among the rest.
  • Now if you can't access these types of coaches go learn from a coach that can teach you something different within your club or neighbouring ones, we can all learn things from one another.


4. Proven Record Of Success

  • This doesn't always mean loads of trophies but it can. Success for a team that has always been in the 3rd division may be to get to the 2nd division or a team to qualify for its first ever final or capturing a cup trophy for the first time or developing players and selling them to big clubs for a profit.
  • Proven success can be team success or individual development success and not necessarily winning championships, show you can win in different ways and take teams to heights never seen before and higher level soccer coach jobs will come your way in no time.


5. Stable Leadership

  • The ability to lead a team through the good and bad times is a skill that makes even the most seasoned coach hair turn grey.
  • No matter how old you get and things you experience every season there is a new hurdle and new mountain that needs to be climbed.
  • Your ability to motivate, relax, focus and train your players to deal with the marathon that is a season will be the difference between 3 points and a story why you should have had 3 points.


Top 5 Attributes Of Coaches With High Level Soccer Coaching Jobs


1. Dedication/Obsession With Winning

  • Wanting to win isn't enough, elite coaches obsess over every little detail that goes into a game plan and after the game obsesses even more about what they could have done better win or lose.
  • Coaches that have this mindset are always reviewing tape, trying new things and asking questions of themselves constantly, having the obsession to win is a unique quality all the greats have.


2. Unique Thinkers

  • Every coach with a new idea is a mad man until his ideas are proven right! This famous quote speaks to the ability of great coaches and leaders to find unique and creative ways of doing things.
  • Whether it's you team structure, formation, systems, leadership set up or anything else top coaches need to have ideas that push the boundaries of ordinary ideas and the cream of the crop soccer coach jobs are for these elite minds.


3. Risk Takers

  • Coaches at the top of the game know when to step on the gas to go for the three points, make that late sub or try that new game plan to get the big win, even against conventional thinking.
  • No coach has passively made their way to the elite level or a championship, you need to pick your spots of risk and go at them with conviction.
  • We all have that game we wish we would have went for it but ended up conceding a goal late or losing in penalty kicks, knowing when to sub in an extra attacker and when not to is the difference between elite and very good.


4. Flexible

  • A top coach is able to see the group they have and understand how to get the best out of them even if it means changing up typical formations and systems that they are used to.
  • Having flexibility to chop and change when necessary is an incredibly valuable tool to get the most out of a group of players.
  • We all have a favourite system, formation and coaching style and anyone that messes with our way of thinking we see as a threat, but the truly great coaches can see beyond their own views and understand coaching is all about having buy in from the group and trying to figure out new ways to win.
  • The coaches that have an eye for what they want but another eye on remaining flexible are the coaches who can take any group to heights never seen before.


5. High Levels Of Organization & Leadership

  • The devil is in the details. Having an organized structure for your coaching staff, team and club is an essential part of running a successful team.
  • Your leadership also needs to be on full display around the clock, you can't expect high levels of performance and dedication from your players if you yourself don't live those qualities.
  • Be the example in which you want your team to act and come over prepared for every situation and you might find yourself on the touch line of the biggest teams in the world.


Top 5 Paying Soccer Coach Jobs


1. Professional First Team Coach

  • This one may be obvious and of course every club has different pay structures for their first team head coaches but some of the top coaches in the world get paid more than 10 million pounds a season.
  • Without a doubt at the highest level these coaches are far away the highest paid, but it's not about the money right? Wrong!


2. Club Technical Director

  • Many club technical directors can make above 100k, especially at a well respected club in your area.
  • Soccer coach jobs like this one seem all fun and nice but can be a real pain with the amount of paper work, crazy parents, politics and limiting time doing the fun stuff like coaching the kids.
  • Be careful what you bargain for if applying and accepting a role like this, say goodbye to your weekends and quality time with the spouse.


3. University Coach

  • It isn't uncommon for a University Head Coach to be making 70-90k annually to coach their teams.
  • Although coaching isn't the only responsibility of the coach (recruiting, fundraising, community involvement, academic tracking etc) the job of a University coach is also much more stable than one at the pro level for example.


4. Club Academy Director

  • Below the technical director of a club typically works the academy director who overseas the academy and will coach a team or two themselves.
  • This job can pay in the 60-80k range depending on the club and club structure, this may be the sweet spot for many coaches as you still get the on field coaching mixed with a senior role at the club.


5. Professional Second Team Coach

  • All pro teams that are credible will have a second team of professionals who play in a league of their own and get called up to the first team when the time is right.
  • The coach of these teams can get anywhere from 50k to 250k depending on the level, this is one of the most underrated soccer coach jobs out there as you get all the fun without the pressure to perform like the first team coach.