|| PRESIDENT ’ S CORNER

DR . DAVID CARR // UNITED SOCCER COACHES PRESIDENT , MEMBER SINCE 1974

The National Soccer Coaches Association of America ( NSCAA ) was formed in 1941 . In the beginning , there were a small number of coaches , mostly at the college level , who helped lay the foundation for what has become the world ’ s largest soccer coaches association . As the NSCAA grew , hundreds of coaches worked tirelessly to grow the association , create programs to benefit coaches at all levels of the game , and develop an extensive awards program that honors seasonal and long-term excellence . The original core values still support our association today :

Promote the game of soccer . Generate greater publicity for the sport .

Improve teaching of the game through soccer clinics as well as research and evaluation of coaching of the sport .

You can read many of the names of those who helped create the NSCAA and have served the association with distinction for the last 82 years . They appear as Honor Award recipients , Hall of Fame members and have been honored for longterm service awards at the youth , interscholastic and intercollegiate levels . Some are members of the Red Aprons who work long hours every year at Convention Registration . All of us , as current members , owe these pioneers a debt of gratitude and thanks for all the time and effort they have given the association in the past and continue to provide to this day .

I am honored to know many who have worked to build this organization . One day in January 1974 , while in college , I was excited to learn that there was a soccer coaches association ( NSCAA ) with a publication just for soccer coaches — the Soccer Journal . As my career goal was to teach physical education and coach soccer , I joined the NSCAA that very same day . It was a decision that helped guide me throughout my career .

Now as I complete my fifth decade as a member and as we move into our ninth decade as an association , we have seen phenomenal growth in the game in the United States . Recreation and club programs for youth have grown substantially , high school programs for boys and girls have grown to over 800,000 players in 2021-22 . NCAA Division I , II and III programs now total 1,026 teams for men and over 1,100 teams for women . The professional leagues have also exploded as there are now 29 MLS franchises , 12 NWSL franchises , 12 USL League One teams , dozens of USL League Two teams and 65 USL W League teams . There are opportunities at every level .

2 | Soccer Journal +