Parental Stress

Being a soccer parent can be stressful. In fact, in a recent study: Parents’ competitive stressors in professional German youth soccer academies: A mixed-method study (Eckardt, Dorsch, Lobinger, 2021) 93% of parents reported feeling stress as a soccer parent. Importantly, competitive stress experienced by soccer parents leads to a lack of player enjoyment, (Bois et al., 2009; Leff & Hoyle, 1995) so lessening stress is important. At Soccer Parenting we believe collaborative relationships, with appropriate boundaries, between parents and coaches will help mitigate some of the stress parents feel. We also believe parents will be difference makers when it comes to improving the game, and that the majority of parents are not irrational, but rather are levelheaded and sometimes stressed.

While there were thirteen main categories of stress the study identified, the three top stressors involved issues for parents around 1. their child, 2. other parents and 3. the coach.

Stressors Related to the Child

Most parents surveyed reported issues of stress related to the playing time of their child (frequency of 11.1%). Key areas mentioned related to playing time in the study were the coach not adequately communicating the reason for a lack of playing time, children receiving no or limited playing time, not being included in the starting lineup or being substituted. Parents also reported stress around injury for their child (7.8%) such as their recovery from injury, managing an injury while playing, or simply the fear of them being injured. Importantly, another key stress for a parent related to their child was the stress parents feel when their child is underperforming, not living up to their potential, or demonstrating a lack of effort or motivation.

Stressors Related to Other Parents

When it comes to other parents, not surprisingly the largest number of stressors parents felt was related to the verbal misbehavior of other parents during a game. (10%) This behavior included “other parents aggressively cheering, gossiping, criticizing, negatively commenting, swearing, calling names and insulting children, fellow parents, coaches or the referee.”Parents also acknowledged the stress they feel during any hostile misconduct on the sidelines such as heated discussions or fights. (3.2%) Additional comments were made by parents around the stress they feel when another parent is coaching from the sideline during a game. (2.9%)

Stressors Related to the Coach

Coach behaviors such as unfair treatment of players, lack of transparency by the coach, or a coach screaming a players presented as stressors by parents a combined 6.5% of times in the survey.Additionally, parents general criticism of the coach such as a lack of alignment on overall coaching philosophy, the coach’s lack of player appreciation, or a disagreement with a tactical decision, substitution, starting line-up was reported at a frequency of 8.8%.

Understanding and acknowledging the stress parents feel is an important step toward improving the learning environment for players. As the article states, club leaders and coaches “might use these results to foster communication and interaction among parents and coaches, as well as to guide the development and implementation of parent education within youth soccer.” At Soccer Parenting we also believe that club standards around playing time, acceptable coach behaviors, player feedback (when the level is appropriate), and enforced, clear policies regarding sideline behavior are essential steps toward lessening parents’ stress and thereby improving player enjoyment.