How to Empower Your Kids Who Love Football

By the age of 6 or 7, most kids start to play through gaining interest in a simple sport. By the time they turn 10 or 12, most of them are ready to engage in complex sports. As a parent, you must acknowledge your child’s love for sports and help them incorporate it into their life. Never dull their love for sports by any means because it can affect their health and even their learning process as they grow.
So does your toddler or teenager love football? If yes, then you must empower them so that it grows into something even more serious than just fun and games. In this article, we examine ways on how to empower your kids who love football in a manner that allows it to be part of their life.
- Send them to trials
Around the world, open football trials are held almost every day. Sending your kids to trials may help their talent get discovered by recruiters. Trials help un-attached footballers or the recently released ones by allowing them to showcase their talents.
Choose trials or football programs that are designed to help players meet the demands of professional football. They should be able to challenge players through training sessions, competitive matches, and trials. The biggest challenge however is not having connections to some of these programs. It’s easy to get fooled by dodgy agents that promise contracts for millions of dollars and offer no opportunities at the end of the day.
For this reason, it’s safer to follow the right process of getting your kids the right football trial program which we shall explore in the next points.
- Allow scouts to find them
If your kids play football so well say on their soccer team at school, chances are that scouts are already watching them. It’s through this way that most top players got their big breakthrough. However, being discovered isn’t always as easy as it seems. Other factors determine if a scout spots out your kids or not. That’s why you must send your child to a football academy where he can easily get spotted or recruited by an agent. Most scouts visit football academies in search of new players. They may attend matches and training sessions regularly to get what they’re looking for.
- Get them football coaches
This is probably one of the most effective methods especially if you hope to get your kids a football trial. Football coaches don’t stop at training. They will know your children’s strengths and weaknesses which they can help improve. Even more, if the football coach you hire believes that your kids can make it, they will go the extra mile to connect them to even better opportunities.
Football coaches can train the kids weekly while paying special attention to their strengths and weaknesses.
- Show that you support them
Nothing dulls a child’s interest than a parent who doesn’t support them. Make sure to always encourage your kids about football. Smile frequently and tell them they are doing a great job. Try as much as possible not to dull their moment because it creates pressure and leaves them feeling negative about their skills. You also don’t want them to associate football with disappointment from their parents.
It’s the little statements such as “I’m glad that you’re trying your best or I love that you’re having fun” that will show that you support them and therefore encourage them to keep playing.
- Play football together
As simple as throwing the ball for your son to catch is, it doesn’t compare to the impact the act brings. What’s even true is that the tendency for your kids to love sports begins with you as their parent. Children learn from observing behaviors and from then on follow that path. So one way to empower your kids who love football is by playing with them especially if you notice it’s what they prefer among many other games. Accept that they may not even like your sport say tennis. Move and support their sport by playing it with them.
- Have their friends play with them
Kids naturally love interacting with their fellow kids. Inviting them over to play football is one way of empowering their love for the game. Have them play at home under your watchful eye or take them to a nearby playground. With their friends around, they’ll always associate the game with fun and happiness even in the future.
- Make the game fun
Even if your child is 12 years old, they could easily get bored by the game if it’s not fun. If it seems like a chore to them, they won’t hold on to it for long. One way of making football fun is through playing with them. They can also learn new skills by watching you play. Speak to them positive words, and be in a happy mood when playing. They must be able to see that you’re having fun.
- Watch games together
Chances are high your kid’s developed a love for the game through watching it on TV. Keep up with this trend by spending time together watching sports movies that inspire kids to play football. It’s surprising what can attract someone to a sport or even encourage them to keep playing. It may be the dazzling lights in the stadium or the shouts of joy from supporters, or the uniform worn by players. So watch these games together to keep the kids inspired.
To sum this up…
There’s just so much that you can do to inspire your kids who love football. In case you’ve been struggling with keeping your child motivated these tips should be enough to get you started and keep their talent alive. Use all the different options available allowing them to do what they love. Remember not to force them but rather encourage and support them. The best thing you can do as a parent allows them to do what they want and be a part of it all the way.