One of the best things you can do in the off-season is attend the various youth soccer camps and clinics. There are the main camps that have big sponsors like NIKE and a variety of coaches, from youth sports to varsity, will be giving lectures. Some of these camps last just a few days and can be expensive, but if you look at the itinerary and plan your days, you’ll get a lot of information. Just remember that any high school and college information needs to be modified for the youth soccer level.
If you’re not interested in the big big events, local community colleges and high schools will run some sort of clinic or camp. If you’re on your organization’s board of directors, you can probably get one of the local high school coaches to come in and give your league its own private clinic.
Some of the youth soccer organizations are starting to organize their own camps. This can be for both the kids and the coaches and if done right it can also be a fundraiser.
It is best to check in the local newspapers for the camps closest to you or on the Internet if you don’t mind traveling. I live in Illinois and there are many local campgrounds and quite a few just over the border in Wisconsin. Try to contact camps ahead of time so you can get a list of coaches who have attended your camp in the past so you can get a better idea of what to expect.
