Kids Soccer has become the breeding grounds for crazed parents. Parents seem to lose their minds and every last ounce of dignity when the referee blows his whistle.
Frustration, agitation and the occasional burst blood vessel are common practices around the kids.
So what’s happening?
Has the game of soccer changed?
Last time I checked it was the same, can anyone here enlighten us?
Before you fly off the handle again, listen up. The slogan “money is the root of all evil” is usually thrown around in the corporate world amongst the big executives. At the end of the day, millions of dollars are at stake and the business to put it politely is cut throat.
Do you agree?
With the prodigious amounts of money involved, executives are faced with enormous pressures and the only time they get a break from issues is when they’re dealing with a crisis.
Can you see where I’m going with this?
Kids Soccer is no longer the friendly get together that allows parents to catch up on all the gossip. These days the kids are dragged kicking and screaming while the status quo waits silently, drooling like a vulture waiting for his prey to die.
Look into the eyes of the crazed soccer parent and tell me what you see? Is it the dollar signs? The allure of the dollar signs and the glitz and glamour of a Hollywood lifestyle can definitely bring out the worst in people.
I can’t find any better way to say this (profanity warning) but wake the fuck up.
They say money can’t buy you love. Hell, even the Beatles knew it back in the 60’s.
But here’s a thought,
Can Love buy you money?
Proceed with caution.
Kids play soccer because its fun. Not to win, make the coach happy or even the 3 points. They play because they want to have fun with their new friends.
As a soccer parent, can you meet their demands?
What’s that?
What about the money, fame and fortune?
Sigh, let’s address this shall we?
80% of kids will quit the game before they become teenagers. The 20% remaining will persist only to be confronted with new hurdles and obstacles. School, social status and the attraction to the opposite sex will eliminate a further 10%.
For those that make it this far the battle has only begun. Any youth player trying to crack senior soccer will get knocked down, beaten and excuse the French, you get your friggin arse kicked physically, emotionally and psychologically.
Survive this and congratulations are in order. You’ve become part of the 2% that will eventually play soccer at a professional level.
To say 2% is the minority would be an understatement. So what separates the 2% from the mass exodus that is Kids Soccer?
Gather around folks and listen because the answer has always been in front of you. Young superstars or even veterans of the game always pay tribute to their parents for their success.
“I’d like to thank my parents for the love and support they have given me throughout my career” as they quickly wipe away their tears.
Sound familiar?
What about the players that didn’t have parents?
They still pay tribute to someone. Love, Empathy and the Human Spirit isn’t limited or bounded by blood. Remember that, next time you see a kid that might need your help or a bit of love.
Who knows, you might be in the presence of greatness that will one day pay tribute to you, for the love, time and energy you blindly committed to them because you actually cared, not because of the money.
So the question is,
Can Love buy you money?
“May the winds of destiny blow you to the stars.”
I remember playing soccer in the 90s as a kid. It was always cold and my parents dropped me off and came back an hour later. It was a good way to kill an afternoon. Love was a given, money isn’t a factor when you’re 10.
Don’t forget in the 90’s Kids Soccer was actually about the soccer. Not the “what if’s” and million dollar contracts.
Soccer can be a fun free afternoon in the park. A good pick up game with same age and not the “big kids” was what we looked forward to the most. And mom was sitting on the sidelines with a book keeping an eye out for us.
Can Love buy you money? Yes it can!
Love is more valuable than a mountain of money. You can not exchange anything for love…
Playing soccer as a kid never made me happy because of the money involved. Exactly as you said, playing soccer is all about the pleasure and joy of playing; it has nothing to do with money.
A very interesting article,i appreciate your effort.
Good article ! I am really keen on football topics and so.. I think that this information here will be very useful !
Huh, well money is everywhere. Just look around. I’m not saying that’s a good thing, but that’s just reality. Soccer is the most popular sport in the world, so lots of people try to make a fortune out of it. And what’s the best way? Grab young talents and sell them. To be honest I don’t like reading the news about some 13year old kid who just sign a contract with Real Madrid or smth like that. I mean it’s not right. What does a 13to boy know about all this stuff? Think FIFA or someone should make a rule or a law that a ral, proffesional contract couldbe made when a youngster has atleast like 16-17years. Maybe that would stop the madness.
Love can bring us confidence, and to that extent, I believe love can buy us money. Without love, we are less motivated to seek for comfort and support. With love, we feel more passionate about the state we are in, and in such, we are more confident in doing our tasks and earn money.
Interesting question. Have been wondering about this since I read your article a couple of days ago.
..Yes. To me, love can buy you money. And this can be a bad and a good thing.
can love buy money? only true love can buy anything including money, but true love not easy to get.
can money buy love? not always.
This article reminds me as how cricket is crazy in India. I do not see any difference between the craze for football outside India and craze for cricket in India.
As far as the question for money goes – yes love can buy you money. This is my plain line of thinking. If we love something only then we do an activity and that helps us in earnings. And moreover, I don’t think that it is wrong if your love is earning you any bucks.
wow! you honestly made your point clear. i admire your thoughts. it is pure and natural. Can Love buy you money? this is possible to people who truly express love in its purest way, that doesn’t wait to get something in return. parents usually did this to their children. they took care of us from birth to tomb, and yet they don’t sought for our gratefulness. but out of sincerity and gratitude we pour our blessings to them, financially and matter of attention and affection.
Can love buy you money? Love can get you what ever you want in life, not just soccer.
Well, I think most of the parents love their children or have at least SOME kind of feelings for them.
So to answer your question, I think there are 2 answers – yes and no.
Yes – If you really care for your kid, not paying much or any attention to money your kid MIGHT be making one day if he persists to the top pro level.
No – just like you said, if your eyes glow buck symbols, then your kid will get frustrated because you cherish money more than him.
I’ve had luck with my parents, I used to practice basketball, but they didn’t push me. They were just giving me support because they knew it was a healthy experience for me both physically and mentally.
football in general?
its not a working man or family pastime or pleasure no more,its big business,those times have gone,kids football,maybe all the fun of the game has gone now also…
I think love can not be bought with money, or not be compared with the money. Because love is a sincerity that comes from the deepest heart. But it is different if the parents fully support their child for a career in football, that’s a different thing, because love and money can also grow with
I suppose love could buy you money in one way i can think of. . if you are famous, you got there by all your fans loving you and supporting your talent. but of course complete strangers can not love you if they dont even know you personally.
Another example is that you could fall in love and marry into wealth. Again, if its true love, that would probably make you happy but not what is most important.
“…part of the 2%…”
Depends on your will, and how strong it is, not on your surroundings and all that. If you’re goal is to become a pro soccer player, then, you WILL become one, if you keep trying. Depends on the person, not on the sorroundings/situation/century/year/parents/etc, is my point.
What a lovely suprise, thanks for taking the time to answer the question.
@Christopher, I hope your joking. Strong will helps, in fact its very important. But this alone will guarantee you squat. Don’t be so naive. Parents, social background, training, environment, situations and so on all add up.
Have you ever heard the saying, “its not who you are, its who you know”.
Reminds me of my days I played soccer with street children 20 years ago. There was no stake involved. No big screaming and the 1 hour of play was the best exercise we used to have.
But things have changed …
It’s all about love. No love no skill, no skill no game.TM
Great information, I played soccer when I was littler and I loved it, I thought it was very fun and I was really great at it, Wish I was still at it today.
@Brent, what made you quit the game?
I think that soccer like any sport for kids can be rewarding, but as parents we have a responsibility not to put our children under any pressure to excel or perform in sports or any arena. Healthy competition is good, but giving the idea that winning at all costs is can be harmful to children of a young age. Children need an outlet and sports serve that purpose very well. But being children they want and need to most of all have fun.
Soccer is a great outlet for kids and a great lifestyle. Parents should swap performance and winning for fun. Parents must remember that Soccer is a transfer of emotions and a journey. Thanks for stopping by James
To a Younger child money isnt even a factor in their life. But to an older child, lets say around High School level, i suppose it couldn’t hurt? Soccer is great for kids no matter what, soccer helps with different emotions. Anyway, thats my opinion on the subject.
I think that the attitude you describe of the parents today isn’t restricted to just soccer. It seems every summer there are several stories on the news of parents getting into fights at their children’s sporting events. Whether the fight is over that one parent thinks their child is more deserving of those monetary gains or a bunch of people not wanting to be in that place, the response is the same from those not involved. “What the hell are they thinking?”
The main problem is that most hobbies get corrupted due to the desire to make money out of it. To quote the author of this post, its not about the friendly get together anymore.
You see it everywhere – not just soccer. Too many parents use their kids for their own frustrations and insecurities, instead of teaching them values and love of the game. I’d love to see a game where the kids are in the stands and the parents have to play – kids yell what they want. Cool!
Great post! i like the way you think Thomas.
i liked when you wrote “money is the root of all evil”
yeah that’s right in this case the couches or someone who has a boy who plays soccer pretty good, most of the times they want to become their boys or sons in professional soccer players because as any other professional sport players the soccer players earn a lot of money they don’t care about the boy’s feeling just the money.
I like to see post like this one maybe because i love soccer (i’m Mexican hehe) i been playing soccer for almost 15 years i’m 26.
and about “80% of kids will quit the game before they become teenagers” i been here at USA since i was 11 years old in mexico when i boy start playing soccer they quit until 20 or even 36 years old but here in Oklahoma city they just play for fun and that’s good but sometimes they play for fun without matter i mean they do not try their best.
great great post :>)
greetings
Misael Martinez.
Love can absolutely buy you money in that it can be the grounding reminder of passion, dedication, and motivation that instills the desire to continue on a harsh path unto monetary success. It’s a reminder of why you do what you do and can sharpen focus. Greatness in my opinion is found in gathering positive attributes and there is no better source than that from those who are your first teachers, your parents.
@ Paul, “Love can absolutely buy you money in that it can be the grounding reminder of passion, dedication and motivation”
Couldn’t agree more Paul. Thanks for leaving a comment.
Love can buy money for sure. I’ve seen parents push their kids in all sports to the brink. Money is a huge reason, what parent wouldn’t want to see their child as a rich star athlete. Basically in life, you need someone to push you to your highest potential.
As a kid I was always pushed into playing soccer by my mom and getting yelled at by her for not trying my hardest. In reality I wasn’t there to win, just to have fun with my friends, and I frankly didn’t care if I won or lost.
By the time I got to high school, I completely hated the game and all the soccer mom politics it stood for. I think we should just go back to playing for the fun of it and not for parents’ own satisfaction.
So true. And this is not just limited to soccer, either. Competetive sports for young people draw a lot of “crazed” parents who have completely lost their grounding in reality and seem to think their child will beet the overwhelming odds. I guess lot of parents want to bask in the radiance of their child, the superstar.
soccer should be about th efun and not the money like you have said. i played soccer as a young child but just lost the interest for it because of all the things in highschool that caught my mind better
I remember when I was a child and my mom would drop me off for soccer and then she would go and meet her friends for coffee. I hated soccer when I was a kid but I think my mom just did it for the money like if I was going to be a famous soccer player.
I don’t think that parents enroll their children into playing soccer for money, but instead a way for their kids to become more outgoing and active. Children don’t want money until they become a teenager, but love definitely outweighs money in most scenarios.
Is soccer about money? I agree that for children it should be about health and fitness. It is so easy to fly off the handle at these games isn’t it. What is hard is staying calm and cool and setting a good example for the children. That is the real skill.
Nothing like a good game of Football (Soccer for Americans) in the park or wherever. Whether it’s against our own age group or some one older, it’s always a good time. My parents weren’t deeply into it as I was but those were the days.
I can remember playing soccer as a kid in the 90’s and money was in no way a factor with my playing or my parents. just the love of the game. i guess times are changing. greed and corruption run amuk.
I believe that kids only play soccer either for fun or if their parents force them to get some exercise. After a certain point, either the kids will not want to play soccer or they’ll continue playing because it’s a sport they love to do. If the former, their lack of enthusiasm will show in their playing skills and the parent will withdraw them anyway. If the latter, as you said, only 2% of people actually play professionally. Not everyone can be an expert at soccer. Even if they love to play, some of them will have to withdraw from this competitive race.
I played on the community soccer team when I was in first grade. My parents were among those who put me in it simply for the fun of it. But I did see a lot of other kid’s parents who fit into the “psycho” category. Most of their kids complained about it, wishing that their parents would lighten up and just let them play. Although some of them DID see it as encouragement and support. I guess it depends on the individual kid and how they react to the way their parents act on the sidelines.
I agree on the fact that many kids play the game for the simple enjoyment of the sport. They love to play, therefor they select soccer as a pastime. Now, we must ask ourselves if money can buy love. According to my personal definition of love, I think not. Love cannot be acquired by any currency, but by good and truthful deeds!