“Relax!” “Focus!” “Be Confident!” These coaching cues are heard daily on soccer fields around the world. Rather than random acts of relaxation, focus, or confidence, what if these mental skills could be actively trained? Just as technical and tactical aspects of the game are trained daily, in the interest of holistic player development, mental skills deserve the same consideration. This Special Topics Diploma – Mental Performance Training (MPT) has been developed for soccer coaches interested in helping players develop their mindset.
In the course, the following objectives will be addressed.
- Explore reasons for introducing MPT to soccer athletes.
- Familiarize coaches with MPT.
- Identify constraints and explore ways to integrate MPT into the team environment.
- Discusses measures of MPT effectiveness.
Time Commitment: The course will consist of 3 virtual meetings, each lasting 1.5 hours. Each session will be conducted over Zoom and facilitated by Ben Freakley and Rob DiBernardo. In addition to the Zoom sessions, coaches will have the opportunity to complete projects between Zoom sessions.
When: Monday evenings (March 25, April 1 and April 8, 2024)
Times: 7:00 p.m. CT – 8:30 p.m. CT
Course Price: This course is $300. If you are not a current United Soccer Coaches member when registering you will be charged an additional $150.
Platform: Zoom – Call-in information will be sent to all candidates before the start of the course.
Presenters:
Ben Freakley Founder / CEO of Ready.Set.Resilient. Former Head of Mental Performance for the Toronto Blue Jays. Former mental performance coach with 75th Ranger Regiment - Special Operations Forces. Ben coached NCAA Division I and II soccer for over a decade and is a Coach Developer with United Soccer Coaches. He holds a doctoral degree in sport and performance psychology with a clinical mental health specialization and is a certified mental performance consultant (CMPC) through the Association for Applied Sport Psychology (AASP). Dr. Freakley is a Certified Mental Performance Consultant (CMPC) through the Association for Applied Sport Psychology (AASP), certified coach developer through the international center for coaching excellence (ICCE) and member of the American Counseling Association (ACA).
Rob DiBernardo EdD, CMPC
Mental Performance Coordinator - Toronto Blue Jays. Former college basketball coach for 10 years. Rob holds a doctorate in Sport Psychology and a master's degree in Coach Education from Boston University. Rob is currently finishing a master's program (2023) in Clinical Counseling. Rob’s mission is to serve individuals, teams, and organizations in the pursuit of excellence within a thriving, values-based culture.