The Professionalization of Sports Coaching: A case study of a graduate soccer coaching education program

The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore the curriculum and delivery of a graduate soccer coaching education program in the United States in the context of increased professionalization of sports coaching. The research goal was to contribute to the growing literature on formal sports coach education in university settings. Documents, observations, and conversations with faculty served as the data sources, with the coding of themes as the main form of data analysis strategy. The program adopted a problem-based approach to learning and linked new knowledge to students' specific coaching context. Each cohort functioned as a community of practice with coaches learning from each other through reflective practices. This study has shown that collaboration between a higher education institution and a national sport coaching organization can be productive in a blended (online-residential) environment. Using a professionalization lens, this paper discusses the need for university programs to focus on ethics in order to move the professionalization process along. A follow-up study is recommended to gain more in-depth knowledge of the students' perspectives on their experiences.