Breaking into Soccer

One of the reasons I'm doing finance is because it keeps me relatively close to my dream of coaching a soccer team.

However, I would definitely not like to make around 50k for 20 years while I toil away in some foreign country as an assistant. I'd much rather have a successful and interesting trading and investing career.

I figure that if I'm successful enough, I can attract a group of investors to takeover a small team (lower-tier 2nd division, probably $10-20 million valuation) by the time I'm 40 and then guide it to glory. Until then, I'll coach competitive youth soccer on the side and eventually work my way to the PDL level.

Any thoughts? Perhaps you would have suggestions on how I could fast track my way to being a head coach, rather than having to install myself as one.

15 Comments
 
Best Response

Unfortunately, I'm being completely serious, so I'm sorry if I came across as insincere. This is not some pipe dream, I've been very serious about soccer my whole life.

If you think I'm a douche bag b/c I'm not willing to move to Europe and put in the dues, then just look up Mourinho's story. Had he not gotten a lucky break and a good mentor in Bobby Robson, he might still be toiling in the Portuguese division. Succession in soccer is not the way it is in banking (working from Analyst to MD or going to PE and then working your way up), very very few assistant coaches get called up. And it's certainly not meritocratic like in the trading or HF worlds. You usually only get credit if you're the head coach.

I have certain views on the game and would like to implement them to success on the field. It doesn't get much simpler than that and I certainly don't have the intention of going cold into coaching after a career in finance.

I don't understand why you need to berate me for having an interesting goal.

 

It just sounds absurd. I know nothing of the soccer coaching hierarchies, but your goal of parlaying a youth soccer gig into convincing people to give you 20MM to coach a professional team sounds very outlandish and comes off as trollish.

Fast track to being a coach? Be an elite player. Probably about the only way possible.

 

So you want to be a pro coach without accumulating the experience that makes a good one? Do you really think coaching youth soccer on the side will prepare you to lead men? Being a good tactician is important for a coach but it doesn't do a bit of good if nobody will follow your lead. You say you don't have any intention of "going in cold" but your plan is to coach youth soccer until you meet enough millionaires to buy a team and put you in charge? You post a business plan of:

1 - Meet rich people 2 - Convince them that your youth soccer experience qualifies me to lead a pro team 3 - Lead team to glory

Forgive me for mocking your "interesting goal", that sounds solid. It couldn't be because becoming a pro soccer coach in your spare time coaching youth soccer is unrealistic....

 

jesus christ you people are tough. Let the kid have a dream.

Laudrup: You should coach youth and try to work your way up to higher levels of soccer. Youth team>Club team>HS>College. Unless you have played in a professional league, you will need money to become a professional coach. Keep working hard.

 

I dream way bigger than this. I want to buy an NFL franchise and run it into the ground precisely by doing what this kid imagines other rich people will do for him: giving someone entirely unqualified the chance to coach. I plan on making a close friend who knows nothing about football defensive coordinator and paying him 1.6m a year. My hardest decision is choosing which city to hate me.

 

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