In Episode 29, Greg Rubendall, Livermore Fusion Director of Soccer Development and US Soccer Grassroots Coach Educator, talks with Phil about “deep practice,” college club soccer, the importance of fundamentals, developing healthy parent-coach communication, controlling the controllables, shaping the culture in a diverse club, overcoming entitlement, speaking the international language of soccer, and the professionalization of youth soccer. Specifically, Greg discusses:

• How he developed his passion for soccer and leadership, and how he got to be where he is today (2:14)
• The value of College Club Soccer, from the sports and leadership perspective (6:31)
• The concept of “deep practice” and the importance of continuing to work on the fundamentals, in soccer and in life (13:57)
• The coach’s self-leadership and role in communicating with parents, and how we can coach the coaches to have healthy coach-parent relationships (20:13)
• Why coaches who played growing up can be dangerous (25:08)
• Winning vs. Development and controlling the controllables (32:39)
• How he shapes the culture of an entire club full of different coaches and players with different personalities and goals (37:38)
• The ills of entitlement and how Greg is working to mitigate against them in his club (48:43)
• The importance of fluency in the language of soccer/football in cross-cultural and international relationships (56:19)
• Pro and cons of the professionalization of youth soccer in the United States over the past couple decades (1:02:10)
• How he has used the lessons learned directly from soccer outside the game (1:12:48)
• His book recommendation (1:16:59)

Resources and Links from this Episode

• Contact Greg - [email protected]
• Video of the Episode
• HSEL Facebook Group
• Phil and HSEL on Clubhouse -- @phildarke
• Ted Lasso (Apple TV)
• How Soccer Explains the World: An Unlikely Theory of Globalization, by Franklin Foer