Coaching youth soccer is now a legitimate professional endeavor. Aspiring professional coaches spend a lifetime immersed in the game, obtaining licenses and becoming keen students of the game. Qualified coaches have gone to great lengths to educate themselves and are now in a position to offer their knowledge for appropriate remuneration. One would not expect lawyers, teachers or other professionals to offer their services for free, the same can be said for qualified coaches. If a club is lucky enough to have a person with the required qualifications and that person is willing to do the job for free then they should grab that person with open arms.
Reality says that such a person is very rare.
Salaries for part time coaches vary from 6,000 to 20,000. In the case of full time coaches clubs must also remember to budget for employee benefits, such as medical and dental insurance as well as unemployment insurance and taxes. Other expenses associated with a coaching director could include travel, and an allocation for attendance at local and National symposiums and conventions. Large clubs of 700 to 1,000 players should be able to levy an additional fee to cover the DOC cost. Charging more for travel reflects the difference between commitment levels of the two groups.