National Soccer Coaches Association of America

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article or section needs to be wikified to meet Wikipedia's quality standards.
Please help improve this article with relevant internal links. (January 2008)

This article or section is written like an advertisement.
Please help rewrite this article from a neutral point of view.
Mark blatant advertising which would require a fundamental rewrite in order to become encyclopedic for speedy deletion, using {{db-spam}}. (January 2008)

The National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) is an organization of American soccer coaches founded in 1941. the NSCAA has grown from a handful of college soccer coaches to more than 22,000 members, making it the largest coaching organization in the world. Its members coach at all levels of the game. One of the NSCAA's primary missions is coaching education. It offers a wide variety of diploma courses, from a two-hour Parent Coach Diploma, designed for the volunteer parent coach just starting out, to the Premier Diploma, a week-long course that is the pinnacle of the NSCAA Academy.

The annual NSCAA Convention is the "Largest Gathering of Soccer Coaches in the World." Held in mid-January, the Convention offers a variety of on-field and classroom educational sessions. The nation's largest soccer-only trade show is a highlight of the Convention, with more than 300 companies displaying the latest in soccer equipment, technology and services. Major League Soccer's SuperDraft also has become a regular fixture at the Convention.

The NSCAA recognizes excellence in soccer with an extensive awards program that includes All-America teams for college, high school and youth play, Scholar All-America teams for college and high school, a national rankings program for college and high school and Coach of the Year awards for all levels of play.

Between 1996 and 1998, the NSCAA recognized an outstanding collegiate player of the year. Since 1999, the NSCAA has coordinated its NCAA Division I player of the year program with the Missouri Athletic Club. They now present the joint NSCAA/MAC Hermann Trophy to the outstanding player of the year. The Association continues to present player of the year awards at all other levels of intercollegiate play, as well as at the high school and youth levels. It also recognizes outstanding coaches with its Coach of the Year Award.

The NSCAA also publishes weekly rankings for intercollegiate and high school soccer during the fall seasons and less frequently during the winter and spring high school seasons.