The start of soccer season is an exciting time for little girls who want to start playing soccer. They arrive at the initial team meeting with little more than enthusiasm and girlish giggling. A lot must be accomplished to turn the giggling girls into a soccer team. The first decision is a team name. The team name can help to define the spirit and personality of the team and bring about the beginning of cohesiveness among the new team members. Will they adopt the identity of an existing team? Choose the name of a strong, ferocious animal? Ethnic identifiers aren’t acceptable these days. Can you, the coach, guide them in the direction of something unique? The choice of a name will help with the next decision. Like the rest of the feminine population, the girls’ biggest concern is, “What will I get to wear?” And this girlish concern is understandable. The old saying that the clothes make the man applies equally to little girls—youth soccer jerseys make the soccer player. The opportunity to design custom soccer jerseys is appealing to the girls. It is a group-building exercise to give the girls a chance to discuss and vote on the look of the uniforms. The first decision to be made is the style of the jerseys. Many neckline styles and sleeve styles (raglan or set in?) add up to a plethora of selections. Add to that contrasting-colored panels on the sides, swooshes of color on one or both sleeves, mismatched sleeves . . . the options go on and on. As for the team colors, the new team name can have a strong influence on the final decision. It’s obvious that a team called The Tigers has no other choice than orange and black or possible orange and brown. On the other hand, the Fleet Feet have more leeway in their color choice.
After the girls have decided on the style and colors of the uniforms, the other options must be agreed on. What symbol or picture do the girls want on the front of the uniform? Can you convince them to accept a stock picture, or do they insist on a custom-designed logo? Or is the logo chosen by the team sponsor to honor the sponsor’s business? Should this logo be placed in the center-front of the jersey, or should it replaced on the left side? Then numbers must be assigned to finish up the final choices for the uniform design.
By this point, the girls are getting to know each other and becoming closer than just schoolmates. Now it’s time for the next phase, which is to transform the schoolmates into soccer players. It’s time to hit the soccer field for two types of activity. The first activity is physical exercise to strengthen their bodies in preparation for the games. Strong bodies are less prone to injury. The other activity is to get out onto the field to learn to play the game. It’s time to learn the moves.
At this point, the girls have now become a soccer team and are ready for a summer of fun and competition.
