5 Signs of Burnout in Your Young Soccer Player

Today’s youth soccer landscape is extremely competitive. Kids as young as 10 0r 11 know that if you want a future in this sport, you can’t just be good. You have to be great. The need to perfect their physical and technical abilities causes athletes to push themselves extremely hard, often supplementing regular training with at-home workouts. These players are putting tremendous pressure on themselves, and the stress only worsens the physical toll.

Unfortunately, lots of athletes end up working so hard that it sucks the joy out of their sport, and they quit. It’s called burnout, and it has derailed the trajectories of countless promising soccer players.

Sometimes, burnout is easy to spot. But teenagers are notoriously hard to read. Here are five signs of burnout in your young athlete: 

They Don’t Want to Go to Practice

Working on their own is where players make the biggest strides, but team practices are the reward & games are the celebration of their hard work.

So, if your athlete suddenly starts dragging their heels about going to practice, something might be off.

Of course, there are times when no one wants to go. After a tough loss, in bad weather, after they got yelled at by their coach, or when they’re emotionally exhausted from school it makes sense they wouldn’t want to go. For burnout, it’s more of a consistent not wanting to go you want to watch out for.

They Focus on the Negative Aspects of Their Sport

When soccer isn’t fun anymore, you begin to focus on everything you hate about it. You speak about the coach, your team, or soccer in general with an overwhelming sense of negativity. Instead of regaling about your latest accomplishments on the field, you’re particularly negative about your performance or your team’s potential.

Athletes are supposed to feel proud after pushing themselves physically. Burnout makes it all seem pointless, so the negative side flourishes.

Their Performance Has Declined Considerably

Confidence and energy are directly intertwined. When your athlete is physically and mentally exhausted, their playing style changes because they aren’t as confident in their abilities.  

In soccer, players put their confidence on display every game. So, if your player seems to always play it safe – it could be because they are too exhausted to bet on themselves and trust that they’ll come out on top.

They Have Less Energy

A healthy training regimen should leave your athlete feeling focused, energetic, and composed. If they’ve lost a spring to their step and have no interest in training on their own, it might be burnout.

If it’s burnout, your athlete’s exhaustion will be especially apparent before games, since the pre-game jitters will suck even more energy out of them. Instead of being excited for the chance to perform, your athlete can barely pull themself off the couch.  

They’re Detached from the Rest of the Team

If you’re thinking about quitting your sport, it might seem pointless to stay friends with your teammates. It’s also hard to feel close to your teammates once you start losing your shared passion for soccer.

To prepare themself for a future without soccer, a burnt out athlete often starts distancing themself from their teammates, both on and off the field. They’re less likely to socialize with them outside of soccer, nor do they talk about them at home. If you were feeling moody and depressed, would you want to hang out with kids who are happy and confident? Probably not, since it just makes you feel even more alienated.

At Beyond Goals Mentoring, we’ve seen the impact burnout can have on players at every level. That’s why we’re dedicated to helping young athletes elevate their skills and athleticism while maintaining a healthy relationship with their sport and prioritizing their mental health. All this hard work is meaningless if you’re not having fun.

So, if your athlete seems to be on the verge of burnout, let’s set up a mentoring session today. As two former pros, we were able to overcome burnout in our careers by changing our mindsets, and your athlete can, too.