SAINT LOUIS, Mo. – Saint Louis FC doesn’t officially begin preseason training until next Monday but that hasn’t stopped a large contingent of the team’s squad from taking the field early for another reason.

Starting on Tuesday night, STLFC is offering U.S. Soccer Grassroots License coaching courses for its first-team players for the first time in club history. The course, which will also host St. Louis Scott Gallagher (SLSG) youth club coaches, runs through Thursday, January 24.

The Grassroots License course will be taught by certified U.S. Club Soccer and current STLFC Academy and SLSG coaches Blake Decker and Dale Schilly. The players and coaches that complete the coursework will receive their U.S. Soccer Grassroots License, which creates the opportunity for them to begin the USSF National License Program.

“Players at the USL level are very concerned about their future,” said Schilly, who himself was STLFC’s Head Coach in the club’s first two seasons. “If they want to continue their career as coaches, completing the Grassroots Courses now when they are players is a very smart move. Personally, it is great to work for a club that is concerned about the players’ futures.”

“The opportunity to gather current professional players along with coaches who have years of experience on the field in order to collaborate in a learning environment focused on the Grassroots player will make this a truly unique experience for all involved," added Decker.

According to U.S. Soccer’s website, the Grassroots License courses focus on U.S. Soccer’s Coaching Education Philosophy, Play-Practice-Play Methodology, the Six Tasks of a Coach, and the characteristics of players in that specific game model, i.e. 9v9 or 11v11. The ability of certified U.S. Soccer clubs to offer and host Grassroots License courses was granted in 2015 after a policy ratification at U.S. Soccer’s Annual General Meeting.

“Providing these courses is part of an initiative the club is taking to help players prepare for opportunities they can pursue while playing professionally and after their playing careers,” said STLFC Vice-President and General Manager Jeremy Alumbaugh. “We look forward to the courses and seeing the positive opportunities it can bring with it for players. As a club, we are looking at how we can implement similar opportunities for our Academy and Youth players within the club.”