In late December, the U.S. Soccer Coaching Education Department announced that the next series of A and B courses will be held at the new, state-of-the-art National Training Center in Kansas City, Kansas.

As the newest crown jewel of soccer in the United States, the National Training Center is set to become the permanent home of U.S. Soccer’s Coaching Education Department. It will also serve as Sporting Kansas City’s new training home, the site of the Children’s Mercy Sports Medicine Center at Village West, and host a variety of other coach and referee development programs.

The Coaching Education Center will give U.S. Soccer exclusive access to two locker rooms, four classrooms with operable walls for different-sized courses and seminars, six breakout rooms tailored for small-group interaction, and a cafeteria for meals throughout the day. Consequently, the coaching education process will be streamlined like never before.

“This place was built specifically for coaching education," said Scott Flood, U.S. Soccer Manager of Coaching Programs. “It’s the first facility of our time, and it will provide a terrific opportunity for coaches to develop.”

U.S. Soccer will also have exclusive access to a one-of-a-kind pitch lab, located 50 yards north of the Coaching Education Center’s entrance. The pitch lab consists of two full-size, synthetic turf fields with LED sports lighting, allowing for year-round usage in all weather conditions.

U.S. Soccer will host one A-Senior, one A-Youth and three B courses in mid-2018 at the NTC. The application window for the A-Senior course will be Jan. 4-17, while windows for the A-Youth and B courses will run from Jan. 4-21. All applications must be submitted through the Digital Coaching Center (DCC).

These higher-level courses will span three to six months each, taking place over a series of face-to-face meetings at the NTC. Between meetings, coaching candidates will have the chance to apply what they have learned in their respective home environments with their own teams. U.S. Soccer staff will travel to assess candidates in their home environment for the A-Senior and A-Youth courses, while regional assessment centers will be established for the B courses.

Participants at U.S. Soccer’s National Coaching Schools have the opportunity to earn a nationally recognized license from U.S. Soccer, a member of Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), and the governing body of soccer in all its forms in the United States.

Additional coaching courses will take place in the second half of 2018, with more details to be announced in the near term. For other coaching inquiries, contact the Coaching Department at coaches@ussoccer.org.