CX Coach Education Visit to Benfica FC

CX has just returned from its first Coach Education trip to Lisbon where we visited Benfica FC with 24 aspiring coaches from the UK. The aim of our Coach Education trips abroad, are to enable coaches, scouts and others to learn from Europes top academies about how they develop and identify talent. 

With one of our partners in Benfica we took 24 coaches on Monday 15th April, for a behind the scenes look at one of Europes most productive academies.

The trip consisted of:

• Session observations
• Presentations on – Club Methodology, Analysis, Scouting, Goalkeeping, Individual player development
• Stadium visit
• Match day experience

Please see below on what one of the coaches thought of the trip:

What a week! Massive thank you to Coaching Xchange for an amazing week of learning and fun! 

Throughout the week we had different theory sessions learning about the youth football setup at Benfica from their school sesssions and football schools, to their academy. We learnt about how they use performance analysis within their academy to help their players achieve maximum potential and how they scout and recruit players and then the Benfica methodology of training ‘Mystique.’ The information retrieved from these presentations was so interesting and insightful, and things that we can take and input into our coaching behaviours and philosophies. 

Alongside the presentations, we were fortunate enough to observe a variety of different coaching sessions from the U17 men’s academy to the Men’s B team, and the Women’s B team to their first team. This was a fantastic opportunity to observe high quality coaches and see different coaching behaviours and practices, that we can implement into our coaching and session designs. In addition to this, we were able to talk to some coaches after their sessions and ask them about their coaching careers, practice design and much more. One piece of advice we were given that I’ll take with me into my career, is “football coaching isn’t always easy, but as long as you have the passion for the game, work ethic and desire, you can go far!” 

It has been an unforgettable week, with so many different amazing experiences. As a football coach you are always learning, and this Coaching Xchange trip to Benfica was a fantastic way to do just that! Cannot wait to implement what I have learnt into my own coaching and see what the future holds. 

Massive thank you to Coaching Xchange for an unforgettable experience! A week full of so much fun, I haven’t stopped smiling!

Chelsea Pope 

For more info on our CX Coach Education trips please email – info@coachingxchange.co.uk