Julie Foudy (@JulieFoudy), a PCA National Advisory Board Member, played midfield for the U.S. Women's National Soccer Team (1987-2004), winning two World Cup titles and two Olympic Gold Medals. A 2007 inductee into the National Soccer Hall of Fame, she now works as an ESPN Analyst and runs the Julie Foudy Sports Leadership Academy, teaching leadership skills to youth.

In this clip, Foudy speaks with PCA at the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Convention about the approach paid coaches take to winning and player development. She begins by acknowledging that coaches whose jobs depend on winning are in a tough position. However, she quickly conveys that this doesn’t make negative coaching behavior acceptable.

More importantly, Foudy strikes on the point that emphasizing winning over development is an impossible environment for kids to learn and grow. Making mistakes is a part of mastering any skill, and a young athlete will be fearful of failing when taking on a new challenge if a coach can’t concentrate more on development than the outcome on the scoreboard.