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The Importance Of Bonding With Your Team During Trips To Away Games

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Brian Roberts (@brianroberts77) is the Chicago Fire Academy Director of Performance, Advisory and Support Services. Roberts has served as the Chicago Fire’s Senior Manager of Youth Development since 2012, during which his operational and technical programs have impacted over 4,000 players and 350 coaching staff in 10 Fire Juniors youth soccer clubs on an annual basis. Since joining the Fire in 2010, Roberts has also held down roles as an interim director of coaching as well as player development manager.

Roberts talks about his favorite memory as a young soccer player—away trips for games. He states that spending time with his teammates off the field was a great bonding experience, even through simple events such as eating together, staying in a hotel, or walking around the town. These all gave him and his teammates the opportunity to experience other cultures, which provided a beneficial learning experience that also increased team cohesion and collectiveness.