Reflection and reflecting on football coach education in connection with identity, process and practice

In this chapter, practical guidance for coach educators and coaches in women’s football are provided, regarding how to embed effective, reflective practice into coach development. Even though the popularity of women’s football has grown significantly, there remains a lack of information for coaches working in women’s football. The importance and placement of reflective practice is considered as a professional learning strategy for women’s football coaches. A critical review of how coach identity is influenced and positioned through and due to reflective practice is also presented. The evaluation of primary data collected from women’s football coaches via one focus group and four semi-structured interviews is utilised and then substantiated by the author’s own experiences as a football coach and player, respectively. Key findings are discussed under the themes of: (Un)taught reflective practice, informal learning and self-esteem. In the final section of the chapter, we present a brief “how-to guide” on embedding reflective practice as a learning strategy into coach education programmes as a means to develop educators and coaches alike.