Confidence plays a vital role in football. The best players in the world are exactly that in part because they have complete faith in their abilities. It gives them the belief to take that opponent on, to try and play that tricky through ball or to shoot from distance.

That’s why the most effective coaches are those who can inspire their players to have confidence in their abilities and help them no longer fear failure. The best sides throughout English football history – Liverpool in the 1970s and 80s, Manchester United under Sir Alex Fergusson, Chelsea under Jose Mourinho, Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City – all their successes were underpinned by the belief that they were the best around.

It isn’t just at elite level where belief plays an important part. Young players who are confident are more open to improvement too, which makes developing confidence an important part of youth football coaching.

Here are three ways to develop confidence in football and as a player:

Enjoying the game

When a sport or pastime is enjoyable, then the participant is more likely to feel confident. That’s true of most sports, but it especially applies to football, where the happiest players are often the ones with the most belief in their abilities.

Great players enjoy the game and have fun. You only have to look at the smile on the face of Lionel Messi to realise that. They win prizes but they never lose the love for the game.

Which is one of the reasons thatWe Make Footballers Kingston aim to provide football in a fun environment. If players look forward to their weekly sessions free from any pressure, then they will be more relaxed and open to learning which in turn breeds confidence. We also find that by using games and challenges, players have fun whilst learning.

By learning from mistakes

On the face of it, making mistakes may seem counterintuitive to building confidence. After all, when things go wrong, it’s often a blow to our faith in our abilities to carry out a certain task successfully. We might not want to try it again for fear of failure.

But making mistakes – and learning from them – can help a young player develop confidence in football. That left footed shot or attempted Maradona turn might have gone awry first time around, but when it comes off two weeks later then it gives a real boost to a player’s confidence to know that they can go away, work hard and come back better.

It also gives takes away that fear of failure. A young player won’t be afraid to try something new for worry that it won’t work as they become aware of the importance of learning from mistakes.

It is extremely important that coaches create an environment in which players feel safe to try new skills and be creative. If coaches reward players for being brave, they will keep trying and continue developing their abilities and self-belief.

Through good coaching

Good coaches know the value of confidence. That’s why they will go out of their way to instil belief in their players. That might be through encouragement, it might be through working on areas of their game that are weak or it might just be through knowing how to get the best out of a specific player.

So important is the role of developing confidence in players that it is included in the FA’s football coaching badges and is the subject of conversation amongst many coaching networks. Ultimately, the role of coaches is to keep players engaged and involved in the game for as long as possible, hopefully ensuring that football is a positive experience in their development. Afterall, it’s a game for all children and the goal is to have fun!