KickStart Coaching Requirements
Thank you for helping to coach our youngest CYS players! Hopefully the players who you coach and mentor this season will learn to love the beautiful game of soccer as you do.
To be able to work with the kids this season, there are some mandatory requirements for our KickStart coaches. The requirements depend on your current age.
If you are 18 years old or over:
You need to complete all of the Adult Coaching Requirements. Click here for step-by-step instructions: MA Safe Soccer.
If you are under 18 years old:
Two Steps described below are required:
Step 1: Register as a Player - To be completed by a Parent/Guardian
It may seem odd that to coach KickStart, you have to be registered as PLAYERS for this season in our CYS registration system, but we have you do this to get you fully covered by our liability insurance.
If your parent already has a CYS registration account, they can just log in. If they do not have an account, enter the parent’s email address and confirm a password to set up a new CYS registration account.
Choose Register my PLAYER on the left and fill in all of the information needed. Do not register as a volunteer coach for this program, register as a player.
Then choose the Fall 25 - Spring 26 Under 18 Coach/Referee program and find the player activity called KickStart Coach.
Be sure to accept all of the liability waivers and code of conduct policies, and then check out. There is no cost to register for this program.
Step 2: Complete Online Concussion Training - To be completed by Under-18 KickStart Coach
You may have already taken the NFHS Concussion for Students course for high school sports. If that certificate is dated after June 2024, it is still valid, and you may just submit that.
If you have not yet taken that course, then go to the site linked below, create an account, and take the free Concussion for Students course: https://nfhslearn.com/courses/concussion-for-students
Save your completion certificate using this file naming convention: Last name_first name_month-year of completion. File name should look like this: Smith_Joanna_8-25.
Then submit the correctly named file to: [email protected]
A USSF course is also acceptable:
The U.S. Soccer Learning Center Introduction to Safe and Healthy Playing Environments course training is only around 25 minutes long and covers concussions. If you have been a referee in the past, you may have already taken this course.
To register with USSF, if not a member, click below:
Register with the Learning Center with your LEGAL first and last name. (here: https://learning.ussoccer.com/safeguarding)
Click the red button on the top left of the linked page to sign up for a new USSF account or any Login button to access an existing LC account. You have to complete your USSF LC account profile completely before the site will allow you to start the Intro to Safe and Health Playing Environments course.
There is no completion certificate issued, but confirm completion by sending an email to [email protected] and we can look it up in the system.