2022 Annual Survey Results!

The results of the 2022 Annual Soccer Parent Survey are in!  A big thank you to the over 1188 youth soccer parents from 34 states who took the time to participate this year.  Below are the results from 2022, and then - scroll below these results - and you'll find a side by side comparison to the 2022, 2021, 2020 and 2019 results!  

This data is a very useful indicator of the State of the Youth Game on many levels. At Soccer Parenting we use it as an indicator of the satisfaction level of parents and the success clubs are having in meeting the needs of players and families.  The survey provides important perspectives on the feelings and perceptions of youth soccer parents related to their child, the coach, the club, and even US Soccer.

Key Takeaways:

• Overall satisfaction of parents related to the club has dropped in the past year, indicated by a 7 point decline in Net Promotor Score to 21.  Interestingly, this was the same Net Promotor Score from our pre-Covid survey in 2019. If you're curious about NPS, the average NPC for B2C companies in the United States is between 24 and 57. The average score for schools is 57.  There is lots of room for improvement here.
• Generally speaking, with a few important exceptions, it looks like we are past any COVID bumps in satisfaction scores and we have largely returned to 2019 scores across the board.
• Our survey respondents this year were skewed a bit to parents of female players, where as in years past it has been closer to a 50/50 split. (54.22% vs 45.78%) Q3
• A fantastic trend continues, with the Sense of Community parents are feeling with their club.  This number has steadily, albeit slightly, increased from 2019.  This is an important data point because research is clear that when parents feel a sense of belonging, their child is more likely to stay involved in the sport.
• Thankfully, parents trust in their soccer coach remains a steady 8. (Q18)  This is interesting this number has remained steady, even when the score slightly dropped for parents feeling as though the coach was meeting their needs as a soccer parent.
• We are seeing the highest score yet for parents wanting their child's coach to receive education on interpersonal skills vs. soccer skills (61.43% vs 38.57%). 
• On a positive note, parents continue to feel similarly about the quality of the relationship between the coach and their child (Q16), about the fact that the coach cares about their child first as an individual and second as soccer player (Q17)
• The slight push we saw for children training on their own during COVID has disappeared and we are back to a steady 7.0 for children's willingness to train on their own.
• Parents are more satisfied with the amount of feedback their are receiving from their child's coach, possibly a result of new skills coaches have acquired and club-wide policies in place as a result of the extra communication during Covid.
• Surprisingly, all the COVID individual training didn’t seem to change behavior for the long haul with players.  Parents rate their child just as likely to train on their own in 2021 as they did in 2020 and 2019 and Love of the Game remained steady as well. (Q23, Q22)
• Interestingly, and only with a minor push, parents are more satisfied with the sideline behavior of their spouse than they are with their own sideline behavior!
• Parents remain highly unsatisfied with the behavior of the opposing teams parents during games. (Q31). Possibly the states and leagues who are instituting teams and their parents being on opposite sides of the field from one another are onto something when it comes to eliminating stress between parent groups (in addition to supporting coaches in their ability to control the sidelines by being closer to their parents!)
• Referee satisfaction has inched up steadily over the past two years! (Q33)
• Parents are strikingly less satisfied with U.S. Soccer and their leadership and oversight in 2022, which is surprising as this was the year US Soccer lead the world in passing an Equal Pay policy! (Q34)
• Parents continue to say they need more education in order to properly support their soccer playing child.  (Q35)

Side-by-Side Comparisons from 2021, 2020 and 2019.  You may click on any image to enlarge it.