Bridging the gap: psychological foundations of coach communication in grassroots football in Indonesia and Malaysia

Introduction: The harmonious relationship between coaches and players also determines the development of young football players and their long-term success in football. This relationship creates positive emotions such as interest, joy, and enthusiasm in football training. By building positive communication, coaches and players can implement proactive strategies, such as clarifying expectations. Objective: This study aims to explore the effects of grassroots-level coach communication skills on grassroots-level football players' interest and engagement in Indonesia and Malaysia Methodology: This study used a qualitative method with a grounded theory approach. Data were collected through interviews, observations, and document analysis of 25 licensed football coaches with at least 5 years of experience in Indonesia and Malaysia. Results: This study found that being a grassroots-level coach differs from being a professional football coach. Coaches need to provide communication that is easy for children to understand to attract children's interest and involvement in football. Using football terms by modifying sentences in training will increase happiness, which causes children to want to continue training. Discussion: Early-age football coaching generally highlights coaches' dilemmas in facing various challenges, including adapting to understanding early-age development. Coaches need to simplify general football terms so grassroots football players can easily understand them. Conclusions: In addition to a professional license in football coaching, a special license is also required to become a grassroots football coach because specific communication skills are required for grassroots-level coaches in Indonesia and Malaysia.