Getting started: without a licence
No licence is mandatory to coach a children's or youth team in grassroots football. What the club needs is someone who turns up reliably. What the children need is someone who lets them play.
Three things that bring more value at the start than any qualification:
- Reliability. Arriving on time twice a week already puts you ahead of the average.
- Let them play. Use plenty of small-sided games rather than lengthy explanations. Details are in the guide to coaching children.
- A second pair of hands. An assistant coach cuts the workload in half. How to integrate them is explained in the assistant coach guide.
An enhanced background check (erweitertes Führungszeugnis) is compulsory at most clubs as soon as you work with minors. The club usually submits the application alongside you.
Coaching pathway levels at a glance
The DFB and its 21 regional associations organise coach education as a step-by-step ladder. Each level requires the completion of the previous one.
| Level | Target Group | Prerequisites |
|---|---|---|
| Short courses and certificates | Entry level, children's coaches | None |
| DFB C Licence | Grassroots and competitive football | Minimum age, club affiliation |
| DFB B Licence | Ambitious youth and senior football | C Licence |
| DFB A Licence | Higher-tier football | B Licence |
| DFB Elite Youth Licence | Youth development centres (NLZ) | B Licence |
| Fußball-Lehrer | Professional game | A Licence, selection procedure |
At the European level, the DFB B Licence corresponds to the UEFA B, the A Licence to the UEFA A, and the Fußball-Lehrer to the UEFA Pro Licence.
Important: Course titles, scopes, fees and dates are determined by the regional state associations and updated regularly. Reliable details can only ever be found on the website of your own regional association.
Level 1: Short courses and certificates
The low-barrier entry point. The regional associations offer short courses lasting just a few hours, alongside the DFB Children's Coach Certificate as a structured introduction designed specifically for children's football.
These formats require no prior knowledge, are inexpensive, and can easily be completed alongside your day job. For most volunteer coaches, they provide exactly what is actually needed.
Level 2: The C Licence
The first full coaching licence and, for many, the only one they need. It covers training session planning, methodology, technical and tactical fundamentals, children's and youth coaching, as well as legal basics.
The C Licence is available in various profiles, depending on the association, with a focus on grassroots or competitive football. Find out more in the article on the C Licence.
Level 3: The B Licence
The step from delivering sessions to developing players. The B Licence deals with match analysis, periodisation, athletic development and training load management across an entire season. It is the prerequisite for everything that follows. Details are in the article on the B Licence.
Level 4: A Licence, Elite Youth Licence and Fußball-Lehrer
From this point onward, coaching education becomes highly specialised and demanding.
The A Licence is aimed at coaches in higher-tier amateur football and academy youth development. Places are limited, with candidates selected via the regional association.
The Elite Youth Licence is the specialisation tailored for youth development centres. Anyone wishing to work in an NLZ academy typically cannot get round it.
The Fußball-Lehrer is the highest qualification and a mandatory prerequisite for professional leagues. The course takes place at the Hennes-Weisweiler-Akademie, lasts roughly one year full-time, and has a rigorous selection process with substantially more applicants than places.
What licences do not deliver
A licence alone does not make anyone a good coach. It provides a shared vocabulary, methodological foundations and formal qualification. What it does not deliver:
- Mindset. Whether you let children finish speaking cannot be found in any curriculum.
- Practical experience. Managing a U11 side for two years brings more value than any theoretical course.
- A playing philosophy. You have to develop this yourself — see our guide on a consistent coaching philosophy.
The best approach is rarely "licence first, team second", but rather pursuing both in parallel.
Other pathways into football
Head coach is not the only role. Anyone looking to work in football can enter through several doors:
- Goalkeeper coach — a dedicated qualification track, with high demand across every club.
- Athletic development coach — usually accessed via a sports science degree.
- Scout — talent identification and player assessment.
- Video analyst — a growing field, increasingly relevant even in the amateur game.
- Sporting director and head of youth development — leadership and organisation off the pitch.
FAQ: Frequently Asked Questions
Conclusion
- Getting started in children's and youth football does not require a licence, but reliability.
- The coaching ladder leads from short courses through the C and B Licences up to the A Licence and Fußball-Lehrer. Each level builds on the previous one.
- The DFB B corresponds to UEFA B, the DFB A to UEFA A, and the Fußball-Lehrer to UEFA Pro.
- Fees, duration and course dates are set and amended by the regional associations. Always verify them with your own association.
- Gaining a licence while actively coaching beats the sequential "course first, team second" approach every time.
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