This article offers suggestions on how to assess the abilities of young soccer athletes and ways to educate parents or guardians on how to maintain an attitude that most benefits and supports the players. The abilities of young athletes on a team vary, and the expectations of both team members and parents are high, thus presenting a major challenge to coaches when they organize a team. Coaches, who can accurately assess the abilities of their soccer athletes and apply these findings when organizing a team, are in better position to educate and counter the effects of negative parental behavior. Although focus is on soccer, the strategies apply to coaching in a similar context, and have long been used and found effective by the author.