Imhotep International Soccer Association

Imhotep International Soccer Association is an Atlanta-based soccer club for boys and girls ages 3 -12. Our U-6 to U-13 Recreational, Classic, Athena and Academy teams learn skills and strategies to help them be productive student athletes.

Imhotep International Soccer Association is located in South West Atlanta and we believe first and foremost in teaching all players to appreciate and enjoy the game of soccer and to believe in themselves and their teammates. Imhotep International Soccer emphasizes the importance of developing proper technique and skills as demonstrated and taught by licensed coaches and trainers. All players will learn these fundamental skills and rules of soccer in a challenging fun and safe environment.

Imhotep International Soccer Association works in accordance with the rules of the Georgia State Soccer Association and we are a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Exposing our players to the world’s #1 sport. Imhotep will offer a challenging and competitive environment through local, state, national and international competitions. Read the IISA By-Laws.

What does Imhotep International Soccer Association mean?

Imhotep: (fl. C. 3000 B.C.) was one of world history’s most versatile geniuses. Inventor of the pyramid, author of ancient wisdom, architect, high priest, physician, astronomer, and scribe. Imhotep’s prodigious talents and vast acquired knowledge had such an effect on his Egyptian contemporaries that he became one of only a handful of individuals of nonroyal birth to be promoted to godhood. As a soccer club we strive to have our players encompass the same versatility on and off the field.

International: With soccer being the World’s #1 sport we want our club to membership to attract families from around the world. Additionally, we look to have our players develop an appreciation for the cultural diversity the sport of soccer brings.
Soccer: More commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of eleven players using a spherical ball. It arguably considered to be the most popular sport in the world. The most prestigious international football competition is the FIFA World Cup, held every four years. This event, the most widely viewed in the world, boasts an audience twice that of the Summer Olympic Games. Association: It’s not just a team, it’s a family of people who love to compete, to exercise, and more importantly to share their friends and family by attending games, professional matches, barbeques and all sorts of social events organized by the association.

Mission Statement

The Mission of the Imhotep International Soccer Association is as follows: "We develop soccer players as student-athletes to their fullest potential by providing the best soccer education and training in Greater Atlanta."

Objectives

- Develop Players
- Have Fun
- Promote Enjoyment of the Game
- Emphasize Student Athletes
- Place Players on the U.S. Olympic Development Program
- Aid Players in Obtaining College Scholarships
- Be Recognized locally and nationally as a top soccer club
- Partner with other organizations that support our club philosophy.

Our Origins, experience and project

Established in 1996, IISA came to life as a simple extra curricular activity for the students of the Imhotep Center of Education. Teams were organized by the schools administrator (C. Harris) who shared the passion for football and competition. At the time there was a desire to develop a true soccer club for the residence of Southwest Atlanta to truly experience the “beautiful game”.

With the assistance of a new Director of Coaching (K. Frazier) and founding board members (N. Leach, M. Miles, P. White and F. Bourget) a set of By-Laws and application for non-profit status were established. As the seasons progressed and the interest grew, IISA experienced great success in the recreational leagues by winning numerous championships and has in recent years developed many successful select level teams. As the association has grown the club is represented by more than a dozen nationalities.

Our Experience with youth teams

The initiative to create the current association structure is driven by the great experience and success we had with our first youth teams. We guided a core group of players for several years until the "boys" now young men departed for College. We are proud to have played a role in the maturation process of these college bound student-athletes. This superb trip (numerous championships and sportsmanship awards) left us with several ideas to repeat the experience on a personal level - where we shared practices, games, BBQs and much more - as well as how to improve on the training and athletic development we provide. We invite you to read through our philosophy section.

What we seek

The resulting game plan has been to develop a proper club structure that links the development of each age group in a very detailed process. The initiative is well on its way as it can be seen in our website were you can get a glimpse of where we are headed and the general atmosphere we provide. The core concept and essence is to have well trained coaches teaching the fundamental skills needed to be successful on the field of play. We believe that this will give more liberty and alternatives in terms of conducting drills, scrimmages and competitive games during practices. We think that by pooling our efforts and creating a single atmosphere kids will bond more as they will become apart of something more significant, with more presence.

Coaching Philosophy

To further explain the goal of pooling our coaching efforts, we find that an aspect that can greatly enhance the development of a child is the variation of drills and exercises; repetitiveness can create a stale atmosphere and can also lead to overdeveloping certain aspects of a player while leaving others unattended. We find that when we coach together, the presence of various licensed coaches leads to more variation and a “fresher” more enthusiastic practice. Furthermore, as one coach leads the effort in organizing and setting the tone of the practice, the other coaches can approach players individually to offer one-on-one support making the atmosphere more relaxed and friendly. Often the problem with a one coach approach is that the coach is too busy giving explanations and commands, instead of relaxing and getting to know the players.

Lastly, having multiple trained coaches allows us to avoid the involvement of non trained individuals on the practice itself. We find that as helpful individuals want to be, a licensed and trained coach/parent who has extensive experience coaching and playing is a much better alternative as an assistant coach than a untrained volunteer.

Strategy for continuing our soccer education

We are and shall always be students of the game. A coach should not stop his personal development independent of his coaching license; a clear strategy and approach is essential for long-term growth. As a club we are strong believers that the best way to learn coaching techniques is to actually see how others do it. One can pick up drills from textbooks and various resources, but seeing how coaches actually explain it, their body language, and how players respond to them is the adequate form. For this reason we have Directors of Coaching Keith Frazier and Tactical Director Ed Armand. Both coaches have extensive experience at the youth levels and collegiate levels as coaches. There expertise along with our other coaches bring professional train to our teams on a daily basis. Furthermore, the coaching staff attends as a group the in-house training sessions and participate in various training sessions conducted by the Georgia State Soccer Association. Observing the best in the world helps us develop drills and techniques that are crucial in our attempt to implement a unified and consistent soccer style for our youth teams.