A little under a month ago, U.S. Soccer announced its first class of recipients for the first-ever Pro license. Union Head Coach Jim Curtin was among the 13 graduates, joined by several other MLS and U.S. youth national team coaches.
The new license is regarded as the highest and most prestigious coaching license in the country. But what makes the course worthy of that designation?
For starters, it's modeled after the UEFA Pro license, which is the European equivalent of the U.S. Soccer Pro license. As Curtin described it, the course involves a year's worth of preparation, study and evaluation.