Since she was 24 years old, Coach Beverly (Bev) Goebel Yanez knew she was interested in pursuing a career in coaching. Born and raised in Moreno Valley, California, Coach Yanez first became immersed in the world of soccer at the age of five—after her mother signed her up with AYSO—, and quickly fostered a deep love for the game. A love that, throughout her childhood and adolescence, only grew fonder. There was a specific moment for Coach Yanez though that shaped her passion for the sport and her commitment to one day play soccer at the highest level—attending the 1999 Women's World Cup in Pasadena, California. This was it. This was the experience that shined light on the array of possibilities the sport could bring; and one that solidified her commitment to pursuing a career playing the game. The rest is history! From her collegiate journey at Sacramento State University and the University of Miami to her incredible professional career overseas as well as in the NWSL, Coach Yanez continued to make an impact on the sport, step outside her comfort zone, raise the bar higher, and expand her knowledge of the industry both on and off the pitch. Experiences that would prove, in hindsight, to prepare her for one of her biggest adventures yet—coaching. After retiring from professional soccer in 2019, Coach Yanez officially began her journey in professional coaching and hasn't looked back since. From working as an assistant coach with NJ/NY Gotham FC to currently embarking on her first season as an assistant coach with Racing Louisville FC, Coach Yanez has continued to grow throughout her time in professional coaching. Keeping her passion for mentorship, love for the game, and desire to pay it forward to the next generation of athletes at the forefront, Coach Yanez is thrilled to tap into even more new levels within the coaching world and leave her mark on the game throughout this new chapter.
Let’s start with your time on the pitch! What were some key takeaways or lessons that you learned during your time as a student-athlete in college that you carried with you as you became a professional soccer player?
Yeah! I don't think I truly actually realized, and this is full honesty from me, until I actually retired how much I learned in regards to life skills from the game. How much I learned that being early is actually being on time; (for instance), I don't wanna roll up and come out of my parents’ car with my backpack on running, or whatever it is. You know in the college game, obviously I don't wanna be the last one to the bus, jumping on the bus, and everybody's looking at me, right? You start to learn these life skills where it's like: “Yeah after this, after you're done playing and in the preps of being the best that you can be, there is life after soccer. Life after soccer is the real deal.” The skills that I learned with how to articulate and have a conversation with the coach of: “Where do I stand? Where do you see me fit? What's my responsibility?” You know, how do I balance those conversations? How do I have them? How do I have the courage to have them? Not only the courage to have them, but the respect to go: “What do you need from me? How can I be more impactful for this group?” Learning how to deal with those conversations—which one would argue that again, life after soccer, you need to know how to carry yourself. It's just those life skills that I was able to pull out.
Being retired back in 2019, now I'm looking back going: “Oh my gosh, I had no idea that this whole time I've been learning little bits and pieces in the so-called ‘world’ and ‘life’ that have helped me become who I am today; and that will continue to be a part of who I am—how I conduct myself as wife, how I conduct myself as a daughter, how I conduct myself as a mother. The first thing that I told my husband—our daughter is two-and-a-half years old—, I said: “I'm going to get her in sports.” One would really argue that I would love her to play soccer, because my husband played professionally as well (*laughs*). We don't care what it is, we would just like her to be involved in something like sports because of all that it has brought into my life and all that it has brought to his life. I think looking back and just kind of being able to discuss those experiences has been (wonderful). When you're in the moment, you don't see them. You just can't. You’re go, go, go, go, go, go. Now that I've had (time) just to remove myself and actually reflect on them, I've realized the impact that they had on my life.
Now, diving into your coaching journey, when did you decide that after your professional career you wanted to pursue a career in coaching?
Yeah! It’s a fantastic question. When I got to Japan at 24 years old...in Japan it’s very common that you move away from home at 13-14 years old and you pursue a career in something that you're very interested in. Oftentimes, players are moving away from home at 13-14 years old to pursue a professional soccer career. So when I got to the club, I was playing with 16 and 17 year old players. My first few trainings, I must have cried myself to sleep the first three months. I was like, “These practices are so hard and these players are so good. I'm 24, how is this even possible? I’ve played in the ACC Conference, I played two years professional.” Talk about humbling (*laughs*). Just absolutely sat me right down on the floor. I think through that experience, in a year's time, all of a sudden I'm becoming a player I never knew I could become. I'm understanding the game in a way I never knew previously. I'm understanding spacing and my entire thought process is: “Without the ball, I'm making the opponents do something that I want. Actually, I'm in control the entire time.” I was never taught that. I was only taught when the ball was at my feet, what my technical ability was, and my decision making in those moments. (That) was celebrated. And now, here I was being challenged in so many capacities off the ball; and 90% of the game is off the ball. Now I'm actually playing a “game.” It's like chess—I'm maneuvering pieces to get to the other side to score, right? I think that was the first time I had flipped my mindset and had trained a different mindset to go: “Oh, I'm actually in control in a lot of cases, in and out of possession, and I've never thought about it that way.”
That’s where it first started. I played a position new to me (as well). When I first got there, probably several weeks in, the No.9—which is center forward—tore her ACL and they looked at me and said: “Can you play center forward?” I'm thinking: “I have played midfielder all my life. Well, let's give it a go.” The first few months I kept thinking like, “There's just no way. I'm a midfielder. There's just no way. I’m a midfielder.” I would come home and my husband would say, “At what point are you gonna stop saying that? Because the more you continue to say ‘you're not a nine, you're not a center forward’, the more you will not be one. Once you let that barrier go and you soak up the most that you can from this experience, you're gonna be the best that you can be for the group.” He knows, that's what I care about most. Obviously, I care about being the best version of myself for the group but I care about the group and the group's success. I became the first-ever foreign player to win the Golden Boot. I didn't even think I could score that many goals. Never in my mind that it crossed. So it ignited this: “I want to coach. I just experienced the game in a way I never have before for two-and-a-half years, and became a player I never knew I could become. I came back to the NWSL with this confidence I've never had before. I have to give this back. I have to hold on to this passion and continue to help it, while I'm playing.” I actually coached and played for the rest of my career (from there). I coached in the Academy systems.
I ran my own soccer coaching business with my husband—where we did small group private training, we did it specific to positions, we did it specific to teams—, and I started to become this player that I knew that I could continue to be; but also this coach where everything that I was telling these players I was actually still using as a part of my game. I was on them (saying), “Check your shoulders, get your body positioning.” You know, I felt like I actually was becoming a better player while I was coaching on the side. And financially, it made sense for where we were at as a league at that time and what I was actually making. I could stay in-house during the offseason and also run these sessions that I loved running—that's really where it took off. I knew I wanted to be a coach at 24 years old. I just had a bigger passion for playing. Once I felt like: “Ok, it's time. I'm ready to step aside. I'm ready to start a family and I'm ready to dive in,” (I) did. My passion started growing for coaching at the same time that I was playing to the point that it grew bigger, and I wanted to step away. I actually wanted to start coaching.
That's where it first started. You know, I'm young. I haven't been at this level for a long time. I know that I have so much to give this game, and I know that if I continue to have any ounce of the growth-mindset that I attempted to have every single day as a professional soccer player in the coaching world, the sky's the limit. But more importantly, I want to give back to these players everything that I know that they deserve. Every single day I will work to ensure that I can provide, and I am mentally refreshed to be able to notice these little details; and coach these little details. I honestly just love it. I didn't think I could love anything more than actually playing, and here I am speaking today in something that I may have found an even bigger love for. Maybe my love has just adapted and evolved in a different way. I sat on the bench last year and remember looking over at the staff saying, “I've never felt this way as a player.” It's such an incredible feeling to see someone succeed in something that you've been pushing them to understand that they had in them the whole time. To see them execute something, the smile on their face, and the joy of that, is something I can never ever explain. It's the best feeling in the world.
As you made that transition into the coaching space, what were some things that you learned about yourself?