About Bill Beswick & Sportsmind
Bill is recognised as a leader in the field of applied sports psychology and especially renowned for his work with professional elite soccer teams. With an academic background to Masters degree level and experience as Head Coach to England Men’s Basketball Team (Commonwealth Games Gold Medal Winners), Bill was ideally placed to become the first sports psychologist operating fully in English professional soccer.
In soccer, Bill has worked at Derby County, Manchester United, Middlesbrough & Sunderland in the English Premier League and contributes to UEFA Pro Licence award courses for a number of European Football Associations. He has international experience with the England U18 and U21 squads and as Team Psychologist with England Senior Men. Currently Bill is consultant Club Psychologist to FC Twente in the Dutch Eredivisie. He also provides mentoring and support to senior rugby union coaches, including supporting England Women’s Rugby coaching team through their 2010 World Cup campaign and is unique in having England international experience across three major team sports: basketball, soccer and rugby.
His book ‘Focused For Soccer’ (now in a new, enlarged 2nd edition) published by Human Kinetics was one of the first to explore the psychology of soccer and has proved to be a sustained success, with translations into Japanese, Chinese, Spanish and German. Bill’s own sportsmind resources available through this website provide coaches and players with unique development materials presented in accessible, up to date digital formats and based on more than thirty years of coaching and teaching experience.
He presents workshops across Europe and the USA and enjoys working ‘on attachment’ with the Athletics Departments of several US universities and with MLS team FC Dallas. Through his company, Sportsmind, Bill offers consultancy services on a wide range of performance and leadership related issues in sport and business. Companies and individual senior managers can benefit from the same executive coaching and mentoring relationship that Bill offers to top coaches and players.
As well as working with elite teams and coaches across many different sports, Bill’s career has included coaching under 8 mini rugby, school team sports, men’s and women’s student and representative basketball teams - the importance of participation, enjoyment and involvement in sport at whatever level has always been part of his life.
Ask Bill what his most fulfilling role is and he’ll reply “Coaching coaches.” It is as a coach educator and mentor that his experience and insights prove the most valuable.
