Written by: Stefan Peter, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
Criticism, public doubt, enormous pressure, but, at the same time expecting to become world champions, and, incidentally making the world a "better“ place. Nothing less was expected of the young German national players in the lead-up to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. We all know how that turned out.
Amazon Prime gives insights into Qatar disaster
Since September 8th, the documentary "All or Nothing" by the German Football Association (DFB) during the World Cup in Qatar has been available on Amazon Prime. Since then, the media and society have been trying to find reasons and culprits for the disappointment, and as usual, they have found them quickly, leading to ongoing criticism and analysis based on the footage now available on Amazon Prime.
Having experienced the World Cup with all its accompanying noise around the rainbow armband, and having watched the documentary with its negative portrayal of events, I want to share my thoughts as a Mindset and Personal Development Coach for Pro Soccer Players and attempt to explain the connection between pressure, expectations, emotions, performance, and our psyche.
Dr. Hans Dieter Hermann, the DFB's team psychologist at that time, rightly says in Episode 2, "When the mind isn't in the game and stress becomes overwhelming, we stand no chance to perform at the highest level." But what does that mean in concrete terms? I want to try to answer this question without blaming anyone or pointing fingers at individuals.
Pro footballers are not politicians
Professional footballers are constantly under scrutiny and evaluation. They are accustomed to it, yet in my coaching sessions with footballers, I often witness how challenging it can be for many to deal with this scrutiny, and rightfully so. It hurts our ego when we are publicly criticized daily. However, what the German footballers experienced in Qatar went beyond anything that had come before. For the first time, footballers had to prove themselves as politicians first and were constantly bombarded with issues and questions completely unrelated to their sport.
Even though the players tried to emphasize that they wouldn't let external criticism distract them, continuous criticism naturally affects the subconscious of every individual, potentially generating feelings of shame and guilt. This is the opposite of what a team needs before a major tournament in order to perform up to their potential.
Pressure, shame, guilt and self-doubt are not a winning recipe
It seemed as if some players, due to public criticism, unconsciously felt ashamed to be in Qatar and maybe even felt guilty because they were told they had to take the „right“ political stance, otherwise the entire nation would be disappointed. And this is exactly what happened.
Guilt and shame are emotions that cause tension and contraction throughout our entire body, muscles, tendons and even our capacity to think clearly. Performing at the highest level and achieving goals becomes nearly impossible under such circumstances. Anyone who has experienced strong feelings of shame and guilt over an extended period, knows how much they can hinder and block us from even doing basic things.
But why? These two emotions are one of the lowest-vibrating frequencies and not only affect us physically, but also, through the metaphysical realm, influence our entire environment, the entire national team.
In an interview, Thomas Müller mentioned the immense pressure and the subdued atmosphere. Oliver Bierhoff also repeatedly mentioned sensing the players' uncertainty and their susceptibility to external pressure.
"Even Hansi Flick, the national team coach, appeared noticeably unsettled, and as a result, he could no longer connect with the team in his speeches because his own emotions were "contagious" to everyone else."
Team-building fail – Grey geese do not motivate young men
"Team-building measures are good, but when the subconscious message from the leadership figures like Flick, Bierhoff, Müller, Kimmich, and Neuer is tainted with negative emotions, no spark can jump to the team – not even, or perhaps especially not, through Grey geese.
I believe the players consciously understood the messages from the coaching staff in their minds, but they felt something different in their hearts.
Our emotions are our strongest muscles, significantly impacting our actions. Even positive thoughts are never as strong as negative subconscious emotions, beliefs, self-doubt and fears of failure, triggered by criticism, pressure and expectations.
Few can truly grasp the immense pressure young footballers face today.
Fact is between 40% and 50% of professional footballers suffer from mental health problems – this says it all.
A recurring and unhealthy pattern in our society is we tend to give love only for high performance and achievements. As kids our mistakes get highlighted in red, so we learn how to avoid them at all cost. But by focusing on the mistakes we forget what we truly enjoy. As a soccer coach you would also not try to make a better defender out of your No.9 – would you?
However, at one point in life every human has to answer this for him or herself:
„Do I want to be pushed by the pressure of external expectation or pulled by my own inner voice of joy and passion?“
How can we truly learn from mistakes?
Nobody makes mistakes, mistakes happen. Simply ask a kid if he or she ever made a mistake. The answer will alway be no – not on purpose. There is a significant difference between "making" and „happening". Making means doing it on purpose. Mistakes happen for two main reasons: either because we are not fully present, allowing ourselves to be distracted, or because our abilities do not match the demands of the task (yet). In both cases, there are steps we can take to achieve better results in the future. So mistakes are not to be avoided, but to be a chance for self-reflection and for growth, based on self-responsibility and my inner drive, following my passions. This will lead to performance joy and to meaningful achievements, instead of giving us a short dopamine and adrenaline high, followed by a feeling of emptiness inside.
What does this mean for you as a soccer player?
1. Making everyone feel comfortable is not a guarantee for success
Today the best footballers have the fitness level of a 22-year-old and the emotional and mental strength of a 32-year-old. If you want to be a Pro Athlete you will always have to deal with pressure, expectation and criticism."You won't be wrapped in cotton wool and must be able to endure it when the coach criticizes you in the locker room in front of everyone else to improve you and your game. The German national team in Qatar has proven that a comfortable atmosphere alone is not a guarantee of success. As a player, you are responsible for learning to deal with the circumstances yourself and, if necessary, seeking professional coaching. Personal development can be targeted and accelerated to help gain the extra inch in resilience and inner strength, read more about here
2. You are a creator – not a victim
You are not responsible for all the events happening around you, like criticism, bad media coverage or what other people think or do, or what kind of challenges life has in store for you. But you are responsible for how you internally evaluate them, your attitude, and the actions you take thereafter.
3. Use your emotions instead of getting blocked by them
Your emotions not only influence your own performance but also that of your teammates through frequencies. Therefore, it is vital to learn how to handle feelings of guilt, shame, fear of failure, as well as anger or self-doubt and how, as a team leader, you can support your teammates to form a successful team in the future. Every emotion we feel emits a corresponding vibration. Positive emotions like joy, love, and gratitude create a higher vibrational frequency within you, while negative feelings like anger, sadness, shame, guilt and fear lead to a lower frequency. You can learn ways and proven coaching strategies to overcome or use all of those emotions as a form of energy, without getting blocked by them.
4. Understand why fans are so critical when you don't meet their expectations
On the subject of team sports, Gerald Hüther, a neurobiologist, says you have to understand what fascinates fans about sports. We discover that most fans have two needs, which are exemplified to them by the athlete.
People want to show what they can do
Experiencing how amazing it is to win or achieve a goal with others.
This is also the real reason why team sports came to being. It’s about learning and discovering how to play together in order to be successful. That’s why people have been playing together since forever.
This way every (team) athlete, professional or not, contributes to a functioning society and this is why everyone is so invested in football and critical if things don’t go as expected. However, as I said before, you are not responsible what other people think and expect but what happens within you.
These might have been reasons why the German team struggled in Qatar so much and I am curious how the new DFB leadership will address these issues before the home Euros in 2024, to turn things around again.
Best wishes and best performance, yours Stefan Peter MAS in Sports Health and Leadership
Stefan Peter, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Stefan Peter is an expert in personal development. He works mainly with international athletes and coaches in the fields of Soccer, Tennis, Basketball and American Football. His own experience with depression as a young athlete, after the death of his father, inspired him to become a coach and a mentor to athletes in similar situations. His major passion is to empower people to unlock their full performance potential and (re)discover inner fulfillment and performance joy. He is the creator of the 4 steps Emotionset-Method and holds a Masters Degree in Sports Health and Leadership.
