ABSTRACT
This chapter provides coaches with information on how they can help develop leaders within the teams they coach. Leadership has been defined as ‘a process whereby an individual influences a group of individuals to achieve a common goal’. A task leader is the athlete who leads the team in competition and helps make tactical decisions. The motivational leader is the individual who motivates the team by encouraging his or her teammates to push themselves to the limit and will have the biggest motivational impact during matches or competitions. The social leader leads off the field and is the person who promotes good relationships between teammates and creates a good team atmosphere. Athlete leaders can positively impact a number of desirable outcomes within the teams they play for, but it is important that coaches consider research that has explored the experiences of athlete leaders, because some of the experiences are negative.
