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Coach with the England deaf football team points at a tactics board and uses his other hand to point to his eye.
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How to support players with deafness

Here, we explain what deafness is and how coaches can support players who are deaf or hard of hearing. 

Disability football
Communications and relationships
England Football Learning logo on a red background.

England Football Learning

2 mins - Jun 17, 2024

Hearing loss happens when the ear isn’t working effectively. If someone is deaf, their hearing loss is so severe they have very little or no hearing. If someone is hard of hearing, they might have enough hearing to use a device like a hearing aid.  

There are different types of hearing loss symptoms that affect clarity of sound received rather than volume. For example, someone with sensorineural hearing loss can hear, but they may not detect certain sounds like ‘sh’, ‘s’, ‘f’, ‘th’, ‘t’ and ‘k’ sounds.  

Hearing aids let players make the most of any hearing they do have. But they don’t generally bring their hearing up to the typical level. And they amplify all sounds, which can make communication hard in noisy environments. Note that it’s up to the players and their parents if they want to wear hearing aids or cochlear implants during football matches. 

Many deaf people use other means of communication, like British Sign Language (BSL), lip reading, Makaton and finger spelling. Lip reading isn’t a precise way of communicating, though. And it can be very tiring due to the concentration levels needed to do it. 

These are just a few key differences that we’ve highlighted. So, if you want to find out more, download this PDF. It has loads of key information and tips to help you support players with deafness or hearing loss.  

But remember, no two people with deafness are the same. Get to know them. Understand what motivates them. Find out how their condition affects them and what support they might need.   

Adapt sessions with the STEP framework (Youth Sports Trust, 2002). Space: make sure you’re clearly visible to the players and limit background noise. Task: always face players when giving tasks, be consistent with your communication and give players time to understand. Equipment: use a flag or bib as well as a whistle to stop play. Players: Use players in practical demonstrations to compliment verbal, visual and written communication to support players’ understanding.
Adapt sessions with the STEP framework (Youth Sports Trust, 2002). Space: make sure you’re clearly visible to the players and limit background noise. Task: always face players when giving tasks, be consistent with your communication and give players time to understand. Equipment: use a flag or bib as well as a whistle to stop play. Players: Use players in practical demonstrations to compliment verbal, visual and written communication to support players’ understanding.

Here are five top tips to help you support players with deafness: 

  • Ask players how they prefer to communicate. And check whether you’re communicating clearly. Is there any way you can improve things? 
  • Get players’ full attention before starting to speak. You might need to wave or tap them on the shoulder. Don’t shout.  
  • When you’re speaking, face the sun or the light. This keeps you well-lit, which helps lip readers.  
  • Stay in one place when you’re talking and keep up eye contact. Don’t chew, shout, exaggerate your lip movement or cover your mouth with your hand.  
  • If you’re working with a BSL translator, talk to players, rather than the translator. Then give time for the translator to sign your words in BSL. 

If you haven’t already, download this PDF for more information on how to support players with deafness or hearing loss. It’s a handy resource to take with you to training.  

And if you want to find out more about deafness or disability football, check out these useful links:   

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