We play to win. We try our hardest because we want to win. We practice, sweat, freeze, and sacrifice because we want to win. The coach feels the urge to win in his players and himself and does everything in his power to win. It so easy to forget, soccer isn't a job. Soccer may help prepare us for a job, it may help us do our job better, but soccer is not a job (at least for most of us). It is so easy to forget that you can win a championship, but if it wasn't fun, you're not coming back.
The studies show that winning isn't what keeps most players playing soccer. It's the challenge, the team atmosphere, the fun. Now if I could just find a reference to those studies...I'll have to look for them later.
Update: I found this article on the US Youth Soccer website with several references at the bottom. Youth Soccer in America - How do we measure success? There's a quote midway through the article that I thought summed up my thoughts well:
"Winning isn't everything, but trying to is!" – Rainer Martens, sports psychologist
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