Grassroots football coaches’ knowledge and perspectives of physical literacy to improve child wellbeing through community sport

Physical literacy (PL) is an emerging framework aimed at promoting children's holistic development through sport. Despite widespread recognition of the benefits of sport participation on physical, mental, and social wellbeing, the extent to which coaches understand and can foster PL remains unclear. Guided by constructivist and interpretivist paradigms, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 11 male football coaches in England, exploring their understanding of PL, barriers to its implementation, and its role in promoting holistic development. Reflexive thematic analysis revealed a predominant lack of knowledge of PL among coaches, with many associating it narrowly with physical skills and overlooking its cognitive, social, and affective dimensions. Nevertheless, coaches reported implicit use of PL-related practices aligned with child wellbeing, although explicit adoption of PL frameworks was limited by knowledge gaps and resource constraints. Findings suggest the need for targeted coach education to bridge theoretical and practical understandings of PL, enhancing coaches’ capacity to promote wellbeing through community sport. Future research should focus on developing practical, accessible resources for coaches, exploring how governing bodies and sport organisations can collaborate and support PL integration through policy and training, and evaluating the long-term effects of PL-based coaching on children's sustained participation and holistic physical, mental, and social wellbeing.