Seven Less Common Sports to Coach

 Most people who are thinking of going into sports coaching are likely to pick one of the more popular sports. These might be team sports like football, rugby or cricket, or individual sports like golf, tennis, athletics, swimming or boxing. Maybe that's because it's where your expertise lies, but their popularity means that there are plenty of people wanting to learn.

 On the other hand, it also means that there's plenty of competition, whereas if you have skills in a less-common sport, the situation is reverse — fewer potential students, but far less competition for them. Some of these sports have a reasonably high profile in the UK, while others are far more popular in other countries. Here are a few examples.

1. Basketball

 A major sport in the USA, basketball has grown in popularity in the UK in recent years, to the extent that practice areas can be found in many public parks. There are both professional and semi-professional leagues, and whilebasketball receives little coverage, it's familiar to young people through American film and TV, increasing its appeal.

2. Hurling

 One of Ireland's national sports, hurling is largely confined in Great Britain to the Irish community. Within those terms, however, it remains popular, and a few teams in England compete in the major competitions in Ireland. A hurling coach in England, Scotland or Wales would obviously be most likely to do well if they're based in an area with a high population of Irish origin.

3. Equestrianism

 While not really obscure, equestrianism (show jumping, dressage and cross-country) perhaps suffers a little from the perception of being elitist. While certainly not a cheap sport to practice, however, there are ways of making it more affordable. As a coach, on the other hand, it's likely that aspiring equestrians will be able to afford your fees.

4. Bowls

 A sedate pastime, bowls (quite distinct, of course, from ten-pin bowling) has figured a surprising amount on TV coverage. It's a relaxing sport to play informally, but competitive bowls ranges from the lowest to the highest level. If you're offering to coach bowls, it's more likely that your students will be mature adults, but a certain number of younger people might be interested in learning.

5. Lacrosse

A game of Native American origin, Lacrosse is perhaps most associated in Britain with girls' public schools. However, it's widely played in both men's and women's competitions, and British teams compete internationally. Demand for lacrosse coaching may be limited, but there's likely to be little competition in your area.

6. Squash

A popular racquet sport, squash is mostly played informally as an effective form of cardiovascular exercise. However, there's plenty of opportunity to play at both a semi-professional and professional level, and it's included in many international competitions, including the Commonwealth Games. There should be demand for coaching from people either wanting to improve their game or to take it further.

7. Skiing

One of the highest-profile sports of the Winter Olympics, skiing is, for obvious reasons, not one of the most obvious sports to coach in the UK — except, perhaps, in the Scottish Highlands. In fact, though, many towns have artificial ski slopes, so that it's entirely possible to teach either downhill or ski-jumping, wherever you live.

These are just a handful of the many less common sports in demand for coaching— others range from American football to curling. The two important things for becoming a tutor in any of these is to have skill and experience in the sport and to be able to teach effectively. If your experience lies in a more obscure sport, register with TutorExtra to find out how you might use it to become a private coach.