IMPORTANCE OF FOREIGN LANGUAGE COMPETENCE FOR INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION AND COLLABORATION IN SPORTS COACHING

Abstract

This article examines foreign language competence (FLC) as a critical, multidimensional component of the professional profile of modern sports coaches. In globalized sports, proficiency in English as a lingua franca is an absolute necessity for effective intercultural communication, professional mobility, and accessing international scientific resources. Despite the implementation of Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) and English for Specific Purposes (ESP) in higher education, current frameworks predominantly target undergraduate students. Consequently, a systemic gap exists regarding the continuous linguistic development of practicing professionals, highlighted by the absence of explicit FLC requirements in the Ukrainian professional standard for sports coaches. To address this empirical gap, the study analyzes expert interviews with twelve international national team coaches. Quantitative findings demonstrate a near-absolute consensus on the necessity of English, with coaches rating its importance at an average of 9.08 out of 10. Qualitatively, the research identifies high-stakes applications of FLC: navigating major competitions, coordinating joint training camps, acquiring regulatory licenses, and engaging with peer-reviewed sports science. Based on these findings, the study presents a functional matrix categorizing the specialized linguistic tools required by coaches into six distinct domains: technical and biomechanical vocabulary, tactical language, interpersonal and psychological communication, medical lexis, administrative jargon, and public relations discourse. The study concludes that updating national professional standards to explicitly include FLC is imperative. Furthermore, universities and sports federations must collaborate to design specialized continuous professional development programs tailored for adult learners in high-performance environments. Future research should prioritize developing standardized diagnostic tools to assess domain-specific language proficiency among practicing coaches.