Postseason Pressure? Use These 3 Playoff Mindset Strategies to Thrive

🧠 Three Playoff Mindset Tips to Elevate Your Performance

It’s June—and that means playoffs and showcase events are here for leagues like ECNL, Girls Academy, MLS Next, and more. Players and teams have spent countless hours throughout their season to be technically, tactically, and physically ready to compete for the playoffs.

Yet, in those high pressure moments, we often see stress and anxiety rob players and teams of their confidence and optimal performance.

Why?

Because most players haven't been mentally trained and mentally prepared to navigate the adversity and pressure that comes with postseason soccer.

Our brains are hardwired to overly focus on what could go wrong, especially in moments that matter most—like trying to win or play well in the playoffs. 

Without mental resilience tools, even the most prepared players will often struggle to manage performance anxiety, persist through adversity, and play to their abilities.

Let’s change that!

Below are three playoff mindset tips to help you get rewarded for all of your technical, tactical, and physical preparation and thrive in the playoffs!

⚽ 1. The Playoffs Are Just Another Game

Sir Alex Ferguson, the most winning coach in pro soccer, won 38 trophies (including 13 Premier League Titles) with Manchester United. What was a key ingredient to his coaching philosophy?

“Don’t play the occasion, play the game.” - Alex Ferguson

Ferguson knew that when players focused too much on the significance of a match, their performance dropped. But when they approached each game the same way—focused on their training, tactics, and execution—they thrived.

Tip: Reframe playoff games as just another opportunity to execute what you've already prepared for.

🧩 2. Name 5 Things That Are Similar to the Regular Season

Our brains are wired for survival—they look for change and perceive it as threat. That’s why we often feel heightened stress when everything seems “different” during playoffs.

To reduce that stress, increase your sense of control by naming at least five things that are the same as regular season games.

Here are some examples to get you started:

• Games are 11 v 11

• Our Uniforms

• My cleats

• Two halves in the games

• Same rules (e.g., throw-ins, offsides)

This helps your brain shift into challenge mode instead of threat mode, allowing you to stay present and perform your best. 

Tip: Before each playoff game, name 5 things that are the same as regular games. Repeating this simple exercise helps reframe the environment as familiar, reduces performance anxiety, and sharpens mental focus.

🎯 3. Focus on the HOW, Instead of the Results

Playoffs bring a lot of outcome talk:

• “How are you feeling about the playoffs?”

• “Are you ready to take on ___ team?”

• “Are you going to win?”

These questions ramp up pressure and shift focus away from what players can actually control. When players focus on things they can’t control — if the team wins — they elevate their stress and anxiety.

Instead, focus on the HOW. What specific daily actions will help you show up prepared? When players focus on what they can control—like preparation and attitude—they reduce stress, feel more confident, and increase their sense of control.

Coach Tip: Encourage your captains and team leaders to echo this message—focus on the process, not the pressure.

🧠 Mental Health Tip for June

When facing a new challenge, your brain is wired to anticipate negative outcomes. This can spike anxiety and lower your confidence.

Take back control by doing this:

➡️ Write down 3 previous challenges you’ve faced
➡️ Reflect on how nervous you felt at the start
➡️ Acknowledge how you worked through each one

Let this remind you: you’ve overcome before—and you’ll do it again.
That’s what mental resilience is all about.