A random encounter first brought Kellington Boddie into contact with soccer. Boddie accompanied a friend of his to practice and was invited to join by the coach. Soon, he earned a tryout and quickly fell in love with the beautiful game. Now a coach for ATL UTD’s Regional Development School, Boddie uses his unorthodox introduction to the game to his advantage.
“As a coach, it’s really forced me to pay attention to detail because I started out 7 or 8 years down the road in terms of technical development. Luckily for me I was extremely athletic so that balanced out my discrepancies of what I was missing technically,” Boddie reflected. “Seeing both sides of the coin of being athletic and seeing the details of the game, the technical side helped me as I started coaching.”
Much like his introduction to the game itself, his transition into coaching was unplanned. Figuring out his next move after graduating from Missouri State University with a degree in Criminology wasn’t as straight-forward as Boddie expected.
“When I got out of school, I went back home and was trying to figure out my next move. I was looking into the opportunity to go be an FBI agent because of my major. While I was waiting to pursue that, I went to coach a practice with my old club team and my coach said ‘Hey that was really good, you should think about doing it.’ I just brushed him off, but then he asked me to come back again,” Boddie continued. “Then I saw some comparisons with players who were doing really well. I started taking it seriously and signing up for courses. I put my application out there and it kind of took off.”
Boddie’s coaching career has taken him all over the country. First to Colorado then New York and finally to Atlanta. He found his first taste of the South came with a learning curve as he got used to the slower pace of life in Georgia.
“Atlanta is my first move to the Dirty South. I enjoy it. Obviously I’m at a great job. I get to coach soccer and be at a great organization and link up with great people. Down here, I saw what people meant by Southern Hospitality versus living in New York. Not that people in New York are mean, but they’re more likely to get to the point. Whereas here, people are more laid back and looking to see how your day is,” Boddie explained further. “Atlanta’s been good to me. I’ve met some good people down here, made some good connections and work’s going great.”
His work keeps him active and gives him the chance to interact with people daily and has a positive influence on their lives, he hopes. He used his experience as a player to help perfect his coaching style, taking the positive and negative to shape the kind of coach he wanted to be.
“My favorite part about coaching would be having the chance to have an impact on a player’s life. I still remember some instances with coaches I’ve had and how they’ve impacted me. So I want to give some of that back to the players I get a chance to interact with,” Boddie shared with a smile. “I love that it’s part of my job to be physically active and healthy. I get to interact with people, not just the players but the other coaches that I really do enjoy. I also get to be creative and compete.”
Boddie would describe his coaching style as demanding. He expects a lot from his players, especially the ones he sees from year to year. As he balances the individual needs of each of his players with the collective needs of the team, he sees his chance to have an impact on the next generation of soccer stars as a blessing.
“I try to learn about each player on a personal level to see where they’re coming from because I know it’s not a one-size fits all. It’s a multitude of things. I try to be open, and I try to make the players better on and off the field,” Boddie clarified. “Having a chance to make an impact on a player's life and hopefully to make them become better soccer players but more so to be better people. It’s so dope to hear that from their parents and see things like that. To see that I’m actually having a hand in their development is very rewarding.”
As he watches the growth of kids from year to year, he also acknowledges his own growth as a person and a coach. He loves being able to see how players have developed over the years since it allows his training to get more detailed and intricate. The relationships he has built with his players have shown him how far-reaching his impact can be, both on the pitch and off.
“Coaching has forced me to get into different fields of psychology and teaching. Because coaches aren’t just one thing, they’re psychologists, they’re teachers, they’re friends. There’s a multitude of hats that coaches have to wear,” Boddie continued. “Thinking about my coaching now and where I want to go with it has forced me to get into the books I read. I try to be adaptable with the different types of kids and look beyond the surface of what’s going on.”
Boddie has proven that he is versatile and resilient. The more time he spends in Atlanta, the more it feels like home. You can find him on the pitch, taking advantage of the slower pace of life in the South and searching for the next child he can coach and help flourish.
© 2026 Atlanta United FC
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