For sports to become professionalized, coaching had to come first. It gradually professionalized in the Victorian era and the role was well established by 1914. In the First World War, military units sought out the coaches to supervise physical conditioning and develop morale-building teams.Dave Day, Professionals, Amateurs and Performance: Sports Coaching in England, 1789–1914 (2012) Sport became an important part of military life for British servicemen serving around the world.
