Football Drills & Trainingby Play 2 Earn Sports

Small sided games for football:133 you can watch in 3D

Fewer players means more touches and more decisions. Games like these let the pitch do much of the teaching.

Coming soon to iPhone and Android.

Get early access
See all 133 small-sided game drills in the app
The sample drill Slow Pass Means Go: six players on a green pitch.
Try itSlow Pass Means Go

Drag a player, then press play. These are sample names: sign in and your real roster imports automatically. Try your own names, numbers and kit.

These games shrink the real thing, so every player is involved. They run from U6 to adult teams, with rules that bring out one idea, such as width or a quick attack. Here are a few to look at, and the app has all 133, each one playing in 3D.

8 of 133

Pick A Goal, Any Goal: 7 players at the start of the drill, in 3D on a green pitch. U8

Pick A Goal, Any Goal

10 min · 7 players

Score in whichever little goal your team can reach first, with the floater helping the side that has the ball.

  • Look up after every touch and dribble towards the little goal with nobody near it
  • The floater stays in the middle and turns to whichever side has the most open grass
4v4 with a Floater: 11 players at the start of the drill, in 3D on a green pitch. U10

4v4 with a Floater

8 min · 11 players

Use the neutral floater to keep possession in a 4v4.

  • Find the floater
  • Keep the ball moving
5v5 with Goalkeepers: 11 players at the start of the drill, in 3D on a green pitch. U10

5v5 with Goalkeepers

8 min · 11 players

Play 5v5 with goalkeepers and finish any attack within a few passes.

  • Play forward quickly
  • Support the ball carrier
Buddy In The End Zone: 6 players at the start of the drill, in 3D on a green pitch. U8

Buddy In The End Zone

10 min · 6 players

Beat your chaser, then find the friend waiting in the far end zone to bank a point.

  • Run straight at your chaser, then drop a shoulder and go past on the open side before you give it
  • The end-zone friend slides along the line until there is a clear path for the ball
4v4 with Touchline Support: 12 players at the start of the drill, in 3D on a green pitch. U12

4v4 with Touchline Support

8 min · 12 players

Keep possession and use support players on the touchlines.

  • Use the support players
  • Keep the ball moving
3v3 Five Passes to Score: 6 players at the start of the drill, in 3D on a green pitch. U10

3v3 Five Passes to Score

8 min · 6 players

Complete five passes before shooting in a 3v3 game.

  • Count the passes
  • Move after you pass
King of the Court 2v2: 6 players at the start of the drill, in 3D on a green pitch. U8

King of the Court 2v2

8 min · 6 players

Win the 2v2 and rotate quickly to the next court.

  • Pass and move
  • Attack the space
Press on the Back Pass: 9 players at the start of the drill, in 3D on a green pitch. U14

Press on the Back Pass

8 min · 9 players

Press the back pass in a 4v4 game.

  • Press the back pass
  • Lock on to the receiver

125 more small-sided game drills are in the app, each playing in 3D with the full set-up and steps.

See all 133 small-sided game drills in the app

Why use them

More touches

With fewer players, each one gets the ball more and has to make more decisions.

Real decisions

There is an opponent and a goal, so skills get used the way they are in a game.

Players enjoy them

It feels like playing, so effort stays high without much pushing from you.

Coaching through the game

One rule, one idea

A bonus for a switch of play or a two-touch limit teaches without stopping the game.

Fit the area

Add space for more time on the ball. Take some away for more pressure.

Stop less

Let it run. Make one short point between rounds and change the teams.

Questions

What counts as a small-sided game?

Any game with fewer players than the real match format, often from 2v2 up to 7v7.

How many players do I need?

Most of these use 6 to 15 players.

How long should each game run?

Most in the app run for 8 to 22 minutes in all. Short rounds with a quick rest work well.

See all 133 small-sided game drills in the app

Coming soon to iPhone and Android.

Get early access
About the football drills app