OT- Youth Soccer Coaching Tips

Pro Tips As You Start Youth Coaching In A New Sport:

• This is all about you.
• You are bound for greatness.
• You are the boss and know everything.
• You are immune to criticism.
• View this position as a stepping stone on your path to coaching in the big leagues.
• The kids are merely your pawns.
• Coach like a dictator. Kids love it.
• Make the kids understand that they have a serious job out there and to treat it as such. This is not a game.
• The parents don’t know what’s good for their kids. You do.

Follow these and you will do great!

Went in blind, found YouTube videos on ball skills those were our warm ups every day, dribbling and passing with every touch you can think of. Work on give and goes, working the ball down the sidelines, crossing passes. Play games every practice that incorporate skills you did in practice. Here are my notes from the season, youtube them. We went from 1-5 in the fall to 5-1 in the spring.

Soccer Practice 

Inside touch, toe touches, 360 toe touch, stop turns…20 sec then dribble to cone using same touch

Small square big square, work on inside/outside/stop turn touches in traffic 20-30 sec on whistle dribble to outside square cones

Warmup figure 8 dribbling drill 3 cones and starting cone 2 at each station pass back at 3rd cone on way back

Dribbling drills: toe taps (small rolls), inside touches, sole rolls (sideways), stop turns down and back, pull backs 1/2 way pull back twice to end up finishing the same direction, push pull 3x between cones, outside inside. Spring: add outside outside scissors, outside outside step over, outside outside lunge (youth soccer 10u dribbling drills) 5 lines 2 players

Passing two cones 3 at each, round 2 add cone in middle and make a move

Pass and move 6 cones 5 players keep score rounds

Numbers passing: 20x30 - 2 groups of 5, 1 to 2, 2 to 3, ………5 to 1

2 cones per player, box the ball inside touches, point to a cone, dribble to cone and pull back inside foot….” “ step over w inside foot back in

“” spin- step inside foot to cone, pull and turn w outside foot spin back inside

Play through the gate

Play capture the balls/flag- balls in middle you can take balls out of base or steel from a player - win the ball, go for the steal, protect your base

World cup

Team ball tag - two teams each player has ball, dribble and try to hit another players ball with your ball. Stay inside 4 cones 10x10 yards. 1st round one team is on offense 2nd round switch roles

I've coached my daughter's u9, co-ed rec team for the last three seasons before they've moved up to academy. With 6 year olds all you can really do is teach them the very basics - toe taps, slow dribbling, but keep drills to the very minimum - turn them into games. My teams LOVED trying to score goals on me as the goalie - teach them where to plant their foot and how to use the inside of their cleats (don't show them more than that) to shoot. If they score, you run a lap. 

We also play a lot of "battle ship" where we set up typical cones, and the kids have to knock them all over by kicking the ball at them.

I've also had a lot of success with setting up cones in two squares and setting out as many balls as you can find and having the kids get all of the balls into the squares with you and the other coaches being the "defenders".We then do a couple "outside in" drills where one line of kids will be the dribblers/passers and just simply run/dribble down the outside while another line runs down the middle to accept the pass and shoot..You can then add on "pick up the garbage" where everyone rushes to a blocked shot and tries to kick it in. 

At that age they'll also learn the most from the actual games themselves - it usually takes half the season for everyone to truly get on the same page 

If you're not making the kids cry, you're doing it wrong. /s

I coach my twin girls U8 rec league team and also am involved in their select team, though I let the experts manage the coaching there. Both teams score a lot of goals. I attribute it to how we train, which is highly focused on scrimmages. At this age, it’s very easy to end up with kids who have too much to process and lose their aggressiveness. 
 

I really recommend this guy for getting tips on everything from formations, to tactics, to running training sessions. 
 

https://youtube.com/@CoachRorySoccer

The slightly drunk parents who pregamed a bit before the match and who are yelling at you from behind the chain link fence to put their kid in, as they pour themselves another round in a not so subtle way, are always right. 

/s

I've been coaching my kid and his team will be a U8 team in the fall. They've been mostly 6 year olds going against 7 year olds. Our problem was that 70% of the team were new to the sport so I focused on both teaching the kids who had played a few new skills while just getting the new to the sport kids to just be able to dribble and shoot. Nothing fancy.

Ultimately, the goal was to expose the kids to the different positions. Maybe in the fall if I have most of the same kids we can start focusing more. Our record was 1-2-2 in the spring. I made sure to rotate whoever was playing goalie and our defense around. Many of our opponents were winning, but the coach's kid was the goalie the entire season.

Listen to your kids

Ask Mike Ditka to help you out 

OK, serious answer, except I'm not a coach, so I can only say from the perspective of, "I wish someone did this when I was a kid". . .

Coach how to do it the wrong way.  I'll explain.

You can tell the kids how to do it right and. . . eh, it might stick for a few of them.  But when I was that small, I remember only thinking "grown-up is telling me to do thing, I'd better do thing" and made it through practice.  Then when the game started I instantly forgot everything.

Kids are naturally curious.  So, for example, have them kick it the wrong way first, however they want, so they can experience screwing up, and then go "OK now try it this way" so they can feel the difference firsthand.  I mean, this is basically how kids learn, AFAIK -- they screw up, screw up a different way, then eventually a light clicks on.  Don't fight the natural process; just facilitate it.

- for offense: figure out your best player(s) and have them play up/attacking positions

- for practice:

teach them proper warm up/stretching and do a little pure cardio

integrate skill development into games that teach the skill (already some good ideas on that above) +

always keep them moving (having 2 assistants and running 3 lines of the same drill at the same time vs 1 long line where 80% of the kids are standing around leads to goofing off) +

devote a good % of the practice to scrimmage (you get better at soccer by playing soccer) where you stop play to make 10-20 second coaching points and then continue with the scrimmage +

be positive/make it fun and high energy/encouraging

Licensed coach here.  Thanks so much for volunteering!  It's so underappreciated!  That said, the game has changed massively since we were kids.  Everything up until the kids get to middle school and nearing high school is or should be, in my opinion, all about development.  Winning is way down the list.  The kids are competitive enough most of the time (and if they aren't the parents usually are) such that they'll be keeping score, even if you aren't.  In this regard, mistakes are learning opportunities.

Find a system/identity that will develop them the right way (are you building out of the back or ok with the long ball, etc) and work towards that.  It will give them some sense of consistency.  At the same time, rotate positions so they get to experience the entire game.

On the offensive side of things - at that age, it's mostly about the athletic players making athletic plays.  My son is a few years older, plays on a DA1 team, and they're working on short passes to create passing lanes between the last line of defenders to hit a striker making a bending run.  When he was 6/7, it was a struggle to keep the forwards high enough to stretch the game vertically.

Have patience coach, enjoy the ride, make it so they're smiling when they step off the field (or at least soon after in the event of a loss)

I would avoid trying to focus on long distance shots. Even professionals aren’t putting most shots from outside the box on target or they’re shooting right at the keeper. Even crossing into the box has gone away due to inefficiency, and it’s especially inefficient when kids aren’t very good at heading the ball or haven’t been coached on their first touch. A lot of the American game is unfortunately influenced by old school British tactics (hoofing the ball forward, crossing the ball in, not focusing on possession, not passing back or sideways to build up play, etc) which have fallen out of favor due to obvious deficiencies. It’s jokingly referred to as “Brexit ball” now.

I’d focus on build up play/possession, short passes, but especially on developing a good touch on the ball. It becomes much harder to master your touch when you don’t start working on it till older. Trying to get them to grasp a basic understanding of the positions and playing in simple formations (4-4-2, 4-3-3).

A criticism of why America has struggled to develop good soccer players (besides the obvious pay-for-play reason) is the supreme emphasis on winning at the youth level. When you look at youth teams in Europe & South America, they’re focused on developing their players and unlocking their potential first, winning second. While winning is important, your most important job as a coach is helping the kids to grow & learn as well as build a love for the game.

Here's a link to a USYS coaching manual that sets out objectives and suggested practice formats for various ages.  Depending on the experience level of the kids, this may be a little bit overly simplified for some ages, but it provides some good context.

https://dt5602vnjxv0c.cloudfront.net/portals/225/docs/usys%20coaching%20manual.pdf

https://dt5602vnjxv0c.cloudfront.net/portals/225/docs/usys%20coaching%20manual.pdf 

Make it fun and let all kids play.   Take for ice cream after game.  If the kids out from a good family then this should only make your team closer and better.  Focus on fundamentals and make sure they got those done good before moving on.  Winning even though fun to me shouldn't be the goal when they are youths.  Knowing fundamentals and the right way to play the game is key 

.

Just tell them first and foremost we're out here to have fun.  The rest of the offensive skills will fall right into place after that.  Small victories each week.  God Bless you and, GO BLUE!!

I started playing in the 7th grade. So I was new to everything. To help out on offense I'd recommend teaching them how to switch. If a player on the right side has the ball, pass it to someone in the center (assuming they can't fully serve it to someone on the Right side.) Have that player be your best player. From there they can pass left, maneuver for a shot, or pass it back to the right if the defense over-corrects.

Start by watching all of Ted Lasso 

I mean, they’re kids but …. 

set up a lot of longer distance passing drills and dribble shoot drills. See which kids have good legs. They take set pieces 

“ok dribble from this cone to this cone, then shoot/pass once you get next to the third cone”

once they get that down put a goalie in net. And do 2 on 1 offense v defense but with as goalie.

basically get them used to kicking from mid-box and in. kids learn from repetition and experience. they’ll get better 

This post has so many red flags for me as a former soccer ref, soccer coach, lifelong player and as a dad. 

Keeping score and having performance based hardware at U6?! Most boys can't walk and chew gum at that age, including many great future players, let alone doing Cryuff turns. 

Best thing at that age is to rotate kids in all positions, not keep score, and go to Dairy Queen afterwards and have fun. I was probably more competitive than the next guy but this overcoaching is generally a recipe for disaster and life long disinterest in the game. Most of the best U8 players at "beehive soccer" are just the fastest or the tallest/ early developers.

My daughter still plays soccer in AASA, 20 years after I "coached" her briefly with some of her old teammates as 6 year olds, that she played with all through high school, which gives me great satisfaction on all levels (and she bought tickets for us to see Crystal Palace v  Seville) for developing at least a like, if not a love for the game...and yes they were darned good thanks to other coaches and sticking with it.

Also best to play other sports as they get older. If your kids know how to play basketball, especially indoor soccer, many of those offensive/defense transitional skills are VERY translatable. Hockey is another terrific cross training sport for soccer strategy, skills and conditioning.

Best advice for Dad coach: find a younger coach ( not a parent)  that makes the game fun for the kids, and maybe to show off some sick cool skills that they can relate to. You can go sit on the sidelines and handout lollipops to put in parents mouths who shout at kids, refs, opponents. Then if they show real "talent" and want to do so at age 11-12 join a travel team and also start to work on real conditioning.

Best advice for older kids who want to get real good: Watch the best competition you can live to see how it's done and practice playing in tight spaces with both feet more than the couple hours a week you play on your club team, which is not enough to be really good. 

If you ignore all this, which you probably will, you can put in some restrictions about spacing of teammates, number of dribbles allowed before a pass/shot, passes to both wing channels before a shot can be taken (reversing the ball) , passes backwards, etc. Again this is an older kid concept ( think of Russian Five when they played with the Red Wings) that is not popular with parent who keep stats. 

Hope some of this registers.

Some good ideas here.  The comments on development are what I agree with most strongly.  I coached both boys and girls rec teams for a number of years - and, my son moved on to travel / academy level as he grew older (10+ years of age).

Balance, to me, is most important at this age.. U8.  This means individual skills, dribbling, moves, passing, and throw-ins.  I did not work on headers at this age - that was my prerogative as a coach and head / concussion injuries.   And, in addition to individual skills, small sided activities - two on one, and three on two - with the objective of attacking the goal.

The most important concept in youth is… spacing.   They must avoid “swarming” the ball - and, the better they are at spreading the field and using its full width.. the more effective they can be.

The comments about “keeping them busy” are important - which is why I recommend the above - skills and small sided.  If you just focus on scrimmage - you might be 8 v 8, with one ball - it doesn’t give the players much touch time - with the ball on their foot.

General individual skills - dribble the length of the field using one foot - alternating touches with the inside and outside of that foot.  Then, return the length of the field - same technique but the other foot.   In place - toe touches can be fine, I think moves - such as pullbacks - and changing direction are essential.  Again - both feet - dribble, stop, turn around, five paces - stop, pull back - turn around, etc.

Passing - you can introduce power - but, I would recommend instep passing.  Two players pair off - five yards apart - pass, then - trap - control - make a move - return the pass.  Both feet.  Then, run the length of the field - two players - passing back and forth - using their outside foot.  When they reach the end of the field, turn around and do the same thing the length of the field.  This provides an opportunity to work / learn using both feet.

Trapping - this can be part of a thrown-in drill - or, just two players paired off - even single player - toss the ball into the air - and trap it when it meets the ground.  The key objective is control.

is the term.. “switch the field” … something you are familiar with?   This is moving the ball from one side of the field that might be “dense” with players - across the field to the other side (usually - left to right, or vice-versa).  This is critical to have your team spread out - and, using as much of the field as possible.

Two v one, and three v two.  These are passing drills against a defender or two, with a goal as the target.  You can start from thirty or thirty five yards out.  Rinse and repeat.

The stretching, warm ups, etc. - are essential.   Personally, I didn’t do “just sprints”.. if the players are running, jogging - then, do it with a ball.   Script your practice - so, you are focusing on the topics you feel are important.

We might scrimmage as a full team - reinforcing the concepts we are introducing - but - less than 20% of our practice time would be a scrimmage.   As mentioned above - giving them the opportunity to get their foot on the ball - move into position - overlapping / underlapping runs - keeps them more involved, engaged, and developing their skills.

And, as others have noted - have fun.   I hope it’s as rewarding and enjoy for you as it was for me.  Good luck with your squad.

P.S. - you can have shooting drills - I would emphasize the corners of the net / frame - lower left and right - and they develop / improve their skills - the upper left and right can be added.