10 Best U6 Soccer Drills | Fun Soccer Drills by MOJO

We call this game Space Wars, so we don't get sued by a certain movie company. But you can call it anything you want, and may the force be with you. Let the Space Wars begin. Here, we're working on dribbling, shooting, and hitting the bad guy, aka you, the coach. Use four cones to create a small square space. Every player gets a ball. You're Darth Vader. Jabba. Kylo Ren. Or have your team pick a villain. Here's how it looks. Players dribble around the space, trying to vaporize you by shooting the ball and hitting you below the knee. This part is key to make the game fun for them, but safe for you. Tell your Jedi to dribble in close and shoot from close range only. And while it's unlikely to hurt, you can't go wrong throwing in a dramatic flop when you get nailed. Coaches, instead of aiming for a galaxy far, far away, remind players to focus on precision over power when shooting. And to keep their heads up to see their teammates and avoid friendly fire. Remember, dribble in close, take aim, get the bad guy. Much fun this game is. Time to loosen up those sea legs. This is Island Hopping. This game helps players learn to find open space while dribbling around an obstacle. And it gives you a way to add pirates to your soccer practice. Because who doesn't love playing a pirate? We're looking at you, coach. Set up a large square with your cones and use more cones to make small square islands in each corner. Pick two volunteers to be your pirates and give everyone else a ball. Here's how it looks. The pirates start in the center while the other players each choose an island. The goal is to dribble from one island to another without getting tagged by a pirate. If a pirate tags you between islands, you walk the plank. Nah, you just become a pirate too. The game continues until everyone's been tagged. Then you pick new pirates and play again. We're looking for players to use their speed and their eyes to get to safety. Some players may be reluctant to leave their islands. Just encourage them to take chances, but don't push too hard if they're not ready. Coaches encourage players to make their own decisions about where to run instead of following the pack to one island. Remind them to keep their heads up, find an open island, and get there quickly. Remember, take chances, heads up, and watch out for pirates. This one will whip your team into ship shape. For all the kids who love band-aids, we're playing Hospital Tag. Here, we're developing balance and coordination skills and having some fun. Use four cones to create a square space. Everyone gets a ball. Here's how it looks. Players dribble the ball around the space while trying to tag each other and not get tagged. If a player gets tagged, it's a booboo or an owie, whatever you want to call it. The player grabs the arm or leg that got tagged and they keep dribbling with a hand on that spot. Get tagged a second time? Ouch. Again. Hold both spots and keep dribbling. Yes, we're taking the whole no hands idea very seriously. Your players will quickly see how hard it is to stay balanced without their arms. That's the point. If a player gets tagged a third time, it's time to see the doctor, aka you, the coach. Come on, Madison. Bring your ball. You need your ball in the hospital. They dribble over to you where you perform a magical healing ritual to send them back into the fray. Ready, set, go. One, two, three, four, five, go. Back in. You're back in. Coaches, we want our players using small touches to control the ball, like that, to change direction away from taggers and heads up to find targets, to spot taggers, and to avoid crashing into all of them. Remember, small touches, heads up, dodge the tag. Ready, one, two, three, go. Magic bells. One, two, three, four, five, and go. Back in the game. You go. And if they come down with a case of the giggles, you're doing it right. Forget orange slices. We want banana. This is Minions. Here, we're working on dribbling and shooting for accuracy, more or less. Create a square with your cones and choose a minion who gets a ball. Sebastian's the minion. Ready, set, go. Here's how it looks. See who you can get. Oh, it was too high. Keep playing. The minion dribbles around the space, trying to recruit more minions by hitting them with the ball below the knee. Go get somebody. Nice and close, nice and close. So, you're a minion. Go, go get them. New minions grab a ball and join the other minions while their teammates continue to dodge their hits until no one's left. Coaches, we don't want minions shooting wildly at their teammates. This is what we want. Getting in close before shooting. Oh, we got him, Raymond. Remind minions to keep their heads up. That's how you find a target. Coaches, we're looking for accuracy, not power. Remember, dribble close, heads up, below the knees. Overalls and goggles optional. We can't hold this game back anymore. We're playing Freeze Tag. This game is a classic and a favorite, and not just because your players can pretend to be Queen Elsa or Frozone. Here, we're working on dribbling and changing direction with the ball. Use four cones to mark a rectangular space and pick two volunteers to get freezing powers and try to tag the other players. Everyone else gets a ball. Here's how it looks. Players dribble around the space trying to avoid getting tagged. If they do, they're frozen. But five toe taps on the ball can melt a frozen heart. After a minute or so, call time. Pick new volunteers and play again. Expect some players to tag too hard. Remind them to tag gently on a shoulder or a hip, since a too strong tag on the back can knock a teammate over. Coaches, encourage players to take small touches to change direction when the tagger is close and bigger touches to get away. And remind them to keep their heads up, both to avoid getting tagged and to find open space to take their ball somewhere safe. Remember, gentle tags, toe taps to unfreeze, big touches to escape. This should be much more fun than the 80th time you watched Frozen. Part football, part footloose. We call this one dancing ball. Here, we're developing players' coordination and agility. Create a circle of cones spaced at least six feet apart. Each player starts at a cone with their own ball. Here's how it looks. Show me four square. On your call, players practice a skill or dance at their cone, like this one, four square, where you tap the ball around the cone with your foot, then dribble to the next cone where you call a different skill, like toe taps on top of the ball, with players alternating feet as they tap the top of the ball with the sole of their foot. Tapping the ball back and forth with the outsides of their feet and tapping the ball back and forth with the insides of their feet. Scissors, bringing the inside foot around and to the other side of the ball and repeating with the other foot, repeatedly. And of course, doing an actual dance. It's the name of the game, after all. Rotate. Coaches, expect a few of these skills to be difficult for some kids. Totally normal. Emphasize the fun and praise them for effort and enthusiasm. Remember, dribble between the cones. Heads up. Move in the same direction. Lace up those dance cleats. Set your out-of-office email, because in this game, we're going around the world. Here, we're working on players' coordination and agility. Create a circle of cones representing countries spaced at least six feet apart. Each player starts at a cone with their own ball. Here's how it looks. In between, go. On your call, players practice different skills while taking their ball from one country to the next in the same direction. Can you bounce juggle to the next cone? Go. Excellent. You can call out skills like rollovers. It's when you use the sole of your foot to move or control the ball, like this. First with one foot, then the other. Dribbling with only the inside of the feet or the outside, or with one foot at a time, then the other. Hopping with two feet while holding the ball. And of course, dancing. Or use your imagination. Coaches, you may be wondering what hopping or dancing have to do with soccer. Well, kids need to develop functional movement skills at this age. It's every bit as important as the game itself. So mixing in moves that make them coordinate multiple body parts at once is key. Remember, heads up. Move in the same direction and practice those skills. Now, who's ready to go around the world in 80 feet? This game won't win any awards for best name. This is body part dribbling. This game works on dribbling, agility, and coordination. It also helps with listening, like a soccer version of Simon Says. Minus the Simon Says. Use four cones to set up a square space. Each player gets their own ball. Here's how it looks. Players dribble around the space, while you call out body parts for them to touch to the ball as quickly as they can. Belly! Gotta go quick! Love it. Encourage players to do whatever they can to put body part to ball. Thighs, toes, elbows, you name it. It sounds weird, and it can look weird, but the kids love it. Back! Can you go quick? And they're actually getting a lot out of it, since they're still developing their gross motor skills. Watch for kids who find funny ways to touch the ball, like this. You can also call out fun combinations, like back, then belly, then back. You might not be able to do that anymore, but they can. Coaches, encourage players, while dribbling, to keep the ball close enough to their bodies to reach it right away. Tell them to picture a force field as big as their arms, and to keep the ball within the field while dribbling. That was great. Y'all kept the ball in control. Go! Remember, force field of control, quick touches to the ball. Embrace creativity. Get your back into it, and your head, shoulders, knees, and toes, too. Lightning McQueen would definitely approve of this one. This is red light, green light. Here, we're working on dribbling, agility, and coordination. Use four cones to set up your space and give each player a ball. Here's how it looks. Ready? And green light! When you call green light, they dribble fast. Tell them to imagine they're their favorite race car as they zoom around the space. Fortuitous car sounds are highly encouraged. I can't hear you. I'm old. Yellow light. On yellow light, they slow down, using small touches to keep the ball close to their body. I love how you're keeping the ball within your force field. That's great. On red light, they stop with one foot on the ball, like this. Keep calling different lights at random as they move around the space. After a minute or two, ask your players to suggest a new color and assign it a new action. Like, orange means swing your arms back and forth. Or purple means dance your heart out. Repeat each color a few times after you add it to help them remember. This game is great for releasing lots of pent-up energy. Just call out lots of green lights. But remind players to keep their heads up to avoid collisions. It's not a demolition derby. Coaches, don't be surprised if your players can't stop the ball on a dime when you call red light. Red light. Red light, red light. Emphasize small touches to keep the ball close and to try using the sole of their foot to stop the ball. Remember, green means go. Yellow means slow. And purple means whatever you want. Luckily, these cars run on water and orange slices. If flag football, tag, and soccer had a baby, it would be this game. DuckTales. Yes, just when you thought soccer couldn't be more fun, we've combined it with not one, but two beloved games. Here, players use their wits and moves to maintain possession of the ball, or in this case, their tail, under pressure from an opponent. Use four cones to set up a square space, while each player tucks a penny in the back of their shorts. This is their tail. Here's how it looks. Players dribble their ball around the space trying to steal a teammate's tail while protecting their own. Play several rounds, about a minute each. If you want to make it competitive, the player with the most tails at the end wins the round. We want players keeping their heads up and shifting their hips to protect their tails. All while controlling the ball and bursting away when they grab one from another player. Yes, this can be hard, but they'll have a great time trying, and it's also a pretty great way to develop their coordination and agility. Some kids might get plucked early. No elimination here. They just keep dribbling and try to get another tail. And if a tail falls off, just tuck it back in. Coaches, look for players who face their opponents instead of trying to outrun them. That's what we want. And it's how they'll eventually take on a defender. Eventually. Remember, heads up. Protect your tail. Face your opponent. Release the quackin'.