8 Fun Soccer Drills For 8 Year Olds (U9)
Looking for fun soccer drills for 8-year-olds (U9)? We’ve got you covered! Below you’ll find eight of our favorite soccer drills and practice games you can use when coaching soccer to 8-year-old kids. When coaching kids, training sessions should be all about having lots and lots of fun. The drills and games below are all designed to maximize the fun for the kids while developing the skills and techniques the kids need to grow as players.
Related: How To Make Soccer Practice Fun For Kids
8 Fun Soccer Drills For 8 Year Olds
Drill 1: Ball Hog
Eight-year-olds absolutely love this fun soccer drill, and it’s a really easy drill to set up. This game can be used as a warm-up activity and is a competitive way for kids to practice their dribbling and turning skills while having fun at the same time.
Set Up
Set up a 20×20 yard grid using small cones. You can adjust the size of the grid depending on the number of players and their ability. Have a supply of balls ready to give to selected players.
How To Play
Choose 75% of the players to be the first ‘ball hogs’ and give them each a ball. The remaining players start on the outside of the grid without any balls. Upon the coach’s call, they all run into the grid, try and steal a ball and keep it for themselves. Once a player loses possession, they can try and steal that ball back or go for somebody else’s. Stop the game after two minutes and the players that have the ball at their feet are declared the winners.
Coaching Points And Tips
In between games, demonstrate some turn moves such as the drag back turn that players can use to turn and escape pressure. To make the game more competitive, you can decrease the number of balls on the field.
An important point to keep in mind when conducting this drill is that kids can easily become upset and demotivated if they lose, so be sure to give lots of praise to players and celebrate when they execute turns and other moves successfully. You can also introduce fun and silly forfeits for the losers so the kids are having lots of fun, even when they lose.
Drill 2: Stuck In The Mud
This next drill is a super fun warm-up drill that’s perfect for 8-year-olds. The ‘Stuck In The Mud’ soccer drill can help kids practice dribbling, turning, and keeping their heads up.
Set Up
Set up at 20×20 yard grid using small cones. Prepare enough soccer balls so there is enough for one for each player. You’ll also need some pennies to give to the ‘Mud Monsters’.
How To Play
Choose two players to start as the ‘Mud Monsters’ (without a ball) and give one ball to all the other players and have them spread out inside the grid. When the coach blows his/her whistle, the Mud Monsters should run into the grid and try to tag as many players as possible.
Once a player is tagged, they must hold their ball above their head, standing with their legs shoulder-width apart. They can only start playing again if another player manages to ‘free’ them by dribbling up and kicking a ball between their legs. The coach should time how long it takes the Mud Monsters to catch everyone and then repeat the game with two new Mud Monsters. The Monsters with the best time wins!
Coaching Points And Tips
A great way to make this soccer drill even more fun is to encourage the players to shout ‘Help, I’m stuck in the mud!’ when they get caught. This fun drill is a great opportunity to have the kids work on their turning skills, so between each game, be sure to teach them a turning move, such as the hook turn, and see how well they can use this turn to escape pressure from the ‘Monsters’.
Drill 3: Jackpot
This next soccer drill is a great way for U9 players to practice their passing technique and improve their accuracy as they race against the clock and their teammates to try and get the jackpot!
Set Up
Set up a 16×16 yard diamond with tall cones. In the center of the diamond, place a small cone on the ground with a ball on top. Next, place one ball behind each of the tall cones on the outside of the diamond.
How To Play
Line the players up in four teams behind each of the cones and balls outside the diamond. Upon the coach’s call, the first person from each line runs around the diamond until they get back to their original cone. Once they get there, they should take a setup touch to move the ball from behind the cone and then make a pass with their second touch trying to knock the ball off the center cone.
The first player to do this shouts ‘Jackpot’ and wins a point for their team. All players then join the back of their lines, and the game begins again with the next four people. The first team to 5 points wins!
Coaching Points And Tips
Once players get the hang of this fun game, you can increase the intensity by making play continuous. As soon as the first player in a given team’s line returns to their cone and makes a pass, the next player in line can start to run around the diamond to take their turn.
If anyone hits the jackpot, the coach or the person to hit it can return the central ball to the top of the cone. Before you do that, be sure to demonstrate the correct technique for making a push pass so that players know how to improve their accuracy!
Drill 4: The Numbers Game
The ‘Numbers Game’ drill is fun, easy to set up, and a big hit with U9 kids. In this drill, the players will get lots of chances to excel in 1v1 situations.
Set Up
Set up a 20×25 yard playing area with two small goals. Place two tall cones on the sidelines in the middle of the field for the players to stand behind. Next, split the players up into two teams, and number them 1 to 6. Finally, line the players up in their teams behind the cones.
How To Play
The coach calls out a number, and the corresponding player from each team runs around the back of their own goal before entering the field of play. At the same time, the coach kicks a ball into the grid, and the players compete 1v1 against each other. Play continues until a player scores or the ball goes out. Next, the coach calls out a new number and the game starts again with two other players. Play for a designated amount of time or until one team scores a certain amount of goals.
Coaching Points And Tips
8-year-olds can get quite excited playing this game and it is easy for them to kick the ball too hard and subsequently lose control. Be sure to encourage the kids to make a soft first touch to keep the ball under control. Also, be sure to let the kids know that they should be keeping their heads up and looking for space to attack behind the defender. With more advanced players, you can also award extra points for successfully executing dribbling moves like The Matthews or The Scissors.
Drill 5: 1,2,3 Challenge
Like the numbers game, the 1,2,3 Challenge is the fun and effective 1v1 game that 8-year-olds love to play. It’s also a great activity to work on turning with the ball!
Set Up
Set up two gates, one on either side of the goal. Choose one player to be the goalkeeper (or the coach can be the GK). Divide the players into two teams. Have the teams line up behind the gates and assign each player a number.
How To Play
The coach starts the drill by kicking a ball onto the field and calling out a number. The corresponding player from each team runs onto the field to play a 1v1 game in which they try to score a goal. Play continues until a player scores, or the ball goes out. The coach can vary this game by calling out two or even three numbers at once and having players play 2v2 or 3v3.
Coaching Points And Tips
Encourage players to try and get to the ball first. At which point, they can use inside hooks and outside hooks to quickly turn to face the goal and score. Make this game even more fun by having the kids cheer on their teammates by singing songs of support from the sideline. You can award extra points for the best and loudest songs!
Drill 6: The Gatekeeper Game
If you want to tire out your 8-year-old soccer players, this is a great game to do it! The Gatekeeper game is a non-stop 1v1 drill that can help your team get more comfortable and proficient on the ball.
Set Up
et up a 20×20 yard grid with 4-5 small 1 yard gates placed randomly within the area. Divide the players into pairs and give one ball to every two players.
How To Play
Tell each of the pairs to number themselves 1 and 2. Player 1 starts as the attacker, and player 2 starts as the defender (the gatekeeper). With all players working simultaneously, the attackers have to try and dribble through as many gates as possible while the gatekeepers try to stop them. If the gatekeepers win the ball, they give it straight back to their partner, and the game continues. After 90 seconds, the players switch roles, and whoever gets the most points wins! Repeat the game with new partners so the fun can continue!
Coaching Points And Tips
Tell the players that they can’t go through the same gate twice in a row to keep things as challenging as possible. Take breaks during the game to demonstrate various turn moves and then award extra points to players who use them to evade their partners!
Drill 7: Passing Through The Gates
This next drill is a fun passing game that can help 8-year-olds improve their passing technique and spatial awareness. The competitive nature of this activity makes it a lot of fun and pushes the kids to do their best and try their hardest.
Set Up
Set up a 25 x 25 yard with small 2×2 gates placed randomly within the area. In the center of the grid, make a 3×3 yard triangle also. Split the players up into pairs, giving each team one ball.
How To Play
Each pair works together as a team. To score points, players must make a successful pass through one of the gates to their teammates. Players cannot pass through the same gate twice in a row. In addition, after every gate pass, each pair must make a pass through the central triangle. Play for 90 seconds, take a 30-second break, then go again. At the end of each round, the team with the most points wins that round.
Coaching Points And Tips
To make the drill even more fun and competitive, allocate one pair as gatekeepers who get one point every time they successfully block another team’s attempt to make a point-scoring pass! This U9 drill is an excellent way to get players to work on their passing while in motion, so you can also encourage kids to play with their heads up and have good verbal and visual communication with their partners.
Drill 8: King Of The Ring
The last drill is a classic U9 warm-up game that young players love to play. If you want to start practice off in a fun and competitive fashion, King of the Ring is the way to go!
Set Up
Set up a 20×20 yard grid and give one ball to each player.
How To Play
Each player works individually. They must dribble around inside the grid, keeping their ball in the area while trying to kick the other players’ balls out. If a player’s ball gets kicked out, that player is eliminated. At the end, the last player in the grid is the ‘King Of The Ring!’
Coaching Points And Tips
Players need to keep their heads up and be aware of what is around them at all times. Encourage everyone to use turns, hooks, and drag backs to escape pressure and keep hold of the ball. Like many of these fun games, it’s also a good idea to demonstrate specific dribbling and turn moves in between repetitions of the game and give each player time to practice them unopposed.
More Games And Drills
Thanks for reading! I hope your 8-year-old players have lots of fun playing these games. Before you go, these related posts for more fun soccer drills and game ideas:
5 Fun Soccer Drills For 5 Year Olds
7 Fun Soccer Drills For 7 Year Olds
10 Fun Soccer Drills For 10 Year Olds