Although individual brilliance (think Messi’s free kick against the US) has featured in this summer’s rich soccer repertoire, it has been teams who have shown they can work together that have captured the attention of the soccer world. Chile’s triumph in Copa America, as well as Wales and Iceland pushing so deep into Euro 2016, have proven that a strong collective can overcome individuals. Let’s not forget Leicester City winning the Premier League and Atletico Madrid making the Champions League final earlier in the year in proving that good organization goes a long way in soccer. Here we offer a few team-building drills that focus on movement and communication. These are drills that young soccer players have enjoyed every time we have used them.

Drill 1 – Team Relays

Setup

• Split the players into teams of 4 or 5, depending on the numbers
• Each team has a ball
• Place 2 cones 20 to 25 steps apart for each team
  • 1 cone is a start/finish cone
  • The other cone serves as the turn point

Drill

• Teams start behind a cone, run around the other cone, and back to the initial cone
• Each player in the team of 4-or-5 has to be touching the ball 
  • With any part of the body (one carrying the ball and others touching it with just their fingertips is fine) for the first race
  • With only their right hand for the second race
  • With only their left hand for the third race
• If any of the players on the team break contact with the ball, the team is disqualified from the race

Tip

• Practice once slowly without racing, so the players understand the rules and get the feeling of working as a team
  • Some of them may have to run backwards, or otherwise awkwardly, so practice that for safety reasons

Too Easy?

• Make the teams dribble or pass one ball on the ground while carrying the other ball and moving

Drill 2 – Chain Tag

Setup

• Setup a box
  • Start with a 25×25 steps box and then make it bigger or smaller depending on how many numbers you have
• Select a player to be “it”
  • You should “referee” and not play tag

Drill

• Start playing tag within the box

• When another player is tagged, the player who was already “it” remains “it” and the tagged player also becomes “it”
  • The chasers (the players who are “it”) form a chain
    • Suggest they link arms rather than hold hands
      • This is a safety precaution that prevents players from yanking on each others’ arms as the chasers try to switch direction

The chain cannot break when tagging another player

The chain must be connected in order for a player to be tagged

• In order to tag someone, the chain cannot break
  • If someone is tagged by a chaser, but the chasers are not all connected to one another, then that player goes free

Tip

• The chasers should talk to each other before choosing their target and moving towards it
  • It is easier if they agree on a target first, corner the target, and then attack as a team
    • Taking down 1 target at a time is easier than trying to catch a bunch at once

Too Easy?

• If it is too easy for the players running to avoid getting tagged, make them dribble a soccer ball

Drill 3 – No Contact Moving

Setup

• Setup a box
  • Start with a 15×15 box and then gradually make it smaller

Drill

• Players move around in the box, but they cannot touch one another
• Players must jog (slow is fine), but they cannot walk

• After 1 minute, cut the box in half and keep the drill going

• After another minute, cut the box in half again
• Keep cutting the box as long as players are still able to move around without touching one another

Tip

• Players should keep their heads up to avoid collisions and injuries

Too Easy? 

• Make the players dribble a soccer ball while avoiding contact