Share the post "Indoor Soccer Drills (Tight Space Practice)"
Training during the fall and winter months, you will need to practice soccer indoors. With the limited space it can be difficult to set up soccer drills.
We’ve got a collection of soccer drills you can do indoors. The drills are all in the same shape as an indoor field so you can do more than basic games.
Indoor Soccer Drills
4v4 to Mini-Goals (no GK): Soccer Drill
- Age Range: 4-10
- Length of Session: 3 min games, up to 15 mins
- Number of Players: 6,8,10
- Skills to Learn: game decisions, passing vs. dribbling, 1v1 situations
- Equipment: regular cones, mini-goals/pug goals or large cones, pinnies, or different colored shirts.
Description: Allow kids to compete in 4v4 small-sided games up to 3 mins long.
Drill Set-up:
- Set up the field based on the age of players. For younger players, 4-6, make a field about 15x 20 meters. For older groups, make the field a bit larger.
- Set up multiple fields if you have a large group.
- Use cones to create the outline of the field.
- Set up either mini-goals, pugg goals, or large cones as the goals.
- Split the players into even teams of 4, and give each team a color.
Drill Instructions:
- Play 3 min games to the mini-goals.
- Define how players earn points. You can create unique rules to shift the focus and practice different things. For example, you could make a 1-touch finish worth 2 points for older kids.
- Keep the simple focus for kids 4-6, emphasizing taking the ball from the other team but not your team. Also, guide them to stay spread out and communicate.
- For older kids, emphasize decision-making between passing and dribbling.
- You can also use larger goals and add a GK for older kids, ages 9-10.
Freeze Tag: Soccer Drill
- Age Range: 6-10
- Length of Session: 10 mins
- Number of Players: 6+
- Skills to Learn: dribbling, keeping head up, ball control
- Equipment: ball for each player, cones, pinnies
Description: One or two taggers try to tag the players dribbling around with the ball. Once tagged, a player is frozen until another player passes the ball between their legs to unfreeze them.
Drill Set-up:
- Create a large square roughly 30 m X 30 m. Adjust the size based on the number of players.
- Put all players in the square.
- Select 1-3 taggers (depending on the size of the group).
- Give the taggers a pinny to differentiate them.
- Give all non-taggers a ball.
Drill Instructions:
- When you say go, the taggers will run around trying to tag those who are dribbling.
- If a player is tagged, they “freeze.” The frozen player stands with their feet a bit wider than shoulder-width apart. They should raise their ball above their head.
- A teammate can “unfreeze” a player by passing their ball between that player’s legs.
- Once unfrozen, the player puts the ball down and begins dribbling again.
- Play until the taggers freeze everyone, or for up to 2 minutes.
- Switch taggers each round.
- For younger kids, you can start without the ball as a warmup.
- Older, more advanced kids, require the tagger to steal the ball instead of just tag.
2 v 2 Possession Squares: Soccer Drill
Drill Outline
- Ages: 12 to 18+
- Drill Name: 2 v 2 Possession Squares
- Session Length: 5 to 8 minutes
- Number of players: minimum of 4 players, broken into groups of 2
- Skills learned: Agility, first touch, quick passing, tackling, and pressing
- Equipment: 4 cones, 1 ball per pair
Drill Setup
- Position 4 cones 10 to 15 yards apart to form a square.
- Divide the team into pairs.
- 2 teams take their place in the square while the other pairs wait outside.
Drill Instructions
- The coach selects one team to start with the ball and one team to defend.
- The game goes live once the first pass is played.
- The team in possession tries to keep the ball by passing and dribbling.
- The defending team attempts to win back possession through tackling or intercepting.
- If the defending team wins the ball back, they attempt to keep possession from their opponents.
- The first team to make 5 consecutive passes wins.
- The winning team begins the next round in possession. A new pair replaces the losing team, beginning the round as the defenders.
- If neither team wins after 60 seconds, the round is over and 2 fresh teams enter the square.
Drill Variations
- The number of players per team can be extended up to 11. The square should be made larger to accommodate additional players.
- If players are struggling to retain possession, consider changing the dynamic to a 3 v 2 or 4 v 2. The team of 3 starts in possession. As soon as they lose the ball, the round is over and a new 3 v 2 matchup is made.
4v4 to Mini-Goals (no GK): Soccer Drill
- Age Range: 4-10
- Length of Session: 3 min games, up to 15 mins
- Number of Players: 6,8,10
- Skills to Learn: game decisions, passing vs. dribbling, 1v1 situations
- Equipment: regular cones, mini-goals/pug goals or large cones, pinnies, or different colored shirts.
Description: Allow kids to compete in 4v4 small-sided games up to 3 mins long.
Drill Set-up:
- Set up the field based on the age of players. For younger players, 4-6, make a field about 15x 20 meters. For older groups, make the field a bit larger.
- Set up multiple fields if you have a large group.
- Use cones to create the outline of the field.
- Set up either mini-goals, pugg goals, or large cones as the goals.
- Split the players into even teams of 4, and give each team a color.
Drill Instructions:
- Play 3 min games to the mini-goals.
- Define how players earn points. You can create unique rules to shift the focus and practice different things. For example, you could make a 1-touch finish worth 2 points for older kids.
- Keep the simple focus for kids 4-6, emphasizing taking the ball from the other team but not your team. Also, guide them to stay spread out and communicate.
- For older kids, emphasize decision-making between passing and dribbling.
- You can also use larger goals and add a GK for older kids, ages 9-10.
3 v 3 Quick Rotations: Soccer Drill
Drill Outline
- Drill Name: 3 v 3 Quick Rotations
- Session Length: 10 minutes
- Age Group: All age groups
- Number of players: 9 (minimum)
- Skills learned: Transitional defending, quick attacking, passing, movement
- Equipment: 6 cones, 2 mini goals, 1 ball
Drill Setup
- Create a 20-yard long, 10-yard wide, cone grid as your playing field.
- Set up 2 mini goals, with one on either end of the field.
- Divide the team into groups of 3.
- 2 groups compete against each other at a time.
- The other groups wait in line outside the playing grid.
- Designate 1 team as the attackers and 1 as the defenders.
Drill Instructions
- On the coach’s signal, the attacking team tries to score on their opponents, using quick passing, movement, and dribbling.
- The defenders try to stop them from scoring and attempt to win possession.
- As soon as the ball is turned over, the defenders become the attackers.
- The next group in line quickly enters the playing field to defend against the attack.
- The previous attackers leave the field and wait for their turn to play again.
- All players on the sideline must pay attention to the live game, ensuring they get into their defensive positions as quickly as possible.
- The drill recycles naturally, round after round.
- Coaches should stop playing occasionally to offer players instructions or advice.
Drill Variations
- Set a scoring time limit for the team in possession
- Limit individual touches to 2 or 3 per possession.
- Mark a small area next to each goal. Players can only score from inside this zone.
- Set scoring targets for attackers.
3 Grid Positional Drill: Soccer Drill
Drill Outline
- Drill Name: 3 Grid Positional Drill
- Session Length: 10 minutes
- Age Group: 10+
- Number of players: 6 (minimum)
- Skills learned: Positioning, passing, movement, marking
- Equipment: 8 cones, 2 mini goals, 1 ball
Drill Setup
- Create a 20-yard long, 15-yard wide, cone grid as your playing field.
- Split the field into 3 even grids across the length of the field.
- Set up 2 mini goals, with 1 on either end of the field.
- Divide the team into groups of 3
- 2 groups compete against each other at a time.
- Each team assigns 1 player to each section of the playing field, creating 1 v 1 situations across the field.
- Designate 1 team to start as the attackers and 1 as the defenders.
- P3 begins with the ball at their feet.
Drill Instructions
- On the coach’s signal, P3 starts the game by passing to a teammate. The defensive team allows 1 free pass to let the game begin.
- Once the game kicks off, it is a live 3 v 3 game. However, all players must stay inside their assigned grid at all times.
- If a player leaves their area, their opponents are awarded a goal.
- Players can pass the ball the entire length of the field, bypassing the center grid if they wish.
- Players can score from any position.
- The first team to score 3 goals wins.
- If you have multiple groups, rotate teams after each game.
Drill Variations
- Create a tournament if you have enough players.
- Set a minimum pass rule before teams can score.
- Limit individual touches to 2 or 3 per possession.
- Limit scoring to certain sections for a game or particular amount of time.
Give & Go Passing Squares: Soccer Drill
Drill Outline
- Drill Name: Give & Go Passing Squares
- Session Length: 5 to 10 minutes
- Age Group: all ages
- Number of players: 5 (per square)
- Skills learned: Give & go passing, moving, awareness, concentration
- Equipment: 1 ball (per square), 4 cones (per square)
Drill Setup
- Divide the team into groups of 5.
- Set up a 4-cone square grid for each group. All cones should be around 5 yards apart.
- P1 and P5 stand behind 1 cone. All other players stand behind separate cones.
- P1 begins with the ball at their feet.
Drill Instructions
- P1 starts the drill by playing a pass to P2. The pass must travel along the outside of the square.
- P1 follows their pass and heads toward P2’s cone.
- P2 plays a first-time pass in front of P1 to the inside of the square, then starts to run toward P3’s cone along the outside of the square.
- P1 plays a first-time pass to P2 and then stands behind P2’s original cone.
- P2 plays a pass along the outside of the square to P3 then continues to run toward the cone.
- P3 plays a first-time pass in front of P2 to the inside of the square, then starts to run toward P4’s cone along the outside of the square.
- P2 plays a return pass to P3 and then takes P3’s original starting position.
- These steps are continuously repeated, creating a constant passing loop.
Drill Variations
- Occasionally change the direction of the drill.
- Set consecutive passing targets.
- If you have multiple groups, create a competition to see which team can accumulate the most consecutive passes.
Progressive Passing Drill: Soccer Drill
Drill Outline
- Drill Name: Progressive passing drill
- Session Length: 10 to 15 minutes
- Age Group: 10+
- Number of players: 10 to 12
- Skills learned: Passing, movement, awareness,
- Equipment: 6 cones, 1 ball
Drill Setup
- Create a 20-yard, 4-cone square grid. Split the grid into 2 sections using 2 more cones.
- Elect 8 players to perform as attackers, and 2 as defenders.
- P1 and P2 stand outside the grid on one end, with P3 and P4 outside the grid on the other end.
- P5 and P6 begin inside the grid on one side, with P7 and P8 on the other side.
- D1 occupies the same space as P5 and P6. D2 occupies the same space as P7 and P8.
Drill Instructions
- Throughout this drill, all players must stay in their designated spaces.
- Players cannot pass the ball through any section. The ball must travel through each individual section to score.
- On the coach’s signal, P1 starts by playing the ball to P5 or P6.
- P5 and P6 work together to play the ball into the next section to P7 and P8. They can play the ball back to P1 and P2 to recycle possession.
- When P7 and P8 receive possession, they work together to play the ball to P3 and P4. They can play the ball back to P5 and P6, but not back to P1 and P2.
- D1 and D2 (in black) tackle, block, and try to regain possession.
- If the defenders win back the ball, the attackers must restart with P1 and P2.
- Each time the attackers successfully play the ball from one side to the other, they score a point.
- Run the drill for 2 to 3 minutes then rotate player roles.
Drill Variations
- Add an extra defender to both center sections.
- Create competition by tracking how many points each group scores.
- Reduce or increase the size of the grid to accommodate players’ skill levels.
- Limit the number of touches per player inside the grid.
- If attacking players are struggling, instruct the defenders to play passively with no tackling.
- This drill is designed for 10 to 12 players but it can be scaled up or down depending on numbers. Consider increasing the size of the grid if you have a large training squad.
4 v 4 Wing Play: Soccer Drill
Drill Outline
- Drill Name: 4 v 4 Wing Play
- Session Length: 10 minutes
- Age Group: 10+
- Number of players: 8 (minimum)
- Skills learned: Positioning, passing, movement, awareness
- Equipment: 12 cones, 1 ball, 2 goals
Drill Setup
- Create a 20-yard long, 15-yard wide, cone grid as your playing field.
- Create a channel, 3 yards wide, on either sideline using cones.
- Set up 2 goals, placing 1 on either end of the field.
- Divide the team into groups of 4.
- 2 groups compete against each other at a time.
- Each group designates 1 player to occupy their right-sided channel. No other players are allowed to enter the sideline channels.
Drill Instructions
- The coach elects 1 team to start with the ball.
- On the coach’s signal, the drill goes live. The teams compete in a regular 4 v 4 game, with each team trying to outscore the other.
- The designated channel players can move along the sideline but they cannot leave the channel.
- The other players may not enter the sideline channels.
- The teams are encouraged to use their wingers to set up attacks, creating overloads and crossing opportunities from wide areas.
- The first team to score 3 goals is the winner.
- Mix up teams after each game.
- If you have enough players, create multiple teams and rotate them between games.
Drill Variations
- Switch wingers to the opposite side, focusing on attacking from the left sideline.
- Introduce a rule, forcing teams to pass to their winger at least once before they are allowed to score.
- Set a minimum pass rule before teams can score.
- Limit individual touches to 2 or 3 per possession.
- Set a scoring time limit for attacking teams.
Share the post "Indoor Soccer Drills (Tight Space Practice)"
Joel is a seasoned soccer journalist and analyst with many years of experience in the field. Joel specializes in game analysis, player profiles, transfer news, and has a keen eye for the tactical nuances of the game. He played at various levels in the game and coached teams - he is happy to share his insight with you.
