It’s great to get started early with your 5-year-old. Soccer is great for laying the development for teamwork, meeting new friends, and enjoying competition.
The key thing to understand is that soccer skills build on the basics. Drills that build skill, confidence, and are also fun, are perfect for this age group. Think of picking the right drills as a warm-up for a game. Certain drills will prepare your 5-year-old for the best development path. Be sure to change up the drills to keep up with the attention spans of the typical 5- and 6-year-olds.
If you are a soccer coach or a parent, bookmark this page for some of the best soccer drills for 5-year-olds. It will make your practice plans easier for your next training session.
Looking to get your little one started in soccer early on? Choose TOCA Soccer for the best soccer classes and training developed for all ages!
Dribbling is important for children to master because everything happens with the ball at your feet. It’s at this age that you want to see kids start to control the ball and to practice dribbling by moving the ball in different directions and with all parts of the foot.
To play Red Light Green Light in a training session, the players each start with a ball close at their feet in a coned-off section of the field. When the coach calls out “Green Light,” players dribble around the area in any way they choose. Because they will run into the path of other kids, and the edge of the field of play, they will have to change direction and make turns.
When the coach calls out “red light,” the kids all have to stop their ball as quickly as possible. This improves reaction time and also promotes dexterity in their footwork. Be sure to have kids use both the left foot and the right foot.
Kids enjoy this drill because it works on individual skills. They can increase the intensity by dribbling at a faster pace, which makes ball control harder.
Passing is one of the most important elements of soccer. Some of the great soccer players, like Andres Iniesta, Toni Kroos and Marco Verratti are known for their sublime passing abilities. Starting to pass using the inside of the foot will give your kids an advantage at this age in their soccer journey. Even with older players, the ability to play a pass into space and to make sure it’s not behind your target is key. So start early and often with passing drills.
Place kids 5-7 yards apart with two domes, creating a gate. Ask the kids to try and pass it through the two domes without hitting a dome. If they successfully get it through the domes two times, then you can move the dome closer together. The object is to see how close they can get to the domes and still make successful passes.
This drill focuses on passing accuracy which can be improved by repetition.
Most of the time in soccer, you won’t have the ball. That’s one of the reasons defending is so important. Being able to defend and win the back the ball high up the pitch leads to many goals (particularly in this age group). So this is a great drill to add to your soccer practice.
The coach sets up two cones with a line of kids behind each. The coach stays in the middle with 10 soccer balls. A mini goal is set up on the opposite end of the coach. The coach rolls the ball toward the goal and shouts to go get the ball. The first player from each line sprints towards the ball. Whichever player arrives first to the ball is the attacker and the other player must now drop back to protect the goal.
This is a lot of fun and replicates the 1v1 that they players might experience in an actual game situation.
Scoring goals is one of the great joys of soccer. What better time to foster the love of shooting and scoring than at this early age?
This drill is excellent for young players because they learn how to pass and move in the final third, and they get some shooting in, which not all movement-off-the-ball drills do.
The Diamond is a really fun and simple game to play.
The coach will instruct 4 players to go to one of the four positions. All remaining players will make a line behind player 1.
The first action of the drill is when the first player starts with a ball and passes across the field to the second player. Once the first player makes the pass, he or she runs to the second player’s spot.
Then the second player passes up the field to the third player and move into number three’s defensive position. Then player number 3 passes to the fourth player and run to the fourth player's position.
The fourth player then takes a touch and goes 1v1 against player two. A fun twist to the game, though, is that if player four does not score a goal, then player four becomes the keeper. If player number four scores, the keeper stays in the net.
This is a good training drill because it subtly introduces movement to passing and shooting, which is a fun way for kids to practice a few elements of soccer at once.
Attacking soccer is exciting soccer. You can’t win if you don’t score. Shooting and taking on a player on the dribble are fun to do, and can be done at other skill levels also.
Players on each team are given a number. The coach calls out a number and those players run around their goal, receive a pass from the coach, and attempt to score in the other team’s goal. The player getting around their goal first will receive the pass from the coach (do not just play the ball into the middle). The coach should call the next number as soon as the ball goes out, a goal is scored, or play lasts longer than 8 seconds.
This is a great drill for understanding how important your first touch is—and perhaps starting to demonstrate where they want to take that touch.
Of the 11 players on the field, one is always a keeper. Since you don’t know who will develop into your keeper until later on, it’s a good idea to let everyone take a turn between the posts. Being able to read the play and anticipate where the shooter is likely to release can help everyone become a better soccer player.
One player starts as the attacking player, while the other starts in the goal. The rest of the players wait in line for their turn. The attacker gets the ball, approaches the net and shoots. After the shot, the shooter becomes the keeper and the keeper goes to the back of the line.
At this age group, coaches should begin as the keeper until players get comfortable with rotations or even being in the goal.
The movement of rotation keeps the drill moving swiftly.
Kids love to play scrimmages, and these are some of the best soccer games you can play when you are coaching 5-year-olds, 6-year olds, and even U8 soccer players.
This drill helps work on the kid's ability to dribble away from pressure. You can also instruct the children to start to become aware of using their bodies to block the defender.
Two players are the sharks who are in the middle of the field. The rest of the players are the minnows with a ball at their feet. The minnows try to dribble to the other side, while the sharks try to take possession of the ball. If a shark takes the ball, that player now becomes a shark. The play ends when the last player becomes a shark.
Players dribble inside a grid practicing different techniques given by the coach (pull-backs, scissors, feints, step-over, etc.). When the coach yells “knockout,” players attempt to knock all other players' balls out of the grid while keeping theirs inside the grid. If a player's ball is knocked out, they must perform 10 toe touches before being able to get back in.
This drill improves a player’s shooting accuracy from far away and from close in.
The youth soccer coach running this training drill should set up 4 small goals in total: 2 on each end of the field.
The coaches divide players into 2 lines on the sideline and serve a ball onto the field with the first player from each team running to get it. The player who gets it can shoot on any of the 4 goals, then the next two players go.
Kids dribble around the soccer field while a coach tries to tag them. If they get tagged, they do a step trap until only 1-2 kids are still active. After the first round, coaches must try and get the child's ball to freeze them, but they can then be unfrozen by another player. To unfreeze a teammate, kids dribble over and give them a high five. The game continues until there are only 1-2 children left, or a set amount of time has elapsed.
Younger players love this game and you can expect a lot of smiles.
These drills are excellent for 5-year-olds, 6-year-olds and even older players up to U8 soccer. They are specifically selected for being fun, but also for developing some of the basics that are important for kids to learn at this age, so they can have a headstart on developing the skills that will be essential later on. Starting early with the proper coaching produces better and faster players at the higher skill levels.
While you may or may not have a great club coach, many parents and kids love TOCA Football because we have programs that you can join to have fun and improve your skills. We have special programs for kids, including our popular kids classes, as well as tech-enhanced soccer training for any age group. We also have leagues that your kids (and also adult soccer leagues) can participate in.
Book a FREE Kickoff session with our coaches here.
It’s great to get started early with your 5-year-old. Soccer is great for laying the development for teamwork, meeting new friends, and enjoying competition.
The key thing to understand is that soccer skills build on the basics. Drills that build skill, confidence, and are also fun, are perfect for this age group. Think of picking the right drills as a warm-up for a game. Certain drills will prepare your 5-year-old for the best development path. Be sure to change up the drills to keep up with the attention spans of the typical 5- and 6-year-olds.
If you are a soccer coach or a parent, bookmark this page for some of the best soccer drills for 5-year-olds. It will make your practice plans easier for your next training session.
Looking to get your little one started in soccer early on? Choose TOCA Soccer for the best soccer classes and training developed for all ages!
Dribbling is important for children to master because everything happens with the ball at your feet. It’s at this age that you want to see kids start to control the ball and to practice dribbling by moving the ball in different directions and with all parts of the foot.
To play Red Light Green Light in a training session, the players each start with a ball close at their feet in a coned-off section of the field. When the coach calls out “Green Light,” players dribble around the area in any way they choose. Because they will run into the path of other kids, and the edge of the field of play, they will have to change direction and make turns.
When the coach calls out “red light,” the kids all have to stop their ball as quickly as possible. This improves reaction time and also promotes dexterity in their footwork. Be sure to have kids use both the left foot and the right foot.
Kids enjoy this drill because it works on individual skills. They can increase the intensity by dribbling at a faster pace, which makes ball control harder.
Passing is one of the most important elements of soccer. Some of the great soccer players, like Andres Iniesta, Toni Kroos and Marco Verratti are known for their sublime passing abilities. Starting to pass using the inside of the foot will give your kids an advantage at this age in their soccer journey. Even with older players, the ability to play a pass into space and to make sure it’s not behind your target is key. So start early and often with passing drills.
Place kids 5-7 yards apart with two domes, creating a gate. Ask the kids to try and pass it through the two domes without hitting a dome. If they successfully get it through the domes two times, then you can move the dome closer together. The object is to see how close they can get to the domes and still make successful passes.
This drill focuses on passing accuracy which can be improved by repetition.
Most of the time in soccer, you won’t have the ball. That’s one of the reasons defending is so important. Being able to defend and win the back the ball high up the pitch leads to many goals (particularly in this age group). So this is a great drill to add to your soccer practice.
The coach sets up two cones with a line of kids behind each. The coach stays in the middle with 10 soccer balls. A mini goal is set up on the opposite end of the coach. The coach rolls the ball toward the goal and shouts to go get the ball. The first player from each line sprints towards the ball. Whichever player arrives first to the ball is the attacker and the other player must now drop back to protect the goal.
This is a lot of fun and replicates the 1v1 that they players might experience in an actual game situation.
Scoring goals is one of the great joys of soccer. What better time to foster the love of shooting and scoring than at this early age?
This drill is excellent for young players because they learn how to pass and move in the final third, and they get some shooting in, which not all movement-off-the-ball drills do.
The Diamond is a really fun and simple game to play.
The coach will instruct 4 players to go to one of the four positions. All remaining players will make a line behind player 1.
The first action of the drill is when the first player starts with a ball and passes across the field to the second player. Once the first player makes the pass, he or she runs to the second player’s spot.
Then the second player passes up the field to the third player and move into number three’s defensive position. Then player number 3 passes to the fourth player and run to the fourth player's position.
The fourth player then takes a touch and goes 1v1 against player two. A fun twist to the game, though, is that if player four does not score a goal, then player four becomes the keeper. If player number four scores, the keeper stays in the net.
This is a good training drill because it subtly introduces movement to passing and shooting, which is a fun way for kids to practice a few elements of soccer at once.
Attacking soccer is exciting soccer. You can’t win if you don’t score. Shooting and taking on a player on the dribble are fun to do, and can be done at other skill levels also.
Players on each team are given a number. The coach calls out a number and those players run around their goal, receive a pass from the coach, and attempt to score in the other team’s goal. The player getting around their goal first will receive the pass from the coach (do not just play the ball into the middle). The coach should call the next number as soon as the ball goes out, a goal is scored, or play lasts longer than 8 seconds.
This is a great drill for understanding how important your first touch is—and perhaps starting to demonstrate where they want to take that touch.
Of the 11 players on the field, one is always a keeper. Since you don’t know who will develop into your keeper until later on, it’s a good idea to let everyone take a turn between the posts. Being able to read the play and anticipate where the shooter is likely to release can help everyone become a better soccer player.
One player starts as the attacking player, while the other starts in the goal. The rest of the players wait in line for their turn. The attacker gets the ball, approaches the net and shoots. After the shot, the shooter becomes the keeper and the keeper goes to the back of the line.
At this age group, coaches should begin as the keeper until players get comfortable with rotations or even being in the goal.
The movement of rotation keeps the drill moving swiftly.
Kids love to play scrimmages, and these are some of the best soccer games you can play when you are coaching 5-year-olds, 6-year olds, and even U8 soccer players.
This drill helps work on the kid's ability to dribble away from pressure. You can also instruct the children to start to become aware of using their bodies to block the defender.
Two players are the sharks who are in the middle of the field. The rest of the players are the minnows with a ball at their feet. The minnows try to dribble to the other side, while the sharks try to take possession of the ball. If a shark takes the ball, that player now becomes a shark. The play ends when the last player becomes a shark.
Players dribble inside a grid practicing different techniques given by the coach (pull-backs, scissors, feints, step-over, etc.). When the coach yells “knockout,” players attempt to knock all other players' balls out of the grid while keeping theirs inside the grid. If a player's ball is knocked out, they must perform 10 toe touches before being able to get back in.
This drill improves a player’s shooting accuracy from far away and from close in.
The youth soccer coach running this training drill should set up 4 small goals in total: 2 on each end of the field.
The coaches divide players into 2 lines on the sideline and serve a ball onto the field with the first player from each team running to get it. The player who gets it can shoot on any of the 4 goals, then the next two players go.
Kids dribble around the soccer field while a coach tries to tag them. If they get tagged, they do a step trap until only 1-2 kids are still active. After the first round, coaches must try and get the child's ball to freeze them, but they can then be unfrozen by another player. To unfreeze a teammate, kids dribble over and give them a high five. The game continues until there are only 1-2 children left, or a set amount of time has elapsed.
Younger players love this game and you can expect a lot of smiles.
These drills are excellent for 5-year-olds, 6-year-olds and even older players up to U8 soccer. They are specifically selected for being fun, but also for developing some of the basics that are important for kids to learn at this age, so they can have a headstart on developing the skills that will be essential later on. Starting early with the proper coaching produces better and faster players at the higher skill levels.
While you may or may not have a great club coach, many parents and kids love TOCA Football because we have programs that you can join to have fun and improve your skills. We have special programs for kids, including our popular kids classes, as well as tech-enhanced soccer training for any age group. We also have leagues that your kids (and also adult soccer leagues) can participate in.
Book a FREE Kickoff session with our coaches here.
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