Youth soccer for girls, boys and your family.

Youth soccer is a great sport for girls, boys and your family.

Become a Soccer Referee

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Soccer is a sport played in many areas around the world and continues to grow in popularity. With this growth comes an increasing need for soccer referees. If you are already traveling to the soccer field on a regular basis why not start reffing, get some exercise, and make some money.

There are many referee training courses to assist you with getting certified. The requirements vary by state and what level of competition you will be reffing. ( Referee Grades )  A good place to start is to check with your local soccer club or ask a ref at the next game.

As a referee you will be responsible to enforce the “Laws of the Game” in a way that will keep the game safe, fair and fun for everyone. You should interfere with the game as little as possible and avoid making calls for questionable offenses. In order to ref competitive soccer games officials must maintain good physical conditioning to keep pace with play and maintain a good view of the action.

Futsol – build your soccer skills in the off-season

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Try out a game of Futsal in the off season to improve your skills.  It’s mostly played indoors on a hard court that is much smaller than a soccer field.  It encourages players to develop more control of the ball or it will just roll quickly out of bounds.  Although the official court size is bigger than a basketball court, many leagues and games are played in much smaller gymnasiums.

Most games consist of two teams with five players from each on the court.  The ball is smaller and harder than a soccer ball and filled with foam so it won’t bounce as much.  The games consist of two 20 minute halves.  With fewer players and a smaller court the game plays very fast.  All players are constantly involved in the action.

View a quick guide to the rules of futsal here

 

Basic Rules Of Soccer

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Some basic rules to help you enjoy the game:

  1. If a player uses his hand/arm to block or hit the ball it is  called a hand ball.  The other team will get the ball and be awarded a free kick or possibly even a  shot on goal depending on where the violation occurred.
  2. The goal keeper is the only player allowed to use his hands.  He must be inside the boxed area directly in front of his goal.  If he is outside of this box he may not use his hands. He wears a different colored shirt so it’s easy to see that he is the goalie.
  3. Adult teams have eleven players including goalies.  Younger age groups often play with less.
  4. If a player kicks the ball out of bounds on the sideline, the long side of the field, the opposing team gets the ball.  One of their players must throw the ball back into play using both hands and keeping both  feet on the ground when they throw.  If they  don’t the other team gets the ball back.
  5.  Two things can happen if the ball goes out of bounds on one of the ends of the field.  If the offensive team  kicked it out the opposing team gets a goal kick.   They will kick the ball from in front of their goal down the field.  If the defending team kicked it out of bounds, the offensive team gets a corner kick.  They will place the ball at the corner of the field and kick it back into play from there.
  6. A regulation length game consists of two 45 minutes halves.  Younger age teams play shorter games.
  7. At the start of play each team must be on their own half of the field.  The defending team must be 10 feet back from the ball.
  8. A ball must completely cross the line to go out of bounds or score a goal.
  9. If a player is off-sides, the other team gets the ball.  You are off-sides if you are on your offensive half of the field and don’t have two of the other teams defenders between you and the goal when you first play the ball.  Yes, the goalie counts as one of the two defensive players. Also, you can’t be off-sides on a throw in.
  10. Intentionally holding, kicking or shoving opposing players are some of the things you will get a foul for.  Minor fouls result in the other team getting the ball.  More sever fouls will get a player a yellow or red card.  It takes two yellow cards to be kicked out of a game but only one red card.
  11. There are two types of free kicks awarded to the opposing team from penalties. If awarded a Direct Free Kick you can shoot on the goal or pass the ball.  An Indirect Free Kick must be touched by another player before entering the goal.  If the referee is holding one arm up before the kick you know it is must an indirect kick.
  12. When a foul is committed by the defensive team inside the boxed area right in front of the goal the other team gets a penalty kick from inside the box.  The goalie will be the only defensive player between them and the goal.  The offensive team often scores from this penalty.
  13. The player putting a ball into play may only touch it once until a second player touches the ball. If a player barely hits the ball and decides to take another kick at it, that is a two-touch. This also applies to throw-ins.

To see official rules look here:

  • IFAB – International Football Association Board
  • FIFA – Fédération Internationale de Football Association

 

Soccer Core Skills

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As you start playing soccer it is important to develop a core set of skills.  What are these skills and how do you learn them?  An easy and very good way to begin your training is to go to iSoccer.org. They break the game down into 16 fundamental skills that will make you a better soccer player.  They show you drills that will improve your skill and help you track your progress.  Tracking your progress will enable you to set goals and see if you are improving. This is very motivational and encourages you to practice more.  Basic membership is free and includes training videos showing how to practice these skills.  This site is worth checking out.

Almost everyone wants to score goals when they play soccer.  After all, that is the “goal” of the game. However, you will spend far more time controlling the ball on the field than you will shooting on goal.  This is why you must develop a solid set of core skills that enable you to control the ball.  The more “touches” you get on the ball the easier this will be. When you walk around your house take the ball with you. (don’t use your hands) Try dribbling with your weak foot only.  Pick one of the basic skills a day and try to improve.  The more time you spend controlling the ball the better you will be at it.

Soccer – A Healthy Pastime The Whole Family Can Enjoy!

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If you’re reading this then you’re probably looking for a way to get your kids (or your parents!) out into the fresh air and enjoying a bit of exercise. Sadly in today’s world of technology it’s a lot more common to see kids playing sports on game consoles than in person, but with a bit of imagination you can get your youngsters away from the TV and out into the yard. One good way to do this is with a game of family soccer.

Why on earth would you want to play soccer as a family?

Here are 7 very good reasons.

1. Social Interaction

Game consoles, TVs, iPods and laptops are known to promote social awkwardness in children, and especially when it comes to interacting with their parents (you probably already know this though). Soccer on the other hand is a social game that requires players to work together in order to win. This makes it a great way of strengthening the bonds between family members while also giving you, as a parent, the chance to spend some quality time with your kids minus a game controller!

2. No Skills Required

You don’t need to be David Beckham to play family soccer, and in fact the worse you all are at the game the more fun you’ll have. The whole point is to have fun while getting healthy, so don’t worry if you can’t kick the ball in a straight line or you don’t understand the rules – just make them up if you want to and call them your ‘family rules’.

3. Anyone Can Play

The game of soccer is not restricted to one type of person so every member of the family can join in. Swap and change the teams each game to provide healthy competition. Try girls versus boys, kids versus adults or have a game of penalty shoot-outs where everyone takes a turn in goal. The options for soccer are limitless, and you can play regardless of age, gender, fitness and skill.

4. Healthy Exercise

It’s a documented fact that less than a third of American children get the recommended amount of exercise for a healthy body each day. It’s also a documented fact that over 60% of Americans are now officially classed as being overweight or obese. Soccer played as a family is a fun way of giving your kids, and yourself, a healthy dose of exercise on a regular basis. Exercise is known to stimulate the release of endorphins in the brain, which in turn produce feelings of happiness and contentment. Add this to the fresh air you’ll all get while kicking the ball around and soccer really is a great way to get healthy and happy all at the same time.

5. Inexpensive

Soccer is in no way an expensive sport to take up with the family. You don’t need fancy equipment, fancy clothing or specialized training. All you need is a ball, a soccer net and a space to play. If you really want to make family soccer a regular pastime you might want to think about investing in a durable net like the Franklin Tournament Soccer Goal. If you are just starting out though, you can always use a couple of planters, or even a couple of garden chairs to mark the goal.

6. Play at Home

The fact that you don’t need a huge space to play family soccer is a big selling point for a lot of families, and most families that already indulge in the sport do so in their own backyards. Don’t worry if you have limited space in your backyard though, because you can always have a single goal post and alternate between being the attacking team and the defending team. Again this injects a bit of friendly competition between teams, and makes the game much more fun.

7. It Really is Fun

Any sport played as a family can be made fun, including soccer. The fact that you’re having fun as a family is often enough to make kids forget that they’re doing exercise and getting healthy. You could even find creative ways of earning “points” during the games so that you could award small prizes for ‘most improved player’ or ‘most goals scored against dad’ etc. This is often very motivational for kids. Soccer is, in short, a great way of bringing the family together, of having fun, and of getting fit and healthy at the same time. The question has to be therefore, why aren’t you out there playing right now?