Coaching kids soccer / kids football is demanding but fun. Each player has their own quirks and personalities which makes managing and brining them together as a team a formidable challenge. Typically, your role as a kids soccer / kids football manager will be a stark contrast to your day job so it’s important to understand why kids do what they do during your kids soccer game / kids football games so when you tell them for the umpteenth time to pass and move in to space and they don't, you don’t take it too personally!

Typical characteristics of kids include:

Excitable and enthusiastic - expect lots of noise, energy and enthusiasm. Encourage that enthusiasm but let them know who is in charge otherwise unruly behaviour can ruin your kids soccer training / kids football training sessions.

Attention span - in a word - short! Don't try and explain the offside rule or detailed soccer / football tactics. Keep it short, simple and fun and let the kids play soccer / football, especially for the younger ones (under 6, under 7 and under 8)

Understanding - after you have explained the soccer training drill / football training drilll or football technique, the chances are your players will tell you they understand but go off and do something completely different. To help you players understand better, involve them in demonstrations and engage them with questions and answers to make sure they know what they are doing and why.

Receptive - Wherever there is kids soccer / kids football , there will always be smiles and tears. U6, U7, U8 soccer / football players tend to be very receptive to praise and criticism and don't take failure well so make sure failure is always followed by plenty of praise!

Imagination - encourage your Under 6, Under 7 and Under 8 players to be inventive and experiment with new soccer skills / football skills and tricks.

Technique - Work on the FUNdamentals, basic soccer / football technique and improving basic soccer skills / football skills. Group football drills and small sided games will help them learn how to be part of a team and when to use the football skills / soccer skills they have learnt. Rotate playing positions so all players learn the basic principles through defending drills and attacking drills. Keep kids soccer drills / kids football drills short and fun to avoid boredom. Kids at this age are naturally selfish so don’t expect them to pass too much and do expect them to follow the ball - they want to be involved! Typically, its not until the kids progress to under 9 and under 10 they firmly grasp the concept of pass and move.

Canyouplayfootball.com makes running a kids soccer / kids football team easier. Our soccer training / football training database allows you to find football training drills relevant for your team quickly and easily. You can search by category (defending, attacking, shooting etc) and age group (under 6, under 7, under 8 etc). And to help you organise your team for the next game, try www.canyouplayfootball.com’s personal football organiser. Click here to see a demo.