Football/Soccer Session (Beginner): Red Light, Green Light

Red light, green light is a good progression from free dribbling. We are incorporating the same skills with a few more obstacles and cognitive thinking development.

Now players have more confidence and understanding and are learning to manipulate the ball within traffic and develop spatial awareness, we can add some more fun and instruction.

Equipment and 

The players are dribbling throughout the area as racecars - they can beep their horns and pull back (reverse) when another car is in the way. There are now cones (houses) as obstacles to navigate to. The coach commands 'RED LIGHT' to stop, and 'GREEN LIGHT' to go. More commands can be used, like 'YELLOW LIGHT' to slow down.

After 5 minutes, the coach can introduce 'BLUE LIGHT' and the coach will chase the players around the area. If they get caught by the coach, they have to perform 20 toe taps before they can drive again.

Increase difficulty

Have a couple of other players as cops who can walk around (not run) to try and catch the dribbling players

Different color lights with different commands. i.e. ORANGE LIGHT (turn)

Coaching Points

• Small touches (tiny kicks) - keep the ball close to your feet for optimum control and ball manipulation (and so the opposition in a game cannot get the ball)
• Keep your head up - so you can see obstacles and where they are going
• Dribble into space - awareness to find the space - ask them to keep an imaginary circle around them that no one can get in and the ball cannot travel out of

Context of the game
Red Light, Green Light allows players to express themselves. Dribbling to gates, in traffic, gives the practice of dribbling to a goal, with a purpose. This still allows them to have freedom with the ball. Dribbling in lines or zig-zagging round cones, while may increase technical skills, is less game-like and therefore may not build important developmental skills like spatial awareness and cognitive skills, as well as the technical ability to be able to dribble into another direction.

Adding an opponent, such as a slow-moving defender, or coach will give them semi-opposed pressure to help them understand and learn to manipulate the ball and dribble against a defender while still building confidence in an easier learning environment.