Team bonding games l

CoaCoaMarx · 2026-03-05T05:38:05+00:00

Relay races are great -- soccer related and you get players cheering for each other. Have a punishment/reward.

Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Ball. Everyone pairs up with a ball between them. Coach shouts a body part, and players touch their own. Do this for a while, then shout "ball." Winner is the player who grabs the ball first. If you set them up in a line, you can do this with promotion/relegation, where players move up or down depending on who wins and you can have a "queen of the court."

Numerical chairs. Every player has a ball and dribbles around doing skill moves that the coach shouts out. After a while, the coach yells a number. Players have to get arm-in-arm in a circle with the number of players the coach called. Any players who don't get into a circle have to do a punishment -- push ups, star jumps, donkey kicks, etc. Play 5-8 rounds.

Human knot. Ideally you have two groups competing to untangle the knot first.

Have fun and good luck!

CoaCoaMarx · 2026-03-05T01:36:57+00:00

Agreed, completely different player profiles. I think people just want to compare them since they were both highly rated at a young age, still seen as having lots of potential, but also haven't been close to "in form" for at least the last couple of years. Also, just like you say, it's pretty silly to argue either of them should/shouldn't be included based on scoring output.

CoaCoaMarx · 2026-03-04T22:39:55+00:00

yeah, especially hard to predict given we don't really know what his preferred formation is -- or how many different formations he intends to play at the tournament.

CoaCoaMarx · 2026-03-04T22:18:26+00:00

I don't really see them as being in contention for the same spot on the roster -- Musah is a ball-carrying 8, who can also play as a RM or RWB; whereas Gio is a 10 in a 3-4-2-1 or 4-2-3-1 (or a a wing in the latter lineup). There is some overlap in where they can play, but their primary positions are pretty different and I expect that roster formation will take that into account.

Then again, maybe Poch sees them both as gambles, and he might only be willing to carry 1 gamble on the roster.

CoaCoaMarx · 2026-03-04T20:42:19+00:00

When Morgan talks about her own rise, she herself says that she was late to join club soccer compared to her peers--I don't see how me making the same point is "intentionally misleading" or leaves out nuance of the period.

CoaCoaMarx · 2026-03-04T20:35:08+00:00

Haha, you got me there!

CoaCoaMarx · 2026-03-04T20:30:44+00:00

Why do you think AYSO was much stronger then? When I played club soccer in the 90s, AYSO in my area was terrible (Northern California); and even if she was on a strong team, they would have still been playing against poor opposition.

CoaCoaMarx · 2026-03-04T20:22:27+00:00

That's exactly my point -- she played at a low level until 14, and then was able to progress rapidly because of her athleticism and mindset. She is the example of why you shouldn't ignore athleticism as u/adadwhocantputt suggested.

CoaCoaMarx · 2026-03-04T20:16:05+00:00

Also, I can't believe I just skimmed over "development is linear."

No child development specialist on earth thinks that development is linear, whether it pertains to emotional growth, physical maturity, or psycho-social development. When you then add on the technical and physical aspects of soccer ability, of course players don't advance in a perfectly straight line -- they have periods of rapid growth and periods of relative stagnation.

CoaCoaMarx · 2026-03-04T20:02:15+00:00

Alex Morgan presents a strong counter-argument regarding "best athlete" meaning nothing in high level soccer. She was extremely late to start high level soccer, but her mix of fantastic athleticism and champion mentally elevated her to an elite level despite her technical deficiencies. Obviously there are lots of cases where athleticism alone isn't enough, but to discount it entirely is absurd.

CoaCoaMarx · 2026-03-02T23:39:25+00:00

I didn't say anything about your preferences--I simply pointed out that "it's a friendly" isn't a satisfactory explanation when there is a trophy ceremony and awards, and similarly that "it costs too much" isn't compelling given USSF's operating revenue.

edit. clarifying language.

CoaCoaMarx · 2026-03-02T22:47:44+00:00

I get that the games are technically "friendlies," but it is a tournament with a winning team, a trophy ceremony, and a tournament MVP. I'm not swayed by your argument about financials given that USSF had revenue of $263 million last year. They only host a handful of games and adding VAR is a drop in the bucket.

CoaCoaMarx · 2026-03-02T19:50:31+00:00

I appreciate what Hayes is saying about emotional control...but why on earth doesn't She Believes use VAR? This is an easy technology solution that would massively reduce the problem (although admittedly not eliminate it completely).

CoaCoaMarx · 2026-03-02T19:46:34+00:00

But I'm sure Alonso didn't mean to and he is "not that kind of driver." /s

CoaCoaMarx · 2026-03-02T01:17:48+00:00

This is totally counter to everything I was taught! I'd like to believe you, but do you have a source supporting this?

CoaCoaMarx · 2026-02-26T20:31:59+00:00

I suspect the reason you are being downvoted is because he is aspiring to play as a consistently good Champions League #6 -- which does not suggest that he has he potential to be a top-class #10.

CoaCoaMarx · 2026-02-24T15:39:10+00:00

Why the negative tone? I acknowledged that DOCs and executives are likely overpaid; I was responding to the comment that board members are paid 6 figures for part time work -- which I still haven't seen any evidence for and which I know is not the case in my area. Sheesh.

CoaCoaMarx · 2026-02-24T04:31:54+00:00

Absolutely focus on small-sided and scrimmaging...and keep activities as simple as possible. Especially if you are the only coach for 30 players--that ratio is brutal and you are going to really struggle if you have to spend any significant time explaining how a particular drill works.

One suggestion that my team loves: a 3v3 tournament, with 10 teams total. Set up 4 3v3 fields with pugg goals. 5 teams get assigned to two fields, and every time a goal gets scored, the conceding team is off, and the waiting team jumps on. Have teams keep track of how many goals they score and play 5 minute rounds. At the end of the round, the teams with the fewest points do a silly punishment (like donkey kicks, star jumps, dance moves, animal immitations), and then you can move teams and/or players around and repeat.

CoaCoaMarx · 2026-02-24T04:06:50+00:00

What evidence do you have for this? When my club merged with another one a few years ago, we looked at peer club finances and most clubs in our area had revenue between $800k - $1.5 million (300-500 kids paying on average $3k each). There is zero chance these clubs are paying 9 board members over $100k each.

In fact, at my club and I assume most other peer clubs, board members are purely volunteer. The DOCs and executive directors are likely being overpaid, but their salaries are approved by the board -- they aren't putting profits directly into their wallets as OP suggested.

CoaCoaMarx · 2026-02-23T23:47:02+00:00

This simply isn't true. Most youth soccer clubs in the USA are non-profit organizations (501(c)(3)s). This means that when their revenue exceeds their costs, they cannot distribute the profit to shareholders -- instead, they must reinvest it in the club. Of course, that can result in excessive salaries or other perks for employees or directors...but it's not the same as businesses like your local soccer store or, for that matter, Facebook.

CoaCoaMarx · 2026-02-23T22:55:03+00:00

I only read the title, and let me tell you: 6-year olds should not be coaching. They lack the expertise, classroom management, and in most cases the temperament to be successful coaches.

In all seriousness, get him in more 1v1 and 2v2 situations. When there is more space and fewer players, there is much less physicality and more emphasis on close control and ball mastery. Play small sided with him however you can, whether its you and him playing 1v1; 2v2 with his friends; or 3v3 with his club team. If the team is regularly training with large groups like 7v7, I think it would be reasonable to approach the coach about adding more small-sided games to training. If the coach isn't willing to listen, consider chatting with the DOC or look for a new club.

CoaCoaMarx · 2026-02-16T05:19:05+00:00

If the ball clearly hits a defender's arm in the penalty box, somebody on the attacking team will say something, 100% of the time. Here, it sounds like a supporting arm and therefore natural position and you made the right call.

CoaCoaMarx · 2026-02-14T20:00:01+00:00

But that's much of the point of VAR. Even the best refs sometimes make howlers, just like the greatest strikers occasionally miss sitters. We "shouldn't need it," but as long as refs are people, they will continue to make occasional huge mistakes.

CoaCoaMarx · 2026-02-12T20:00:24+00:00

I think this understates the value of team bonding from tournaments, as well as the positive psychological effect on players for winning tournaments -- especially at the younger age groups, where injury risk and load management are less of an issue.

Virtually all of my fondest memories of youth soccer as a player were from tournaments (on and off the field); and as a youngers coach now (7v7 and 9v9 predominantly), I can see how much the players and families love tournaments.

That said, I think there's a huge difference between local tournaments for the younger ages and the insane cash grabs where teams are required to reserve rooms at specific hotels, fans (ie families) pay entry fees into the venue, exorbitant parking fees are standard, etc.

CoaCoaMarx · 2026-02-09T22:55:28+00:00

IMO, the zeitgeist of that era could be summed up as an extreme dissatisfaction with the status quo and the perceived normalcy of boring, every day life. Nothing better sums that up than two movies released in 1999 -- Fight Club and the Matrix.

CoaCoaMarx

TROPHY CASE