Ball Mastery

Ball Mastery Figure Eight

Hundreds of individual touches in a few minutes

Ball Mastery

Dribbling

First Touch

Ball Mastery Figure Eight is a 10-minute ball mastery drill for 1-24 players, suitable for Under 5 to Adults at beginner, intermediate level. You need balls, cones. Below you will find the objective, the set-up, how to run it, coaching points, common mistakes, progressions, regressions and variations.

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Ball Mastery

Dribbling

First Touch

Warm Up

Beginner

Intermediate

Full Squad

Minimal Equipment

Foundation Phase

Youth Friendly

Adult Suitable

Quick 10 Minutes

Maximum Touches

Duration

10 min

Players

1-24

Pitch size

10 x 10 yards

Ability levels

Beginner / Intermediate

Objectives

-Hundreds of individual touches in a few minutes
-Build both-footed control in a tight space
-Give every player their own ball and no queue

Setup

1Each player marks a small figure-eight with two cones two yards apart.
2One ball per player.
3Players spread across a ten yard grid.

Coaching instructions

1Dribble a figure eight around the cones using the inside of both feet.
2Change to outside-foot only, then sole rolls, then drag backs.
3Rounds of 45 seconds with a ten second rest between.

Coaching points

-Ball within one stride at all times
-Small, quick touches rather than long pushes
-Head up between touches

Common mistakes

-Only using the strong foot
-Touches too big so the shape breaks down
-Eyes locked on the ball

Equipment needed

Balls

Cones

Age groups

Under 5

Under 6

Under 7

Under 8

Under 9

Under 10

Under 11

Under 12

Under 13

Under 14

Under 15

Under 16

Adults

Progressions

+Two-Touch Limit: drop to one touch in the central area
+Weak Foot Only: add a defender to raise the pressure
+Tempo Clock: cut the clock to four seconds
+Add a competitive scoreline for the last round

Regressions

-Two-Touch Limit: allow three touches while the picture is learned
-Weak Foot Only: static, unopposed reps before adding movement
-Tempo Clock: extend the clock to ten seconds
-Simplify the area or the service until success returns

Variations

-Two-Touch Limit — Players are limited to two touches — one to control, one to release.
-Weak Foot Only — Every touch, pass and finish must be with the weaker foot.
-Tempo Clock — The ball must reach the end action inside six seconds or the rep restarts.
-Scan and Cue — The coach shows a colour or number and the receiver must call it before their first touch.
-Shadow Pressure — A shadow defender applies half pressure and can win the ball only after the first touch.
-Score Challenge — Run it as a timed competition — pairs or teams count successful reps and compare scores.
-1-to-1 Session — Run as an individual session: coach serves, one player works through the reps with rest built in.
-Flip the practice to the opposite side of the pitch