Mastering Soccer Ball Juggling: A Comprehensive Guide
Juggling a soccer ball, also known as "keepie uppie," is a fundamental skill that enhances ball control, balance, and coordination. While it may seem daunting at first, consistent practice and a focus on proper technique can transform a beginner into a confident juggler. This guide breaks down the essential techniques for juggling with your feet, thighs, head, and shoulders, providing a comprehensive roadmap to improvement.
The Importance of Juggling
Learning how to juggle a soccer ball is a great way to impress your soccer buddies, gain better balance, and control the ball during a game. More Than a Coach, someone is passionate about developing not just better players, but better people.
Foundational Techniques for Foot Juggling
1. The Drop and Kick Method
Start by holding the ball straight out in front of you at chest height. Next, drop the ball and let it bounce. As the ball begins to descend after this bounce, kick it back up into the air. Try to kick the ball with your foot angled slightly upward. Readjust if you have moved around and then drop the ball again.
2. Mastering the Kick-Up
Take your dominant kicking foot, and place it on top of the ball. Roll your foot down the ball just strong enough to create backspin on the ball. Place your toe underneath the ball, and allow the ball to roll up your foot. Do this as the ball comes back down.
3. Foot Placement and Contact
Make contact with your laces, specifically the part of your laces near the base of your toes. Keep your juggling foot out in front of you when juggling, not behind you. Do not bring your foot all the way back when you juggle. A juggling touch requires little movement. If you bring your foot to far back it takes to much time to bring it forward and make contact with the ball.
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4. Ankle Lock and Foot Curl
Keep your ankle locked, not loose, and curl your foot back towards your shin. - You want your ankle hard like a rock, not loose like jello. So when the ball hits your foot it bounces off as if it hit a rock. If your foot is loose like jello your foot will absorb the pressure of the ball. - Do not curl your foot back all the way to your shin. If you do this, it will cause the ball to come back and hit you in the shins. - If you don't curl your foot back and you point your toe down, the ball will hit your foot and go forward away from you.
5. Backspin
The ball should have back spin. Roll your foot down the ball just strong enough to create backspin on the ball.
6. Controlled Kicks
Try to keep the kick controlled and aim to kick the ball straight up in the air. Again, try to keep your kick light and controlled so that the ball only goes up to your waist. Smaller kicks are easier to control and better for learning how to alternate feet.
7. Alternating Feet
Kick it up with your right foot. Then do the same with your other foot. Keep in mind that juggling with your non-dominant foot will be harder. Instead of catching the ball every time you kick it, kick it up into the air and as it falls, kick it up again rather than letting it bounce on the ground. Focus on juggling with one foot until you feel confident, then switch to the other foot. Alternate feet and continue to juggle as you learned how to do in the previous section. When you have kicked the ball with both feet twice, catch the ball. Then try kicking it three times with both feet, then four times, etc.
Incorporating Thigh Juggling
1. Thigh Placement
Let the ball drop onto the middle part of your thigh. Doing this will keep your thigh flat. A flat surface is much easier to juggle off of then an angular surface.
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2. Controlled Bounces
Begin by bouncing the ball off your thigh and catching it. Repeat this process until you are able to control the direction of the ball and how high it goes with your thigh. Try kicking the ball with both feet and then both thighs.
3. When to Start
Try to juggle with your thighs only after you have mastered juggling with your feet. Juggling with your thighs is a way to add versatility to your juggling skills.
Juggling with Your Head
1. Forehead Contact
Throw or kick the ball above your head and then bounce it off of your forehead. Angle your face up so that the ball will hit on the top of your forehead.
2. Body Positioning
Keep your neck relaxed and bend your knees.
3. Limitations
You can use the top of your head to juggle but you will have much less control of the ball.
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Shoulder Juggling Techniques
1. Shoulder Movement
When you kick the ball up to your shoulder, move your shoulder upward and in the direction you would like the ball to go. For instance, you can kick the ball up with your right foot and then hit the ball with your right shoulder so that it arcs over your body and falls so that you can kick the ball up with your left foot.
2. Proper Contact
Make sure to only use your shoulders and not your upper arm.
3. Difficulty
While shoulders are hard to juggle with because they are not flat, you can use them to direct the ball where you want it to go.
Common Mistakes and How to Avoid Them
1. High Ball
If the ball is high in the air do not try to kick it. Let it drop low.
2. Foot Position
If the ball is going away from you in a forward direction you are not curling your foot back towards your shin. If the ball is going to side of you when you take your touch then you are hitting the outside of your foot.
3. Tossing the Ball
Toss the ball up in the air, don't just drop it at your foot. Lots of players just drop it or push the ball down and this doesn't give them enough time to react to the ball.
4. Overextension
Moving your leg up too high while you kick the ball will make you lose control of the ball.
Practice Drills and Exercises
1. Foot Juggling Motion Practice
An exercise we can do to practice. Start practicing your foot juggling motion without the ball. This will get you use to how your technique will feel. Once comfortable get the ball out.
2. Toss, Juggle, and Catch
Using your hands toss the ball up, juggle it once and catch it. As you feel confident go for two juggles and catch it, three juggles and catch it. Then continue to the point where you don't catch it and you only pick the ball up with your hands when it drops. Do this for 10-15 minutes.
3. Regular Practice
Juggling is not something you practice once and don't do again. I'd suggest practicing juggling for at least 10-15 minutes at the end of every session you do.
4. Starting Position
Yes, when you get good you will start juggling from the ground by doing a pick up move with your feet. But right now we are not working on pick up moves from the ground, we are working on feet juggling. This is why I advise you to start with your hands, not your feet.
Additional Tips for Success
1. Ball Inflation
If you deflate the soccer ball a little bit, you will reduce the intensity of its bounce. The ball will be easier to control and won’t go flying every time you miss a kick.
2. Balance
It is important to be balanced while juggling the ball. In between touches, it is risky but useful to try to re-balance yourself such that you can maintain control of how you hit the ball each time. Always try to stay balanced on your toes, ready to make quick movements. You should not have to lean or reach to catch the ball.
3. Patience
Be patient, be confident and enjoy the process of improving. Beginner jugglers get very frustrated with juggling because it's hard.
4. Strengthening Technique
Start by working on your control. For example, you could kick the ball towards a wall and control it. Once you master this throw the ball in the air whenever you think you can't control the ball, then start again and keep kicking the ball in the air. Then do a few keep ups. You need to have a good touch first for your other kick ups to go smoothly. Use the flat part of your foot. And remember, always start with your dominant foot. Don't tense up.
5. Only Use Opposite Foot When Confident
Only use your opposite foot when you are feeling confident on your dominant foot. So once you can do 5 or 10 juggles on your dominant foot then start using your weaker foot. The same feet juggling technique applies.
6. Let the ball drop low
Let the ball drop low. If the ball is high in the air do not try to kick it.
7. Make sure that your laces are not double knotted at first.
Make sure that your laces are not double knotted at first.
8. Do not lock your knees.
Do not lock your knees.
The Coach's Perspective: FDB Soccer
After years in the coaching world, Coach Fernando observed a common problem: young players weren’t receiving sufficient individual technical development. Why He Founded FDB Soccer. Fernando began coaching youth soccer in 2014 while still in college. What started as a side job quickly grew into a purpose-driven career. Born and raised in Caracas, Venezuela, Fernando’s soccer journey began at age five. By the age of 14, his talent had already caught the attention of professional scouts. He signed with Centro Italo Venezolano, a youth academy tied to an Italian club, and progressed quickly through the ranks. At 17, he made his professional debut with Deportivo Italia, competing in Venezuela’s Pro Tier. Refusing to walk away from the sport he loved, Fernando earned a collegiate scholarship to play NCAA Division I soccer at Radford University. He later transferred to Shorter University (DII), where he helped guide his team to back-to-back conference finals.
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