For Kids Sports Soccer Rules

                

 

Over the past few years in traveling the country; The United States of America, I have surveyed kids and asked them if they play sports indeed many said that they played Soccer or Baseball and a few played pop-warner football, softball, basketball and hockey. But predominantly the standard answer was either baseball or soccer and mostly soccer. You see soccer for a kids sport seems to be one which is most favored.

As a kid I do remember that the AYSO American Youth Soccer Organization had a Motto; Everyone Plays Soccer. And the play and soccer formed the letters AYSO for the bumper stickers with this motto; pl-AY SO-ccer. Soccer indeed is a sport that all children who can run can play and it is also very popular with parents as well. They feel safer with their kids playing soccer rather than lets say boxing, hockey or football. That makes sense too of course.

Soccer seems to popular in every state almost without exception, even in colder climates children play in the summer time or have indoor soccer matches in the larger cities or well financed suburban cities. Soccer also is a sport, which helps keep kids fit and trim while teaching them hard work ethic, sportsmanship and team work. For all these reasons soccer appears to be the sport of choice for the next up and coming generation.

Lance Winslow, a retired entrepreneur, adventurer, modern day philosopher and perpetual tourist.

Soccer Channel Fox

                

 

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Soccer in the USA

                

 

Soccer is one of the most popular and loved game and sport worldwide. It is one of those games that has the biggest audience of fans both who play it and support it. However this is not so true for the whole world. For example, the United States of America are not that crazy about it, Americans are more fond of American football.

Soccer, or football (or foosball or football), as it is called by the rest of the world outside the United States, is surely the most popular sport in the world. Every four years, the world championship of soccer, the World Cup, is watched by literally billions all over the world, beating out the United States professional football's Super bowl by far. It is estimated that 1.7 billion television viewers watched the World Cup final between France and Brazil in July of 1998. And it is also a genuine world championship, involving teams from 32 countries in the final rounds, unlike the much more parochial and misnamed World Series in American baseball (that doesn't even involve Japan or Cuba, two baseball hotbeds). But although soccer has become an important sport in the American sports scene, it will never make inroads into the hearts and markets of American sports the way that football, basketball, hockey, baseball, and even tennis and golf have done. There are many reasons for this.

Recently the New England Revolution beat the Tampa Bay Mutiny in a game played during a horrid rainstorm. Nearly 5000 fans showed up, which shows that soccer is, indeed, popular in the United States. However, the story of the game was buried near the back of the newspaper's sports section, and there was certainly no television coverage. In fact, the biggest reason for soccer's failure as a mass appeal sport in the United States is that it doesn't conform easily to the demands of television. Basketball succeeds enormously in America because it regularly schedules what it calls "television time-outs" as well as the time-outs that the teams themselves call to re-group, not to mention half-times and, on the professional level, quarter breaks. Those time-outs in the action are ideally made for television commercials. And television coverage is the lifeblood of American sports. College basketball lives for a game scheduled on CBS or ESPN (highly recruited high school players are more likely to go to a team that regularly gets national television exposure), and we could even say that television coverage has dictated the pace and feel of American football. Anyone who has attended a live football game knows how commercial time-outs slow the game and sometimes, at its most exciting moments, disrupt the flow of events. There is no serious objection, however, because without television, football knows that it simply would not remain in the homes and hearts of Americans. Also, without those advertising dollars, the teams could not afford the sky-high salaries of their high-priced superstars.

Mary Anne Winslow is a member of Essay Writing Service counselling department team and a dissertation writing consultant. Contact her to get free counselling on custom essay writing

Just Play Beach Soccer

                

 

One friend of mine asked me recently why all men are crazy about playing football or what is known in United States as soccer. I am sick of explaining things that you can only understand based on personal experience. But although I managed to provide her with a luminous answer, she came back stating yet another question. "Is it different to play soccer on the grass than to play it on the beach?" That was a good one. "Of course it is different," I replied. Beach soccer, as you can tell by its name, is a sport played on the beaches; preferably during spring or summer time. Although it has been played informally for decades, it was given its official name and rules only recently and specifically in 1992. Since then it managed to become a rather popular sport and I believe that if you really want to learn something about soccer you should better start playing it on the beach.

Playing soccer on the beach is considered by many fans as the paradise of the apprentice. The soft-sand playing surface can correct some usual mistakes for a beginner, as the ball often stacks on it. Actually, the element of sand does only facilitate the efforts of new players, but it is considered a heavy obstacle even for those experienced ones that wish to show off their abilities. Plus the compact pitch -measuring 28 x 37 meters if there is an official beach soccer facility- is by far smaller than the grass field and makes scoring easier, even for players who decide to try it for the first time.

A great advantage of beach soccer is the fact that one needs no special equipment to play it. An adequate size ball and the sand of the beach are more than enough for one to begin exploring this game's unique character. Even when no organized facility on the beach exists, those interested to play beach soccer need only two canes to symbolize the area of a goalpost. Canes or just a pile of clothes are preferable in comparison to heavy stones or even huge blocks of rocks, which can be very dangerous for feet injuries, as shoes are not allowed in this game. Thus, if you are on a sandy beach, it is a sunny day, and you have nine friends willing to join you, you can start playing beach soccer. When you do experience it, let me know if you liked it. Most importantly, let your girlfriend know!

When I finished my lecture about beach soccer my friend seemed excited. "I will play it every single weekend," she said. But before you ask yourselves how much time should you invest in practicing this sport, before you can consider yourselves good soccer players, try playing it for awhile. Since you cannot play beach soccer all year around, unless you move to California or Florida every time you have a beach soccer need, you have to exercise your soccer playing abilities on the actual lawn ground. Believe me when I tell you that it is not that easy there too!

Kadence Buchanan writes articles on many topics including Outdoors, Recreation, and Fitness

Success Lessons From Soccer - How To Win or Lose In The Game Of Life

                

 

Soccer matches are all about scoring goals and being winners. As a result, soccer can hold up a mirror to life since many humans also want to achieve goals and to be winners in the game of life. There is much to be learned about life in general from soccer players, managers and commentators.

When you listen to commentators on soccer matches, the key words they use again and again when teams are winning are words about character and attitude like belief, excitement, confidence, effort and so on. Soccer skills and strategies are important but mean little without the right attitude. Team managers urge their players to show focus, determination and maximum effort. They tell them they should expect to win and not to show too much respect for their opponents no matter how famous they are. I love listening to the comments of the great soccer managers. They have all been to hell and back. They are praised and popular when their teams win. They are criticised and even sacked when their teams fail to win. They know the heights of elation and the depths of despair. They have to find ways to deal with both and to keep motivating their teams to win. Gordon Strachan took over as manager of Celtic, one of the top two clubs in Scotland, in 2005. It was not long before he experienced "the worst night of my life" Bratislava beat Celtic 5-0 in the Champions league, the top European competition. His watch stopped after the match and he still wears it to remind himself that it was the worst night of his life. Celtic, the pride of Scotland, had been humiliated by a less famous team. Other failures seemed small to him by comparison. We can all learn to deal with difficult situations by reminding ourselves of worst situations in our past or by imagining how much worse our lives could be than they actually are. None of us knows for sure what will happen to us tomorrow. We could be seriously ill or even dead. Gordon has faced this possibility already. He told the media that on his gravestone he would like these words carved: "This is better than that night in Bratislava." He uses the humour of exaggeration to deal with the criticisms of the media when things go wrong. A reporter commented when his team lost a match in Scotland: "Bang, there goes your unbeaten run. Can you take it? " "No," said Strachan. "I'm just going to crumble like a wreck. I'll go home, become an alcoholic and maybe jump off a bridge. Hmmm?.

I think I can take it, yeah." He knows the importance of positive thinking if you wish to achieve success. One reporter foolishly asked: "There's no negative vibes or negative feelings here?" Strachan replied: "Apart from yourself, we're all quite positive round here. I'm going to whack you over the head with a big stick; down negative man, down." Strachan often speaks with disarming honesty and schoolboy cheek. He is ready to admit that he and his players are not always at their best. He is ready to face reality. Facing up to reality is a key characteristic of the successful. When he managed a team in England, a reporter asked him: "So, Gordon, in what areas do you think Middlesbrough were better than you today?" Strachan replied: "What areas? Mainly that big green one out there...." Strachan has had his defeats but recently he has led his latest team, Celtic, to undisputed victory in the Scottish Premier League. He is widely accepted as a great manager. Another great manager now works in the English Premier League. He is Jose Mourihno, the manager of Chelsea. He came to England in June 2004 and soon showed his confidence in himself and his players. He wants only to be judged by the results. A good manager wins. A bad one loses: "I'm not a defender of old or new football managers. I believe in good ones and bad ones; those that achieve success and those that don't. Please don't call me arrogant, but I'm European champion and I think I'm a special one" He soon proved himself to be a 'special one' in England as well as in Portugal, his native country. As the name 'the special one' suggests he believes in himself in a big way. A key factor in his success in England is his self-belief and a rich Russian backer who allows him to buy the best players in Europe. You can safely bet money that Chelsea will win almost all their matches. The odds are not great but you could put ?100 on Chelsea to win and make an easy ?26 from your bet. Of course, this does not always work out. No team is perfect! Mourinho is passionate about soccer but retains his sense of perspective and humour. Recently he was asked in London if he was concerned about losing the championship to his main rivals, Manchester United. His reply was typical of him: "No, I'm more concerned about bird 'flu."

The assembled press started laughing. "Seriously; it's that swan in Scotland that concerns me. It's not that far from here!" (The swan was the first creature with bird 'flu in the UK in 2006) Over the last few weeks, his team, Chelsea, have been criticised for having players sent off for breaking the rules. When Jose was asked about his success away from home against West Brom, he commented ironically: "Maybe we won because we played with ten men. That is our best tactic at the moment." However, he realises that the main reason Chelsea win so often is as follows:

"We have top players and, sorry if I'm arrogant, we have a top manager." Public confidence is so rare in the UK that it is often mistaken for arrogance. Jose does not believe in having favourites; he believes in the power of the team rather than the individual: "I don't want special relations with one of them (his players). I hate to speak about individuals. Players don't win you trophies, teams win trophies, squads win trophies." Another great manager is Harry Redknapp of Portsmouth. He commented about his players in a match with Burnley which ended in a 2-2 draw: "When the crowd was on their backs no one wanted to try anything in case they got booed. They were defensive and wanted to avoid mistakes." Harry understands human psychology. If we are too worried about appearing foolish or making mistakes we will fail to make things happen and we will not make full use of our abilities. We go into our shells and play safe. I remember feeling like this when I played cricket at school. I tried to avoid being anywhere near the ball in case I dropped a catch. It was many years before I realised that I was quite good at catching! A commentator remarked: "Harry knows how to get his teams going and how to restore their confidence. Now they expect to win at Fratton Park (the Portsmouth ground). They firmly believe they will win." Recently they have won three games in a row and are on their way to escaping relegation to a lower division. Another manager, Stuart Pierce, of Manchester City also knows the importance of confidence: "We need to go out and really believe we can play a bit." What key success lessons can we learn from the above? Skill is important but attitude is even more important. We should expect to win and not show too much respect for the obstacles in our path whether they are human or otherwise and whether they are real or imaginary. We need to believe in our own ability and expect to win even if this makes us seem arrogant. We should handle failures by reminding ourselves that things could be much worse. Retaining our sense of humour also helps. Teamwork is a key factor in many types of achievement. We should not be worried about making mistakes whether we are playing soccer or cricket or the game of life. We need to face up to reality and be willing to be judged by the results we achieve as well as the effort we put in. On the whole, I think, that the effort we expend is more important. We cannot always control the results but we can control the effort we put in. The same manager can lose with one team and win with another. He is still the same person and he still made the same efforts. I'll leave you with a final quote from Gordon Strachan who has been both a winning and a losing manager: A reporter asked: "Gordon, can we have a quick word?" "Velocity", replied Gordon as he walked off. About the author John Watson is an award winning teacher and fifth degree black belt martial arts instructor. He has recently written several books about achieving your goals and dreams. One of these can be found here http://www.motivationtoday.com/36_laws.php

John Watson is an award winning teacher and 5th degree martial arts instructor. One of his motivational ebooks can be found at http://www.motivationtoday.com/36_laws.php

Selecting Soccer Cleats - Nightmare or Lack of Knowledge?

                

 

What kind of soccer cleats should you buy? There are so many choices. And all this marketing nonsense out there. Exactly. There is no simple answer to this question. Selecting the proper soccer cleats could be very challenging but it does not have to become a nightmare. With the adequate knowledge you can easily choose the right soccer shoes for yourself or your child, if that's the case.

So, let's see what should you look for while buying soccer cleats? Besides the price, you want to make sure they are comfortable. But how would you know if they give you enough comfort, before you play in them at least few times? You won't. But you can increase your chances of buying comfortable soccer cleats by considering the following factors:
1. Manufacturer. 2. True Leather or Synthetic. 3. Studs Type. 4. Size.

Let's talk about these factors a little bit more.

Manufacturer
Adidas and Nike are the 2 most popular. For a good reason. They are probably the best on the market. While Adidas has manufactured soccer shoes "forever", Nike has made great strides over the last few years. Both companies make equally good quality soccer shoes. I personally never played in Nike's shoes, so I can't tell you about this brand from my experience. My sons played soccer using both brands. After trying them for a while, the younger son sticks to Nike while Pat (older) uses Adidas shoes only. They both are very happy with their selections. Do you know why? Their feet are build differently. Pat has a much wider foot than his brother. Adidas makes its cleats bigger in width than Nike. Basically if you have:
? Wide foot - look for a pair of Adidas Soccer Cleats.
? Skinny foot - look for a pair of Nike Soccer Cleats.

It wouldn't be fair not to mention 2 other brands, almost as good as the above two: Diadora and Puma. Other brands like: Umbro, Kelme, Mitre, Lotto - only if you really can't afford the brands mentioned above or if you just simply like these brands.

True Leather or Synthetic
Upper portion of every soccer shoe is made out of either true leather or synthetic material.

What is better? True leather...in my opinion. And I recommend it to everybody who is serious about playing soccer.

True leather gives you an uncompromising feel of the ball. It molds to your feet producing great comfort. It also lasts longer than synthetic materials. And it is healthier for your feet. Synthetic materials don't let the feet "breathe" building up of sweat, potential blisters and feet problem in the near future.

But...(of course there is a "but") ...True leather cleats cost more. There are few different types of leather used to manufacture soccer cleats. The least expensive is full grain. Sometimes full grain leather soccer shoes could cost only slightly more than "artificial". Spending $10-20 more on much better shoes would be really worth it. The best leather out on the market is K-Leather (Kangaroo). Though more expensive but it is softer, lighter and still durable. If your feet are not growing like the speed of sound and your budget is not too tight, definitely consider buying soccer cleats made from K-Leather.

There is another "but" or an exception to my "non-synthetic soccer shoes" rule: soccer cleats made of high quality synthetic material. These soccer shoes are manufactured with special microfiber technology that upgrades synthetic material, usually a PU (polyurethane). It makes the PU very soft, and strong, giving it similar feel to a natural material. Top Super-Microfiber material can be just as expensive as some leather!

Nowadays almost all-leading sport's footwear manufacturers use microfiber materials. For example, Nike makes their top quality cleats from super lightweight synthetic material called KNG-100 (Air Zoom Total 90) and Nike-Skin (Mercurial Vapor). Even Adidas, for the first time, used microfiber for its newest creation Adidas Predator Absolute (there is a Kangaroo leather model as well). So, my "non-synthetic cleats rule" applies only to a regular (cheap) synthetic material like PU or PVC (polyvinylchloride).

Studs Type
Molded Studs There are practically two different molded soccer cleats on the market.
The traditional - contains a sole that has round studs (usually between ten to fifteen).
The X-Grip (or Bladed shape) - slimmer than round studs, strategically placed in different angles to offer a player a better footing.

Soccer shoes with molded round studs (traditional) are more universal. What I mean is that, this type of soccer cleats are good for hard and firm surfaces as well as for soft grounds. However, they are not really reliable for extreme circumstances like: very hard and dry fields (turf shoes will be the ultimate choice here) or very soft and wet surface (screw-ins). The X-Grip design is manufactured for specific field conditions. In this case, with different length and angles of studs, we have to choose between soccer cleats made specifically for either hard (HG), firm (FG) or soft (SG) ground. Your choice then should be based on the type of fields you play soccer on the most. If you play on all kinds of surfaces, I would recommend-traditional round studs. But if you really want to stick to new style, then buy X-Grip for firm pitch (FG). Of course, the best scenario would be to have two pairs of soccer cleats for different field conditions. But who can afford it? Not to many of us.

Replaceable (screw-ins) cleats are very optional. Most young soccer players do not need them. With the poor quality of most youth fields, screw-ins just wouldn't get enough use to warrant purchase. Unless, you play a lot on great, soft fields and have extra cash (screw-ins can not be the only soccer cleats you have). Also some leagues do not allow this type of equipment.

Size
It is very important that the soccer cleats you buy must fit perfectly. This means as snug as possible, tight to the foot (sorry parents, you can't have growing room in soccer cleats). Close-fitting shoes facilitate the best touch (the feel for the ball). Soccer shoes I usually get, for my older son (16 years old) and myself, are ? size smaller. This is, because leather expands after a while and then molds to the foot. For my 10 year old, since synthetic does not stretch and cleats in junior size are not that expensive, I buy his exact shoe size.

Soccer Cleats - More Tips and Recommendations

Adrian Gumowski has been involved in soccer for thirty years. As a former player and now as a parent of two youth soccer players Adrian shares his knowledge on Youth Soccer Equipment and other soccer related topics at my-youth-soccer-guide.com

Junior Soccer Defending - Directing the Play

                

 

http://www.juniorsoccercoach.com
Do your players know whether to show an opponent inside or
outside when they are defending?
You may want to consider this tactic when coaching your
players. There are two schools of thought on this; One says
that your defenders should show the opponents outside
towards the touchline.
The reason for this is that if your player does get beat
then the opponent will still have to get a cross in. Also,
they should be at a more acute angle to get a shot on
target if they have been successfully pushed outside.

The alternative to this is showing the opponents inside,
towards goal. If this is to be your style of play then the
players need to be organised so that there is strength
inside. This can be a risky tactic if players are not
switched on or don't know where to best position
themselves.

Showing them inside would be a good tactic if you where
playing with five in defence with a good sweeper.

If your team lacks some direction on this tactic, then it
will be very difficult for them to get an organised shape
and take a position which is best suited to holding up or
breaking down an attack.

Both young and older players can be coached on this.

As players get older, and become more tactically aware
& proficient in defending techniques, they will be able to
influence the build up play and therefore your defensive
line can react, and adjust, by taking the lead off the first
defender.

Build this simple tactic into some small sided games in
training and watch the beneficial results on match day!
For more Junior Soccer help, drills, exercises and coach
development visit http://www.juniorsoccercoach.comand
join the free junior soccer tip of the week.
Or send a blank email to:
mailto:tips@juniorsoccercoach.com