So, when really is the best age to begin football training? 

Before we can answer that you should already have a child that has developed some level of confidence with a football and perhaps some basic training equipment designed for home use. Through having fun at home, surrounded by the encouragement of family members, children can start to develop basic motor and co-ordination skills. Once your child has developed the skills to kick and control the ball with confidence irrespective of age they should be ready to take their football in to a more structured environment. This might usually be around the age of 5-7. But, remember, some children just pick up an interest in soccer at a later stage which is still perfectly fine.

“Once your child has developed the skills to kick and control the ball with confidence irrespective of age they should be ready to take their football into a more structured environment.”

Make training fun and easy to keep them interested.

At this earlier stage of life the level of skill and confidence with a football can become significant between the various age groups. This is why age segmentation is so specific in children’s sporting activities. The players that you do see excelling within their own age bracket is usually however, down to one thing – how much time they have put into that activity. It is important to focus at this stage that the way to improve performance is through having fun. If you are looking for fun outdoor and indoor activities that young children will find exciting and engaging with an emphasis on football why not explore the Football Flick Hero Range if your child is still in that under even category of players. For those who are in the seven plus category, it would be very beneficial to look at the rest of our Football Flick training range to help improve skills and have fun at home.

From the ages of six and upwards children are often know to start to adapt to the emotional challenges of winning and losing.

If you believe your child is ready and you believe they have a genuine enthusiasm for the sport at home then you should definitely think about your child starting competitive football. From the ages of six and upwards children are often know to start to adapt to the emotional challenges of winning and losing. Why not check out and explore the FA’s play football page to help find local FA approved teams here : https://www.thefa.com/play-football#about-info

Through practice and playing at home first children will learn the capacity to take on constructive criticism and feedback. This means at this stage of their development your child will start to benefit more from a regimented coaching activity compared to a younger age.

Community football activity. Launch of FIFA Child Safeguarding Programme and Toolkit “FIFA GUARDIANS”, Middlesex County Football Association, Northolt, London,UK – 10 Jul 2019. Photo: Alan Walter for The FA

Do not be deterred if your child is already a little older.

If your child is a little older when they decide to take football a little more seriously it should not hold them back. Even up to early teen years can be a good age to start football training, especially if your child takes their training at home and on the pitch seriously then they should be able to catch up to other serious players of a similar age within a year. It’s all down to practice and the hours they put into their pursuit of becoming a more professional player. Our training range is specifically designed to help players put in the hours at home and have fun training so they can make up for the lost time in no time at all.

At Football Flick we see this play out all the time. We are often contacted by parents of children who have continued to use our products at home and have seen their children excel beyond their peers when playing football.

Ethan Stapley Barcelona Academy

Ethan Stapley, nine, from Eastbourne, was accepted into the Spanish club’s youth academy on the night prior to his ninth birthday. From playing in the Eastbourne Allstars Academy, to Brighton & Hove Albion, to the unthinkable, massive move to FC Barcelona, his dad Greg has seen it all.

Greg and his family moved to Spain when they were offered a cafe over there and instantly wanted to find Ethan a football club.

“I know it’s a bit of a cliché but since he was walking, he was kicking the ball,” Greg explained.

“My wife’s cousin plays for Girona, so we were going to go to Girona FC, but I emailed a video of Ethan using the Trainer to Barcelona’s headquarters and they said to come for an open trial.”

From Brighton to Barcelona there’s something that was always present and that’s the Football Flick Urban Skills Trainer. Greg believes that the product has played a big part in improving his son as a footballer.

“The Football Flick Urban Skills Trainer was a Christmas present for him. He used it for his passing, control and volleys. It taught him to judge the movement of the ball a lot. We even use the middle bit to pass the ball through and he uses the ramp to flick the ball up to head the ball into the net to improve his heading accuracy.

You can read more of Ethan Story, From Brighton to Barcelona, here.