Practice Plans
A practice plan is not a list of drills. It's a decision about what you're willing to be bad at.
You have ninety minutes, twice a week if you're lucky, and about eleven things you'd like to fix. You cannot fix eleven things. You can fix one, properly, and touch a second. Every plan on this page is built that way: one topic, one supporting topic, and everything else is either warm-up or a game.
Each plan below is a complete session with timings, the drill for every block, and what to actually say while it's running. Take them as they are or take the shape and swap the drills for your own.
The plans:
- High school soccer practice plan — 90 minutes, in season, full varsity roster, two games that week.
- Preseason soccer practice plan — the first two weeks, loading fitness without breaking anyone.
- First day of soccer practice — setting the standard, without a single lap.
- 90-minute soccer practice plan — the general-purpose one, any competitive youth or club team.
- 60-minute youth soccer practice plan — one session a week, U9 to U12, maximum touches.
One thing before you go. The plan is not the session. The plan is what you brought; the session is what happens when eighteen tired teenagers arrive and three of them have forgotten their boots. Have the plan. Then coach what's in front of you.