Children to no longer head footballs during training.
Football Association Guidence 2020
Children aged 11 and under will no longer be taught to head footballs during training in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
The new football association guidelines for coaches also puts limits on how much heading older children should do.
It follows Glasgow University research that showed former footballers were three-and-a-half times more likely to die from brain disease.
The guidance, which will not yet apply in Wales, will affect training only.
The Football Association of Wales said its guidance for coaches on children heading the ball was currently under review with the findings being made available later this year.
In a joint announcement from the FA, Scottish FA and Irish FA, coaches were advised that there should be “no heading in training in the foundation phase” – which covers primary school children, or under-11 teams and below.
There will be no changes to heading in youth matches, where the FA said headers are rare.
Guidance for coaches
Under 6 with ball size 3 - Format : N/A
| Frequency of heading in any one training session |
|---|
| Heading should not be introduced in training sessions at this age. |
| Game context |
| The Foundation Phase DNA aims to provide an enjoyable and memorable experience for young children. Priority at this age is fun, engagement and the mastery of both the body and the ball. In today’s modern game, children will play on smaller pitches, with less players and with the retreat line rule to encourage players to play through the thirds. There is now a greater emphasis at all levels to retain and love the ball and you will see very few headers in the game of Mini Soccer. Coaches should use the time they have with players to maximise enjoyment and development of other skills, particularly the fundamentals of working with the ball in their hands and feet. Focus should be on learning to master the ball and the body through fun activities. |
Under 7 with ball size 3 - Format: up to 5v5
| Frequency of heading in any one training session |
|---|
| Heading should not be introduced in training sessions at this age. |
| Game context |
| The Foundation Phase DNA aims to provide an enjoyable and memorable experience for young children. Priority at this age is fun, engagement and the mastery of both the body and the ball. In today’s modern game, children will play on smaller pitches, with less players and with the retreat line rule to encourage players to play through the thirds. There is now a greater emphasis at all levels to retain and love the ball and you will see very few headers in the game of Mini Soccer. Coaches should use the time they have with players to maximise enjoyment and development of other skills, particularly the fundamentals of working with the ball in their hands and feet. Focus should be on learning to master the ball and the body through fun activities. |
Under 8 with ball size 3 - Format: up to 5v5
| Frequency of heading in any one training session |
|---|
| Heading should not be introduced in training sessions at this age. |
| Game context |
| The Foundation Phase DNA aims to provide an enjoyable and memorable experience for young children. Priority at this age is fun, engagement and the mastery of both the body and the ball. In today’s modern game, children will play on smaller pitches, with less players and with the retreat line rule to encourage players to play through the thirds. There is now a greater emphasis at all levels to retain and love the ball and you will see very few headers in the game of Mini Soccer. Coaches should use the time they have with players to maximise enjoyment and development of other skills, particularly the fundamentals of working with the ball in their hands and feet. Focus should be on learning to master the ball and the body through fun activities. |
Under 9 with ball size 3 - Format: up to 7v7
| Frequency of heading in any one training session |
|---|
| Heading should not be introduced in training sessions at this age. |
| Game context |
| The Foundation Phase DNA aims to provide an enjoyable and memorable experience for young children. Priority at this age is fun, engagement and the mastery of both the body and the ball. In today’s modern game, children will play on smaller pitches, with less players and with the retreat line rule to encourage players to play through the thirds. There is now a greater emphasis at all levels to retain and love the ball and you will see very few headers in the game of Mini Soccer. Coaches should use the time they have with players to maximise enjoyment and development of other skills, particularly the fundamentals of working with the ball in their hands and feet. Focus should be on learning to master the ball and the body through fun activities. |
Under 10 with ball size 3 - Format: up to 7v7
| Frequency of heading in any one training session |
|---|
| Heading should not be introduced in training sessions at this age. |
| Game context |
| The Foundation Phase DNA aims to provide an enjoyable and memorable experience for young children. Priority at this age is fun, engagement and the mastery of both the body and the ball. In today’s modern game, children will play on smaller pitches, with less players and with the retreat line rule to encourage players to play through the thirds. There is now a greater emphasis at all levels to retain and love the ball and you will see very few headers in the game of Mini Soccer. Coaches should use the time they have with players to maximise enjoyment and development of other skills, particularly the fundamentals of working with the ball in their hands and feet. Focus should be on learning to master the ball and the body through fun activities. |
Under 11 with ball size 4 - Format: up to 9v9
| Frequency of heading in any one training session |
|---|
| Heading should not be introduced in training sessions at this age. |
| Game context |
| The Foundation Phase DNA aims to provide an enjoyable and memorable experience for young children. Priority at this age is fun, engagement and the mastery of both the body and the ball. In today’s modern game, children will play on smaller pitches, with less players and with the retreat line rule to encourage players to play through the thirds. There is now a greater emphasis at all levels to retain and love the ball and you will see very few headers in the game of Mini Soccer. Coaches should use the time they have with players to maximise enjoyment and development of other skills, particularly the fundamentals of working with the ball in their hands and feet. Focus should be on learning to master the ball and the body through fun activities. |
Under 12 with ball size 4 - Format: up to 9v9
| Frequency of heading in any one training session |
|---|
| Heading remains a low priority and our expectation is that heading should not be introduced at this stage. However, if coaches feel it necessary to introduce the technique of heading, due to the increased heading activity in the game, we strongly advise a maximum of one session per month with light balls, limited repetition of a maximum of five headers, using self-serve or short distances. These limited sessions should introduce the technique of heading and should always be unopposed. |
| Game context |
| The Youth Development Phase DNA continues to provide an enjoyable and memorable experience for young players. The priority as players get older is still fun, engagement and mastery of both the body and the ball. Players at this age are ready to cope with more decision making, which is reflected in the challenges provided in both training and games. This will still be done within an environment that is both supportive and positive. While there may be a small increase in the number of headers seen in the game at this age group, it will remain a low priority when compared to other technical aspects of the game. Coaches should continue to use the time they have with players to maximise the development of other key skills seen more regularly in the game at this age. |
Under 13 with ball size 4 - Format: up to 11v11
| Frequency of heading in any one training session |
|---|
| Heading remains a low priority and our expectation is that heading should not be introduced at this stage. However, if coaches feel it necessary to introduce the technique of heading, due to the increased heading activity in the game, we strongly advise a maximum of one session per month with light balls, limited repetition of a maximum of five headers, using self-serve or short distances. These limited sessions should introduce the technique of heading and should always be unopposed. |
| Game context |
| The Youth Development Phase DNA continues to provide an enjoyable and memorable experience for young players. The priority as players get older is still fun, engagement and mastery of both the body and the ball. Players at this age are ready to cope with more decision making, which is reflected in the challenges provided in both training and games. This will still be done within an environment that is both supportive and positive. While there may be a small increase in the number of headers seen in the game at this age group, it will remain a low priority when compared to other technical aspects of the game. Coaches should continue to use the time they have with players to maximise the development of other key skills seen more regularly in the game at this age. |
Under 14 with ball size 4 - Format: up to 11v11
| Frequency of heading in any one training session |
|---|
| Heading remains a low priority. Players can be introduced to the basic concepts in training with limited repetition. Coaches should not focus on heading practice more than one session per week and limit the number of headers per player to 10 per session. Coaches should use a variety of distances relative to the game at this age. |
| Game context |
| The Youth Development Phase DNA continues to provide an enjoyable and memorable experience for young players. Priority is still fun, engagement and the mastery of both the body and the ball. Players at this age are ready to cope with more decision making, which is reflected in the challenges provided in both training and games. This will still be done within an environment that is both supportive and positive. As players’ knowledge of the game and physical strength develops, there will be more visible tactical use of restarts, resulting in an increased number of headers. There are key factors to consider when introducing the technique of heading as part of a balanced programme, which include: • Judge and adjust to the flight of the ball Different types of headers will start to be used, so coaches can introduce position-specific movement patterns. |
Under 15 with ball size 5 - Format: up to 11v11
| Frequency of heading in any one training session |
|---|
| Heading remains a low priority. Players can be introduced to the basic concepts in training with limited repetition. Coaches should not focus on heading practice more than one session per week and limit the number of headers per player to 10 per session. Coaches should use a variety of distances relative to the game at this age. |
| Game context |
| The Youth Development Phase DNA continues to provide an enjoyable and memorable experience for young players. Priority is still fun, engagement and the mastery of both the body and the ball. Players at this age are ready to cope with more decision making, which is reflected in the challenges provided in both training and games. This will still be done within an environment that is both supportive and positive. As players’ knowledge of the game and physical strength develops, there will be more visible tactical use of restarts, resulting in an increased number of headers. There are key factors to consider when introducing the technique of heading as part of a balanced programme, which include: • Judge and adjust to the flight of the ball Different types of headers will start to be used, so coaches can introduce position-specific movement patterns. |
Under 16 with ball size 5 - Format: up to 11v11
| Frequency of heading in any one training session |
|---|
| Heading remains a low priority. Players can be introduced to the basic concepts in training with limited repetition. Coaches should not focus on heading practice more than one session per week and limit the number of headers per player to 10 per session. Coaches should use a variety of distances relative to the game at this age. |
| Game context |
| The Youth Development Phase DNA continues to provide an enjoyable and memorable experience for young players. Priority is still fun, engagement and the mastery of both the body and the ball. Players at this age are ready to cope with more decision making, which is reflected in the challenges provided in both training and games. This will still be done within an environment that is both supportive and positive. As players’ knowledge of the game and physical strength develops, there will be more visible tactical use of restarts, resulting in an increased number of headers. There are key factors to consider when introducing the technique of heading as part of a balanced programme, which include: • Judge and adjust to the flight of the ball Different types of headers will start to be used, so coaches can introduce position-specific movement patterns. |
Under 18 with ball size 5 - Format: up to 11v11
| Frequency of heading in any one training session |
|---|
| Heading drills should be reduced as far as possible, taking into consideration the heading exposure in matches. As the game begins to replicate the adult game coaches should use a variety of heading situations players will experience during a game. This includes the introduction of contested headers. While you may now use match balls in the session light balls can still be used in training when practising the technique |
| Game context |
| The Youth Development Phase DNA continues to provide an enjoyable and memorable experience for young players. Priority is still fun, engagement and the mastery of both the body and the ball. Players at this age are ready to cope with more decision making, which is reflected in the challenges provided in both training and games. This will still be done within an environment that is both supportive and positive. As players’ knowledge of the game and physical strength develops, there will be more visible tactical use of restarts, resulting in an increased number of headers. There are key factors to consider when introducing the technique of heading as part of a balanced programme, which include: • Judge and adjust to the flight of the ball Different types of headers will start to be used, so coaches can introduce position-specific movement patterns. |
