Passing Warm-ups

Pass and Move Drill

A pass and move drill asks one thing of every player: never stand still after you've passed. Two teams share the same area, each keeping its own ball moving, so players have to find space, look around and pass through the traffic of the other team.

AgesU8 to adult
Players6 to 16
Space20 × 20 m
Time10 min
IntensityMedium

Animate it in DrawTactics

It's an unopposed drill, but it's busy, and that makes it a good bridge between a static passing pattern and a real possession game. Use it early in a session to raise the tempo and get players scanning before they receive.

Setup

Mark out a 20 × 20 m area. Split 8 players into two teams of 4 in different colored bibs and give each team a ball. Each team passes only among its own players, and anyone who passes must move to a new space straight away. (The animation follows the Reds' ball; the Blues pass their own ball around them at the same time.)

Equipment4 cones, 1 ball per team, 2 sets of bibs

How it works

A red passes to a teammate and immediately runs into open space, while a blue player moves through the area with their own team's ball in play (the animation follows the Reds' ball).
The receiving red passes on to a third teammate and spins off into another gap as a second blue moves across.
The third red finds the first passer, who is now free in their new space, and moves off again.

Diagram of the pass and move drill with every pass and run — Every step of the drill on one diagram.

Coaching points

Move straight after every pass, into space and away from the ball
Look around before you receive so you already know your next pass
Firm passes to feet, softer ones into space
Ask for it with your voice and an arm
Pass through the other team's traffic, not into it

Make it harder

Two-touch limit
The other team's players become passive defenders
You can't pass back to the player who passed to you

Make it easier

Bigger area
Stop and pass before moving
One team works while the other stands still as obstacles

Adapting it by age

U8–U10

Use 25 × 25 m with teams of 3 and unlimited touches, and give a point for every pass where the passer moves before the ball arrives.

U12–U14

Teams of 4 in 20 × 20 m, two touches, and no return passes to the player who just gave it to you.

U15 to adult

Teams of 5 or 6 in 15 × 15 m, one or two touches, with the other team's players acting as passive defenders who can block passing lanes.

Common mistakes

Players pass and then watch the ball. Freeze play and point out the player who's still standing where they passed from; one or two freezes usually fixes it.

Teams pass in the same small triangle and the rest of the area stays empty. Add the no-return-pass rule, or ask for a pass to every teammate before repeating anyone.

The area is too big, so there's no traffic to deal with. Shrink it until players have to look before every pass; the busier it is, the more they scan.

FAQ

What is a pass and move drill?
Any drill where players have to move to a new position after passing. Two teams sharing one area is the most common version because it adds traffic without adding tackles.

How many balls should there be?
One per team to start. With older players add a second ball per team to make them scan more.

Make this drill your own

Open the pass and move drill in DrawTactics to change the numbers and the size of the area, move the players, and export your own animation or diagram for your team. Or add it to a free session plan and print it.

Animate it in DrawTactics