How often should my child train at football?

As a parent, you may wonder how often should kids train football?

Should they train once a week?

Three times a week?

Should they be doing extra sessions outside their team training?

The answer depends on your child's age, experience, goals, school schedule and enjoyment of the game. More training isn't always better. The most important thing is finding the right balance between quality training, matches, recovery, school and having fun.

At Coops Football Coaching, we work with junior footballers aged 6–18 and understand that every player develops differently. Here's a guide to help parents understand how much football training their child may benefit from.

Ages 6–8: Focus on Fun and Fundamentals

For younger players, football should primarily be about enjoying the game and developing basic skills.

At this age, players can benefit from approximately 1–2 organized training sessions per week, alongside informal football and playing for fun.

Key areas to develop include:

• Ball control

• Dribbling

• Passing

• Shooting

• Coordination

• Confidence with the ball

• Enjoyment of football

  
  

Parents don't need to worry about making every session structured. Kicking a ball around at the park, playing with friends or practising simple skills at home can all contribute to development.

The priority should be creating a positive relationship with football.

Ages 9–12: Building Stronger Foundations

As players get older, they can begin to handle more structured training.

A player aged 9–12 who wants to improve could benefit from around 2–3 football sessions per week, including team training, games and additional individual practice.

This is a great age to focus on:

• First touch

• Passing and receiving

• 1v1 skills

• Finishing

• Using both feet

• Decision-making

• Movement and positioning

  
  

Additional individual coaching can be particularly useful because it gives players more opportunities to work on areas they may not get as much time to practice during team training.

Ages 13–15: Developing the Complete Player

As players enter their teenage years, training can become more specific and demanding.

Players who are committed to improving may benefit from 3–5 football-related sessions per week, depending on their team schedule, match commitments and recovery.

Training can increasingly focus on:

• Position-specific development

• Speed and agility

• Tactical understanding

• Decision-making under pressure

• Technical consistency

• Match performance

• Strength and physical development appropriate for their age

  
  

At this stage, quality becomes extremely important.

Adding more sessions simply for the sake of doing more isn't necessarily going to make a player better. Each session should have a purpose.

Ages 16–18: Training With Greater Purpose

Older players who are serious about their football may have a significantly higher training load through their club, school, academy and individual training.

For these players, the focus should be on quality, consistency and recovery.

Individual training can be particularly valuable for working on specific weaknesses or preparing for higher levels of football.

Areas of focus may include:

• Position-specific skills

• Tactical awareness

• Match analysis

• Technical consistency

• Physical development

• Speed and agility

• Mental preparation

• Trial preparation

  
  

At this age, players should also start taking greater responsibility for their own development.

Does More Training Always Mean More Improvement?

Not necessarily.

This is one of the most important things for parents to understand.

A child who trains five times a week but is exhausted, unmotivated or constantly carrying minor injuries may not be developing as effectively as a player who completes three high-quality sessions and has enough time to recover.

Quality beats quantity.

Players need time to recover physically and mentally, especially when they are balancing football with school and other activities.

Don't Forget About Recovery

Recovery is an important part of player development.

Young footballers should have enough time for:

• Sleep

• Rest days

• School

• Family time

• Other sports and activities

• Unstructured play

  
  

If your child is constantly tired, struggling to enjoy football or experiencing recurring pain, it may be worth reviewing their overall training load and speaking with an appropriate health professional if needed.

What About Extra Private Football Coaching?

Private football coaching can be a useful addition to a player's normal team training.

The biggest benefit is that the session can be focused specifically on the individual player.

For example, if your child needs to improve their first touch, weaker foot, finishing or confidence in 1v1 situations, an individual session can dedicate much more time to that particular area.

However, private coaching shouldn't replace playing with teammates.

Players need both:

Individual training → technical development and personalised feedback

Team training and matches → decision-making, teamwork and applying skills under pressure

The two can complement each other extremely well.

How Can Parents Help?

Parents don't need to become football coaches to support their child's development.

Some of the best things you can do are:

Encourage, Don't Pressure

Young players generally perform better when they feel supported rather than pressured to win or perform perfectly.

Celebrate Improvement

Instead of only asking, "Did you win?", try asking:

"What did you enjoy about the game?"

or

"What did you improve today?"

Encourage Practice

If your child enjoys football, encourage them to spend time with a ball outside organised training.

Even 15–20 minutes of enjoyable practice can be valuable.

Listen to Your Child

Every player is different. Some children want additional training, while others may already have a busy schedule.

The best training schedule is one your child can enjoy and sustain.

So how much should my child train?

There is no single number that works for every footballer.

As a general guide:

Ages 6–8: 1–2 organized sessions per week

Ages 9–12: 2–3 sessions per week

Ages 13–15: 3–5 football-related sessions per week

Ages 16–18: Training should be based around their goals, competition level and overall workload

These are guidelines rather than strict rules. Your child's individual circumstances should always be considered.

The most important thing is to create a healthy balance between training, recovery, school and enjoyment.

Final Thoughts

Developing as a footballer is a long-term journey. Players don't need to rush their development or train every day to become better.

Consistent, purposeful training combined with quality coaching, regular match experience and adequate recovery can give young footballers the environment they need to improve.

At Coops Football Coaching, we help junior footballers aged 6–18 develop their technical ability, confidence and understanding of the game through personalized football coaching.

Looking for additional football training for your child? Click HERE for our coaching options and find the right session for their development!