Issue #109 · Data Companion

The Game Is the Best Teacher

The numbers behind small-sided games, live. Every chart here is the same data the issue walks through, with the sources attached.

Primary source: Hafeni, Hamilton & Simmons (2015), Int. J. of Exercise Science: Conf. Proc. 8(3). Read the study

more touches per player in 4v4 vs 11v11 (Hafeni 2015)

~17

decisions per minute in 4v4 (one every 3-4 seconds)

decisions per minute in 11v11 (one every 8-10 seconds)

Touches per player, per minute

U12 players, 7-minute games. A 4v4 player touches the ball about 5 times as often as an 11v11 player.

The whole game, all players combined. Small fields keep the ball in play.

Pass, dribble, shoot, move. The smaller the room, the more the brain gets to practice. Interval research via GameReps training guide.

Reps per person fall as the group grows. This is the shape of the rule in any room: soccer field, piano trio, classroom, meeting.

US Soccer small-sided standards. Each rung builds the skill the next one needs.

Format	Age	What it teaches
4v4	U8 and under	Courage on the ball, 1v1 duels, no hiding
7v7	U9-U10	Shape, support angles, combination play
9v9	U11-U12	Positions, spacing, transitions
11v11	U13+	Systems, game management, role discipline

The Family Recruiting Audit is the full review: film, an honest position read, a school list, a timeline, and a walkthrough call.

Hafeni, L; Hamilton, J; Simmons, S (2015). Small-Sided Soccer Games Improve Game Intelligence and Ball Possession of U/12 Boys. Int. J. Exercise Science: Conf. Proc. 8(3), Art. 16. Total touches per game: 4v4 = 311.5, 7v7 = 214.0, 11v11 = 170.5.
Decision intervals (3-4s in 4v4, 8-10s in 11v11): GameReps training guide, small-sided games research summary.
US Soccer small-sided standards and US Youth Soccer Complete Guide to Small-Sided Games for the format ladder.
The universal rule chart is illustrative: it shows the shape of reps-per-person as group size grows, not measured data.