Play Poker

Poker Rules
Poker is a type of card game whereby players gamble on the strength and value of their hands against a standard hand strength hierarchy. The winner of a round either produces the highest hand combination, or becomes the only player remaining in the pot after all other players have folded. There are many variants of poker, but they commonly involve several rounds of betting, a showdown and some also involve community cards.
It is easy to learn to play poker but it takes a lifetime to master it. You just need to know the hand rankings and the keep in mind that best combination of five cards wins.

Betting and Play
The following describes the betting and play for Texas Holden. Check out our comprehensive glossary for definitions on all the terms used in poker. Play always moves clockwise and starts with the players seated after the dealer button. The two players to the left of the 'dealer' must post a big blind and small blind respectively. The blind is a bet that is made without players having seen, or even been dealt their cards. This is done to commence betting and build the pot. Player's hole cards are then dealt, with the player to the left of the big blind opening betting proceedings.

Call, Raise or Fold
At this time, players can call, raise or fold. Play moves clockwise until all players have placed/matched an equal amount into the pot, or have folded. Once play is complete, the community cards are dealt.

Flop
In Texas Holdem three cards are then dealt, face up and players can make their strongest hand using any combination of the community cards and their hole cards. Another round of betting commences.

Check, Raise or Fold
In this round of betting, players can check, raise or fold. Naturally if a player has raised, the following player cannot check, so can either call, raise or fold. After a round of betting another community card is dealt.

Turn
After the forth community card is dealt, another round of betting commences. Players can once again, check, call, raise or fold. After a round of betting is complete a final community card is dealt.

River
After the fifth and final community card is dealt a final round of betting commences. Once again, players can check, call, raise or fold.

Showdown
If, after the final round of betting after the river, there are two or more people left in the pot, all players must declare their hand and show their cards. The player with the strongest hand using the five strongest cards available wins the pot. After the showdown, the cards are collected, the dealer button, big and small blinds move one seating position clockwise and the players now on the big and small blinds must make their forced bets. Then the cards are shuffled and dealt for another hand. If at any time throughout any of the rounds of betting, all players fold leaving only one remaining, then the remaining player wins the pot and does not have to show his/her winning hand.

Players
The number of players in any game of poker ranges from two through to ten. Tournaments can be structured over a multiple number of tables, meaning that the possible number of competitors in a given tournament is virtually unlimited. The world's biggest and best known live poker tournament is the World Series of Poker Main Event, which attracted a record number of 8,772 participants in 2006.

Game Structure
Poker can be played in tournaments or in cash games. Tournaments typically involve a set buy-in and each player begins with the same amount of chips. The buy-in is comprised of an amount that contributes to the overall prizepool and an administrative fee that goes to the casino, pub or online poker room. All players then compete until there is only one player remaining, with the prize money distributed amongst players. For example, in a ten person single table tournament, the prizepool distribution is usually set at 50% for first place, 30% for second and 20% for third. The distribution can vary greatly depending on the tournament being played.

Cash games operate on a single table and continue for as long as there are players seated. Blinds are kept constant. The key feature here is that players can join and leave whenever the desire, making this game structure ideal for players who do not wish to slug it out for hours in a multi-table tournament. Players can bring as little or as much money with them to cash games.

There are also sit-n-go tournaments. These single table tournaments begin as soon as all seats at a table have been filled and finishes when one player remains. This type of game appeals to players who do not wish to play cash games, but do not have the time to play in lengthy multi-table tournaments. In sit-n-go tournaments and multil-table tournaments, the blinds will go up at regular intervals. This is to speed play along, which is especially necessary in large multi-table tournaments.

Betting Limits
Betting limits generally fall into three categories; Fixed Limit, Pot Limit or No Limit. In the first case, a player may only bet a fixed amount every time they raise. Pot Limit betting is capped at the size of the pot, which can grow exponentially depending on the number of bets made. No Limit, as the name implies means that players are free to bet almost any amount. Betting minimums are usually set at the same amount as the big blind. In tournaments, the big blind steadily increase over time, to ensure a result. At a certain point within a given tournament structure, an ante may be introduced. An ante is a blind bet that all players make prior to the cards being dealt for each hand.

Basic rules of chess

Chess is more straightforward than people realize. Two sides, white and black, try to checkmate each other. Play starts with the white player and the players take turns moving one piece at a time until the game ends. The only exception is castling; when a player can move two pieces in one turn.

A player wins when either the opponent concedes or the enemy king is checkmated. Checkmate is when the enemy king is in check and the king cannot escape. The king can escape check by moving to a square not controlled by an enemy piece, by capturing the checking piece, or by blocking the check with a friendly piece. It is important to note that it is illegal for the king to move into check.

The game can end in a draw several different ways, but the two most common ways are for the players to either decide that neither side can win and agree to a draw or for the game to end in stalemate. Stalemate is when one side cannot make any legal moves.

Some of the weird rules:
Castling: This is the only time when two pieces can move in a single turn. Castling is done with the king and rook, and is used to evacuate the king from the center. The king can castle with either rook. To castle, the king moves two squares in the direction he wishes to castle, and the rook is placed on the other side. Now there are a few important restrictions. There can't be any pieces between the king and rook. Additionally, neither the king nor rook can have moved previously. And finally, the king cannot castle through check.

Pawn Promotion: When a pawn reaches the other side of the board, it can "promote" and become any other piece. Players generally promote to the best piece, the queen. Polygamy is allowed. I don't understand how all of this fits into the chess as war metaphor, but it's a good thing when you can promote your pawns.

En Passant: Meaning "in passing," en passant is used when you have a pawn on the fifth rank and an enemy pawn tries to move two squares past your pawn. Using en passant you are actually allowed to capture the cowardly pawn.

Football

Match set-up
Football is a timed sport. The team with the most points at the end of the time period wins the game. The game is divided up into 4 periods or quarters with a long "half time" between the second and third quarter. Time is counted while plays are running and sometimes between plays. To keep the game going at a good pace the offense has a limited time between plays.

Football Players
The rules in football allow each team to have 11 players on the field at a time. Teams may substitute players between plays with no restrictions. Each team must start a play on their side of the ball.
The defensive players may take any position they want and can move about their side of the football prior to the play without restriction. There are certain defensive positions that have become common over time, there are no specific rules defining defensive positions or roles.
The offensive players, however, have several rules that define their position and what role they may take in the offense. Seven offensive players must be lined up on the line of scrimmage. The other four players must be lined up at least one yard behind the line of scrimmage. All of the offensive football players must be set, or still, prior to the play beginning with the exception of one of the 4 backs which may be moving parallel or away from the line of scrimmage. Further rules say that only the 4 backs and the players at each end of the line of scrimmage may catch a pass or run the football.

Now Play Football
The team with the possession of the football is called the offense. The offense tries to advance the football on plays. The defense tries to prevent the offense from scoring or advancing the football. The down system: The offense must advance the ball at least 10 yards every four plays or downs. Each time the offense is successful in advancing the ball 10 yards, they get four more downs or what is called a "first down". In order to keep the other team from getting good field position the offense can punt the ball to the other team intentionally. Offensive plays on downs start with a snap. This is when the center passes the football between their legs to one of the offensive backs. The ball is advanced either by running with the football or passing the football. The football play is over when 1) the player with the football is tackled or goes out of bounds 2) an incomplete pass 3) there is a score.

Golf

Golf was supposed to have been invented in Scotland some 400 years ago, where each player has to hit his own small ball into a hole using various types of clubs. The club is swung at the motionless ball on the ground from a side-stance. Score is kept with the smallest score being the best.

Golf is thought to have come from the Dutch word ‘kolf' meaning a club. It is defined in the Rules of Golf as "playing a ball with a club from the teeing ground into the hole by a stroke or successive strokes in accordance with the Rules." A favorite theory is that golf was started by bored shepherds knocking stones around with bent sticks. Its popularity was hampered in the early years by requiring close-cropped grass. The lawnmower was not invented until 1831 and not really practical until the machine-tool industry was able to cut steel gears c. 1880's.

Golf is most commonly played on courses consisting of 18 holes, usually consisting of 4 par threes, 4 par fives and 10 par fours. The term par being the number of strokes required by a good golfer to get the ball from the ‘teeing ground' or ‘tee box' into the hole. To enable players of all levels to compete there is a handicap system whereby a lesser golfer is given ‘shots', the fewer shots one has the better golfer one is. The maximum handicap allowable for competitions is 28 for men and 36 for women. Some golfers will be rated with a plus handicap which means that they must add their plus handicaps to their final scores when playing against amateurs.

Golf club is a term for an organization of members usually owning a golf course and clubhouse. Golf club is also the term used to describe the ‘tools' used by golfers to get the ball from the tee, using a tee peg to sit the ball above the ground, along the fairway and onto the green.

Golf has a wonderful history spanning over 400 years of funny names and interesting definitions. From the archaic terms of the Scotts to modern colloquialism, the most common are Birdie, getting the ball into the hole in one stroke less than par. Eagle, getting the ball into the hole in two strokes less than par. Albatross, getting the ball into the hole in three strokes less than par.

Baseball Rules

Baseball teams consist of nine players and these players take turns fielding and at batting, with the home team batting second.

An inning consists of batters from each team taking their turn at batting until three batters are out. A game lasts for nine innings, but is extended into extra innings if the scores are level.

The fielding side consists of a pitcher, catcher, four infielders, and three outfielders.

The pitcher throws overhand, using a variety of deliveries from a raised mound to the home plate - a distance of 60.5ft.

An opposing batter attempts to hit the pitches and then get on base, while the fielders attempt to get the batter out through various plays.

A batter who misses three legitimate pitches, or fails to swing at three judged hittable by the umpire, is out on strikes. However, if the pitcher throws four pitches outside the strike zone, the batter obtains a base on balls, and gets a walk to first base.

A run is scored every time a batter becomes a runner and crosses home plate after touching each base in the prescribed order.

When the fielding team gets their opponents' three batters out, the teams swap roles.

If the score is level after nine innings, play continues into extra innings until one team has scored more than the other in an equal number of turns at bat.

Play Disk Golf

1. Disc golf is a sport that has grown very popular since its invention in the late 60's. George Sappenfield, a Californian, realized that golf would be a lot of fun if played with frisbees, so he set up a course of targets for kids to play on. A year later Sappenfield introduced the game to many other frisbee players. Many of them brought the game back to the U.C. Berkeley. Meanwhile on the East coast standardized targets were created and the game became more serious.

2. Find a disc golf course near you to play on. A good source for this is the course locater in the External Links section.

3. Get yourself a set of discs. An initial set usually consists of a Driver, a Mid-range and a Putter. Getting these can be done several ways. There are a few select courses that have pro shops, some that even rent discs. However, this is the exception and not the rule, so it is advised to find a local retailer or purchase online. A good way to do this is on the Innova Discs website or Discraft or any of the retailers linked in the External Links section.

4. It helps to go out to the course you are going to play a few minutes before your "tee-off" time so you can walk the course and get an idea of the targets locations, this will make your game easier as you won't have to scout for them as you play.

5. You'll find most courses have no greens fee so you can play as much as you desire all for the price of any lost discs, which WILL happen eventually.

Warnings
1. Your arm will get tired! To prevent this you can play the first few times on only the top or bottom 9 holes and take breaks to rest your arm.

2. You will lose discs! This is a fact that every disc golfer must deal with. To minimize this buy brightly colored discs and keep track of the flight path of your discs.

3. Avoid throwing your discs into trees as they will become stuck and dense plants as they are hard to find even if brightly colored.

4. Avoid throwing your disc onto pavement or any other hard surface as this will warp the plastic causing erratic flight.

5. Do not store your discs in a high temperature area as this will also warp the plastic causing erratic flight.

Tennis

Tennis Rules
A. The player who delivers the ball to start the point is called the server. The player who stands opposite and cross-court from the server is the receiver.

B. The right to serve, receive, choose your side, or give the opponent these choices is decided by a toss of a coin or racquet. If the choice of service or receiver is chosen, the opponent chooses which side to start.

C. The server shall stand behind the baseline on the deuce court within the boundaries of the singles court when playing singles and within the doubles sideline when playing doubles. All even points are played from the deuce court and odd number points played from the advantage court.
D. The receiver is deemed ready if an attempt is made to return the server's ball. The receiver can stand where he likes but must let the ball bounce in the service box. If the ball does not land in the service box, it is deemed a fault and a second serve is given.

E. The server always calls his score first. If the server wins the first point, he gets a score of 15. Scoring is done like a clock. The second point is called 30. The third point is called 45 and game is won when the score goes back to love. If the score is 40-40, one side must win by two points.

F. After the game, the opponents serve. The first to win 6 games, by two, wins the set. The first to win 2 sets wins the match. If the score is 6-6, a tie-breaker is played. The first team to score 7 points winning by two wins the set. The tiebreaker continues until one side wins by two.

G. If the ball goes into the net, or outside the boundaries of the court, the player who hit that ball loses the point. If the ball hits the net during the point and goes into the opponents’ court, the ball is in play.

H. A let is called during the point if a ball rolls on the court or there is a distraction from someone besides the players on the court.

I. A ball that lands on the line is good.

J. If players serve out of turn or serve to the wrong person or court, the point or game will stand and order will be resumed following the point or game.

Basketball

Scoring:
- 2 point field goal- a shot made from anywhere during play inside the 3 pt arc.
- 3 point field goal- a shot made from anywhere outside the 3 pt arc.
- Free throw- 1 point is awarded to an unguarded shot taken from behind the free throw line while the clock is stopped.

Skills:
- Boxing out-a player’s position between an opposing player and the basket to obtain a better rebounding position.
- Dribbling- bouncing the ball with 1 hand using your fingertips instead of your palm so that it rebounds back to yourself.
- Passing- moving the ball by throwing, bouncing, handing, or rolling it to another player.
- Shooting- throwing the ball to make a basket.
- Pivoting- stepping once or more in any direction with the same foot while holding the other foot at its initial point.
- Rebounding- The recovering of a shot that bounces off the backboard or the rim.

Terms:
- Air ball- a shot that completely misses the rim and the backboard.
- Assist- a pass to a teammate who then scores a field goal.
- Defense- team trying to stop the other team from scoring.
- Dunk- to throw the ball down into the basket with the hand above the level of the rim.
- Fast break- dribbling or passing the ball towards your basket before the defense can set up.
- Man-to-man- a defensive strategy where everyone guards an assigned player.
- Offense- team trying to score.
- Turn over- any loss of the ball without a shot being taken.
- Zone defense- a defensive strategy where everyone guards an area instead of a player.

Badminton

General rules and terms
- A player may not touch the net with a racket or history body during play.
- A birdie may not come to rest or be carried on the racket.
- A birdie may hit the net on its way across during play and the rally can continue.
- A player may not reach over the net to hit the shuttlecock.
- In class games will be played to 15 points and a match is 2 out of 3 games.
- Some types of shots are the lob, drop shot, smash and drive.

Serving
- A coin toss or spin of the racket determines who will serve first.
- The serve must travel diagonally to be good.
- A serve that touches the net and lands in the proper court is called a let serve and is reserved. A serve that is totally missed may be tried again.
- The racket must make contact with the birdie below the waist on a serve.
- The server and receiver shall stand within their respective service courts until the serve is made.
- Points may only be scored when serving.
- All lines are considered in bounds.
- In singles, when the server's score is an even number, the serve is taken from the right side. When the server's score is an odd number, it is taken from the left.

Volleyball

Play Volleyball
1. Maximum of three hits per side.
2. Player may not hit the ball twice in succession.
3. Ball may be played off the net during a volley and on serve.
4. A ball touching a boundary line is good.
5. A legal hit is contact with the ball by a player body above and including the waist which does not allow the ball to visibly come to a rest.
6. If two or more players contact the ball simultaneously, it is considered one play and the players involved may not participate in the next play.
7. A player must not block or attack a serve.
8. Switching positions will be allowed only between front line players.

Volleyball Basic Violations
1. Stepping on or over the line on a serve.
2. Failure to serve the ball over the net successfully.
3. Hitting the ball illegally (Carrying, Palming, Throwing).
4. Touches of the net with any part of the body while the ball is in play. If the ball is driven into the net with such force that it causes the net to contact an opposing player, no foul will be called, and the ball shall continue to be in play.
5. Reaching over the net, except under these conditions:
6. Reaches under the net.
7. Failure to serve in the correct order.
8. Blocks or spikes from a position which is clearly not behind the 10-foot line while in a back row position.

Cricket

By the end of the 18th century, cricket had developed to the point where it had become the national sport of England. Cricket is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players. 15 players are selected to form each "squad" and 11 players are selected from that squad. Each team has its own captain, multiple batsmen, multiple bowlers and other players acting as fielders. It is a bat-and-ball game played on a roughly elliptical grass field, in the centre of which is a flat strip, called a pitch.

First setting up the field
a) First of all, find an oval field to play on. The field should have a strip that runs down the field length wise, called the pitch. This is where the bowler will bowl the ball to the other team's striker. A boundary line should be clearly marked all around the field.
b) Mark the field with lines that indicate the creases. Marked should be the batting, return, popping and bowling creases.
c) Place the wickets on the field--one set behind the bowler and the other behind the striker. Each wicket has three stumps that stand side by side. At the top of the stumps are bails that connect the stumps.
d) Outfit the wicket keeper behind the striker with the gloves. He or she crouches behind the striker ready for the ball to be hit and is the only fielder that has gloves.
e) Start the game with a striker and a non-striker out on the field for the batting team. The striker is ready to be bowled to by standing in a batting position in front of the wicket ready to hit the ball.

Start to play the game
a) First toss a coin and the winner of the toss may choose to take the field or bat first. Cricket captains are the ones that make this and most of the decisions for the teams.
b) Bowl the ball to the striker, with usually one bounce before it reaches the striker. The bowler is trying to hit the wicket behind the striker to get him over.
c) Hit the ball and both the batsmen run to try to reach the opposite popping crease. When both successfully touch, by body or bat, the ground behind the opposite crease, a run is scored.
d) Score six runs by hitting the ball over the boundary with out touching the ground. If the ball reaches the boundary and touches the ground in doing so, the batting team is granted four runs. These runs are automatic unless the runners have scored more.
e) End an inning when ten of the batsmen are over, or the score required to meet is reached.

And now get an over
a) Get the striker over with six successive bowls that he has not hit and are all strikes. Un-hittable balls are not included in the six bowls. After the over, the bowler turns direction and pitches to the reverse side of the field.
b) Catch the ball in the air, while in the boundary, and the striker is out. Both feet of the fielder must be in the boundary. If the batsman touches the ball with his hand that is not touching the bat on purpose it is an over.
c) Break the wicket behind the bowler by direct hit from the bowler or reflected off the striker is an over. Also if a batsman touches or breaks a wicket with his body or equipment is an over.
d) 1. Reflect the ball with your body so it doesn't hit the wicker is called an over by the umpire.
2. Stumping the batsman is when the wicket-keeper gets the striker over by breaking the wicket when the striker steps outside of his crease while trying to play the ball.
3. Overs can happen if the next striker takes more than two minutes to appear on the field after the preceding wicket falls. Also if the striker it's the cricket ball twice while not defending the wicket.

The Most Popular Sports in America

How many popular sports does America have? The top five sports in my opinion do not reflect the views of other sports fans in America. It is important to note the history of these sports in America, the impact each sport has in our sporting culture and also some of the famous players that made these sports what they are today. Let's try to find it out!

1. American football began in the mid-late 1800's when players represented their college or university. The American football birthdates in the United States is commonly regarded as Nov. 6, 1869. American football is the most popular sport in America because it's exclusively played in America. American football's most famous tradition is the Super Bowl that started in 1935. The development of this nation-wide event brought Americans closer to the sport and arguably gave new meaning to the game. Today, the Super Bowl has the highest viewer ratings than any other television program in the country.

2. Baseball is the backbone to America's hardships during racial differences and political strife. It has been played longer than any other popular sport in America. During times of war and racial prejudices in America, baseball overcame these issues and became a sport American's knew would never stop being played. Ted Williams, one of Baseball's greatest players, was the last player to hit .400 in 1941. He hit over 500 home runs and is known to have one of the sweetest swings in the history of baseball.

3. Basketball is a game that nearly 300 million people play worldwide today. In America, it is one of the most popular sports, but is also a very popular sport in other countries as well. America and Russia are two countries that hold basketball to a high level of popularity. Players from Russia and surrounding countries are playing in the NBA. It is a culturally diverse sport and opening up new doors for foreign athletes to excel in an American- based sport.

4. Hockey is not an American-based sport, but people in America understand that hockey is one of the most popular sports in America. The continent's first hockey league was supposedly launched in Kingston, Ontario, in 1885, and it included four teams. A sport richly influenced by Canadian athletes, the game of hockey has transcended into America and become a popular sport for teenagers and young adults that enjoy playing street hockey, a similar version to traditional hockey on ice. Similar to basketball, hockey is a very popular sport in Russia.

5. Golf is one of America's most popular sport for one reason alone Tiger Woods. He has taken over the world of golf and also advertising. His phenomenal talent has inspired many African American's to play the game today. His statement to America is that it doesn't matter what color you are when it comes to playing a sport. He's a quintessential role model for young teenagers and a sporting icon for golfers in America.

Women's Soccer and Football

Women's soccer and football is very similar to the men's game with the same skills and techniques being required. Fitness, close control and other skills are just as important in women's football as in the men's game. One of the main differences is that women's soccer uses less of the long ball tactic, and requires shorter passes to build an attack.

Women's soccer is thriving throughout the UK with local leagues in all parts of the country. It is particularly popular in North America where soccer is equally popular amongst girls as boys.

Learn How To Play Soccer

In order to play soccer you will need to learn several different skills. In other words, knowing how to kick a ball properly will not be enough if you are aiming for higher goals.

To learn how to play soccer you will need to study 13 main skills. The thing is that these skills will come naturally while you are learning other skills. For example, while practicing on your passing skills you will also indirectly improve your accuracy and power. This will help you gain better shooting skills without even practicing on that particular skill.

One thing you should keep in mind is that you always need to work hard and do your best no matter if it is a regular practice or a competition final. Only in this way you will be able to succeed as a soccer player.

Soccer Skills

Some important skills you need to know in order to play soccer game.
1. Rules
2. Passing
3. Shooting
4. Dribbling
5. Heading
6. Formations
7. Positions
8. Kicking
9. Nutrition
10. Fitness
11. Tactics
12. Receiving
13. Trapping

1. Rules
To learn how to play soccer you will need to know some basic rules. There are countless variations on the soccer rules but you will generally only need to learn 18 of these. These 18 rules are often referred as laws of the game. By experience that memorizing the rules is not something you can do immediately. Instead, you will need to learn them while playing soccer. In this way you will be able to associate the rules with different situations on the field which will help you remember the rules better.

2. Passing
To play soccer you need to know how to pass the ball. If you don’t know how to do it then you will not be able to know how to play soccer. The first passing skill you should learn is to pass the ball by using the inside of your foot. This is the most basic and frequently used passing method in soccer. After some practice you will know exactly how to make an accurate and powerful pass. However, in order to become a passing master you will need to spend countless hours on the soccer field.

3. Shooting

As you already know, in order to score goals you will need to know how to shoot. If you don’t know how to fire an accurate and powerful shoot you will not be able to score many goals. The best thing you can do is to practice on your shooting skills by using both of your feet. In this way you will be able to shoot from all possible positions which will give you a big advantage over your opponents. While learning how to shoot you should not primarily focus on striking the ball with great power. It is more important to concentrate on hitting the goal. It doesn’t matter if you have world’s most powerful shoot if you don’t know how to control the ball. When you are near the 18 yard box you will often only need to place the ball near posts without using great power.

4. Dribbling

Dribbling is also one of the funniest skills to learn. However, dribbling is not just about learning how to get past your opponent, it is much more than that. In order to call yourself a good dribbler you need to know when to dribble. You should for example never dribble on your own side of the field. However, if you are near your opponents’ 18 yard box then trying some dribbling moves would be a good idea.You need to share the ball with the rest of your team. If you dribble every time you receive the ball you can be pretty sure that your teammates will stop passing it to you after a while. So, feel free to dribble, but only in right situations.

5. Heading

To beat your opponents in the air you will need to learn how to head a ball properly. It is important to learn the correct way of heading directly from the beginning. You should always head the ball by using your forehead because this is the strongest part or your head. Sometimes many beginners tend to head the ball by using the top of the head. This way of heading will not only add little power to the ball, it will also give you an unpleasant headache. Once you learn how to head the ball properly you can go on with other heading techniques.

6. Formations

A formation describes how you and the rest of your teammates are placed on the soccer field. While learning how to play soccer I recommend you not to put much effort in learning different tactics and formations. It is more important to learn the proper way of passing or shooting then knowing your offensive and defensive duties in a 4-4-2 or 4-4-3 formation. However, if you want to achieve bigger goals then just learning how to play soccer with your friends on the backyards then mastering different formations will be a must.

7. Positions

To learn how to play soccer you will need to study different soccer positions. The first standing player in the front of the goalie is called a defender. Your main duty when playing as a defender is to prevent your opponents from getting past you. If you want to play as defender you will need to pose good heading and passing skills, be able to read the game and also be prepared to work hard. The players in front of the defense line are called midfielders. While playing as midfielder you should provide your forwards with quality passes, participate in the offense game and support your defenders. There are three types of midfielders.

The first one is called an offensive midfielder which means playing higher upon the field. The second type of midfielder is called defensive and has more responsibility in defense. The third and last types of midfielders are playing at the flank and they can also be more defensive or offensive depending on the tactic.

The two players in front of the midfield line are called forwards or centers. The main difference between a forward and center is that a forward is generally faster than a center while centers are good target players. This means that midfielders can often pass the ball into space and let the forwards chase it while strikers needs to get the ball on their bodies.

8. Kicking

Learning how to kick a soccer ball is not the same as learning how to shoot. There are seven different types of soccer kicks. These are: free kick, indirect kick, penalty kick, goal kick, corner kick, bicycle/overhead kick and instep/lofted kick. The most acrobatic and dangerous kick of all mentioned above is the bicycle or over head kick. A bicycle kick should not be the first kick to learn as you could injure yourself seriously.

9. Nutrition

Many amateurs players tend to forget the importance of a well balanced diet. This is what separates the winners from losers. Simply, it doesn’t matter how good you are at soccer if you don’t eat right food.

10. Fitness

To learn how to play soccer you will need to have a solid fitness level. During a regular soccer game you will usually spend 88 minutes chasing the ball and only 2 minutes with having the ball at your feet. Good fitness level will also give you a big advantage on your opponents. If you are a good runner you will often play well both in defense and offense. It will also be much harder to mark you as you will be sprinting up, down, left and right. However, if you have poor fitness level you will get tired pretty fast and the opponents will not have any problems with marking you.

11. Tactics

There are countless tactics in soccer and knowing them all is not necessary. But, if you want to play in a soccer team you will need to learn some basic offense and defense tactic skills. These may include possession of the ball, long ball crosses, man to man marking, zonal marking etc. Soccer tactics should not be your primary goal while learning how to play soccer. However, after a while or so you should try to put little more effort and study the above mentioned tactics.

12. Receiving

It doesn’t matter how good passing skills you have if you don’t know how to receive the ball. While learning how to play soccer, you will need to learn several different receiving techniques. However, the most important one is receiving the ball by using the inside of your foot. While playing a regular soccer game you will generally have little time to put the ball under control. So the first touch on the ball is crucial in order to gain advantage on your opponents.

13. Trapping

This is another skill you will need to learn as soccer player. Trapping can be made with any part of your body but you will generally use your feet, thighs and chest to trap the ball. However, some very skillful players like Ronaldinho are able to trap the ball by using their back.