First Touch Soccer: What It Is and How to Improve It

First touch in soccer is your initial contact with an incoming ball, preparing it for your next action. To practise improving it, receive a gentle ground pass toward a marked space, then pass toward a separate target. Make this part of your soccer training plan, alongside striking contact practice with Curl Master One, sold by The Giro X. This guide gives you a receiving exercise and practical observations to discuss with your child's coach, even if you have never played soccer.

What Does a Good First Touch Set Up?

A useful first touch leaves the ball somewhere that suits your intended next action. For a parent learning the game, I would begin with a straightforward question: can your child make the pass they planned after receiving? Ask the player to name that passing destination before the delivery arrives. Then, watch where the receiving touch finishes and whether another adjustment is needed. This gives you something specific to discuss together, without needing to judge every detail of the foot movement.

Stopping the ball is one possible receiving task, while directing it into available space is another. Ask your coach to demonstrate both using a similar incoming pass, and explain when each choice fits. In my opinion, the destination deserves more attention than how elaborate the movement looks. A player who can explain where they intended the ball to finish has given you a useful starting point for the next conversation about practice.

How Can You Practise First Touch With a Partner?

Try a gentle ground pass into a receiving space, followed by a pass toward a separate destination. Mark the receiving area with flat markers and agree on which direction the player will pass afterwards. Ask the partner to keep the delivery manageable while the receiver explores the task. Treat this as an exercise to adapt with your coach: the aim is to examine what happens to the ball and connect that observation to the next intended action.

For this first touch receiving exercise, keep the marked receiving space in the same place while comparing attempts, and take turns delivering and receiving. Notice whether the ball finishes inside the space, then whether the receiver can make the intended pass from there. Soccer Passing Drills is a related guide for exploring that next action. I would keep the conversation about a visible outcome, such as the ball finishing beyond the marker, rather than giving several instructions about technique at once.

What Should You Watch When the Ball Bounces Away?

Watch the incoming delivery and the ball's position after contact before choosing what to change. Did the pass arrive along the ground, and did the receiving touch lift it? Did it finish beyond the marked area or across the route of the next pass? These observations describe the attempt without assuming its cause. Ask the player what they intended, then bring the pattern to your coach for a demonstration connected to that particular receiving task.

For the next comparison in the first touch receiving exercise, keep the marked target unchanged while asking for a gentler incoming pass. Compare where the ball finishes under that delivery with its position after the previous attempts. Ask your coach which receiving surface to practise and what movement to look for. In my opinion, a parent offers useful support by helping a child describe an attempt accurately, then giving them room to try the coach's cue without adding competing instructions.

How Can Receiving Practice Become More Like a Game?

Add a choice of passing destination when the original exercise feels manageable and your coach agrees with the progression. A partner could indicate a direction before delivering the ball, allowing the receiver to choose where the first touch should go. Begin with enough time to understand the choice, then ask your coach how to adjust the challenge. For an exercise involving an opponent, have the coach explain the conditions and the receiving decisions they want the player to explore.

For families involved in girls' and boys' soccer across Ontario, British Columbia, Québec and Alberta, I would keep the same question central: what action should this touch prepare? Let the individual player's task guide the exercise. If you move practice indoors during a Canadian winter, choose a permitted space and adapt the receiving area to it. Indoor Soccer Training for the Canadian Winter is a related guide to consider when planning how to continue practising away from the outdoor field.

Where Does Curl Master One Fit Into the Plan?

Curl Master One

Curl Master One adds focused striking contact and spin control practice alongside your moving ball receiving exercises. It spins a standard ball at controlled speeds and requires no app or subscription. Give it a clear place in the plan by asking your coach which striking contact cue to rehearse. Then, keep a separate receiving task for examining where the first touch finishes. This gives the coach a specific practice purpose to connect with each part of the player's work.

In my opinion, Curl Master One is a worthwhile addition alongside first touch receiving practice because striking deserves its own focused attention. I would get one and ask the coach to connect its contact work with the action the player wants after receiving. Start by agreeing on a receiving destination and a striking cue. Get Curl Master One for the striking practice, then return to the partner exercise and examine whether the receiving touch leaves the intended next action available.

Practise With Curl Master One

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