Four corners is a type of soccer drill used to teach players passing techniques. It is taught to players who are in the age bracket of 10 to 14 years, approximately. The set up of this game play firstly involves creating four separate grids. Each grid would be about 5’x5″ and would also be almost 40 yards apart from one another. In this passing drill, there is no concept of “out of bound”. The players are divided into two teams and one team is assigned an alternate color. In each team, there would be about 4 to 8 players. One player is placed at the centre of each of the four corners. The teams are instructed to pass the ball among other team members to keep possession of the ball while also trying to pass it to the teammate inside the smaller grids, in order to score a point. They have the option to score in any of the four corners. However, one of the rules of the game is that the players cannot score in the exact same corner twice in a row. Four corners is a tactical game and it’s mainly designed for older players.
Variations in the game could be that players could be disallowed to stand in the centre of the grids waiting for a pass. Instead, they could be instructed to work on their timing of their runs and their passes to connect inside the grid. Also, there could be change in the scoring rule of the game, where a goal is counted only when a give and go is performed with the player that is in the grid.
Coaching points for this drill would be for the players to focus on the weight and accuracy of their passing. Players without the ball should make sure that they are supporting the player with the ball at all times. Furthermore, the timing of the run as well as the pass should be in sync. Lastly, the players passing the ball should make sure that passes are not made in congested areas.