Who Needs Shoes

Picture a child who is brand new to soccer and has never even tried to play the game before. If the player is asked to kick the ball into a goal, how do you think the player would do it? Most likely, the player would take a big swing with the leg and use their toe to kick the ball as hard as possible at the goal. The player would hit the ball pretty hard, and it would go into the goal. What if you asked the player to remove his shoes before kicking the ball? How do you think the player would kick the ball with no shoes? Most likely, the player would be less inclined to strike the ball with their toes due to the fact it would not feel very good. By removing the player’s shoes, the body becomes the ultimate teacher and will give the player INSTANT feedback if they strike the ball with the wrong part of the foot.

The body is very honest with a person when it is asked to do something that it should not. If a person is lifting weights and doing a movement improperly, the body is quick to try to alert the person with the feeling of discomfort or pain. If a player tries to dribble, pass, receive, or shoot the ball with the wrong part of the foot, the foot is going to let the player know right away. For this reason, a great tool to help a player improve technique and familiarity with the soccer ball is to play barefoot. Without shoes, the player will quickly learn the proper way to strike, dribble, and receive the ball using the correct surfaces to do different types of skill movements. The use of the wrong surface or part of the foot will be very uncomfortable.

It is common for players who are new to soccer to dribble with their toes. With shoes on, this is easy for the players to do and it works fine. Although, using the toe makes it harder to control the ball, this position of the foot is the easiest for the player to use. In order to have more control of the ball, the player will need to use the top of the foot to push the ball forward while dribbling and the inside, outside, or bottom of the foot to change direction. If a player is dribbling with no shoes, the player will be less likely to use their toes to move the ball forcing the player to use the other parts of the foot that will help the player be more successful.

Also, while dribbling and moving the ball with no shoes, the player can feel the soccer ball directly against the foot to better understand how the ball reacts to each touch. With each touch, the player can feel exactly where the ball makes contact with the foot. With shoes, it is much harder to pinpoint exactly where the ball made contact with the foot as the shoe absorbs the contact and spreads it out over an area of the foot.  With each touch, the player can see if he makes contact with the same part of the foot each time. This will help with consistency of the touch to assist the player to move in the direction desired with the soccer ball.

Outside of the direction of movement, what about the strength of each touch? The subtle differences in the weight of a player’s touch are harder to feel with shoes. Without shoes, when the player hits the ball a little softer or harder, it will be easier for them to feel the difference on their foot.

Now, looking at passing or shooting the ball, some players tend to gravitate to striking the ball with the toe. Again, it is the easiest surface to hit the ball with and generates a good amount of power for novice players. You can use your toe in the game of soccer to pass or strike a ball. There are moments of the game that call for it, but it is not the primary surface that should be used as it cannot guarantee as much control combined with power as a properly hit ball with the inside, outside, or instep of the foot.

If a player is asked to pass the ball with the inside of the foot with no shoes, after shown the proper technique, the player will be able to feel the right part of the foot for the ball to hit. Outside of not using their toes to pass, which again would hurt, when passing with the inside of the foot, catching the ball at the far ends of the inside of the foot (side of big toe or ankle) will be uncomfortable. When a player catches the ball with the middle of the inside of the foot, it will feel much better and they can recognize exactly where the foot needs to meet the ball to have the most accuracy and power on their pass.

Back to the example from the beginning about striking the ball to shoot on goal, the use of the instep is the proper surface for a player to use when they want to generate power and some accuracy. When starting out, players tend to use their toe to try to strike the ball hard to score. Again, with shoes on, this works and the player has success. Remove the shoes, and then the player will be more likely to avoid using the toes as it will really hurt to strike the ball that way.

After explaining how to point the toes down and strike the ball with the top of the foot, the player with no shoes can feel the ball hit against the right part of the foot. It will be easy to tell when the contact is too high or low on the foot, as again, it will be very uncomfortable. Without the shoes, the player can feel if they are making contact with the ball in the same spot on their foot each time. In terms of helping develop a consistent point of contact to ensure more accuracy and power on their shot, the player will be able to feel exactly where the ball hits the foot each time.

Obviously, if a player is playing barefoot, it is important to take certain precautions in regards to the surface being played on. It cannot be slippery or too rough, and there should not be anything on the ground that can puncture or cut the foot. The feedback the player will gain from playing with no shoes will really help the player improve the positioning of the foot when working on different skill areas.

Playing barefoot as a kid, I cut my foot, stubbed my toe, got my feet dirty, but I loved it. Often in the backyard, when I worked with the ball I did not use shoes. It was fun to feel the ball against my foot and run around without shoes on. Did this negatively affect me when I put shoes on? No! I think it made the game easier to play. Once I had shoes on, I would know exactly how to position my foot in my shoe to perform different skill movements. With the shoe, now I had a more protection and surface area to make contact with the ball.

Soccer cleats are just like receiver gloves in football. They help protect the skin and provide a better surface for the ball to react with when you play the game. If the hands (feet) are not in the position they need to be in when catching (kicking) the ball, the gloves will not help much. A player’s feet need to be positioned properly when playing the game as it will dramatically affect the player’s ability and consistency with the ball. By removing the shoes, the player can really work on making sure the foot is properly placed when working with the ball. Again, the foot will be very quick to let the player know when something is done correctly or incorrectly.

The benefits of playing barefoot are numerous for novice and experienced players. The next time a player steps on the field to practice or play with friends, try to leave the shoes on the sideline for a little bit. Hey, a pair of shoes makes a great goal!