Opinions about 3v3

My kid has played several 3v3 tournaments and the Blue Sky 3v3 league this summer. I was wondering what everyone else's feelings about 3v3 are. Do you think it is beneficial and wish there were more tournaments/leagues? Do you like it more than 9v9 or 11v11? Does it get in the way of normal team soccer activities? Does your kid already participate in too much soccer already? Is there a reason your kid(s) doesn't play 3v3? I've enjoyed the 3v3 soccer more than the team soccer. Maybe my feelings will change once the fall season starts for us.

I'm a fan, but only if it is affordable, and private, and done in sessions.

My daughter is an 05 and has only played 3v3 besides rec. It has been great for her skills-if there is good chemistry between the players and they aren't being "coached". We are starting 7v7 this season with Academy and I'm hoping the 3v3 this summer has paid off!

3v3 is great and under uitilized. We all rush too quick to the big fields and most kids can't pass and recieve yet. Even with older kids 3v3 makes for great soccer development. look up the Disney 3v3 National Tournaments.

I'm a big fan of 3v3 and have become an active supporter of the tournaments to encourage more kids to participate. If you use it to DEVELOP your player and not worry as much with each game's results, you'll get a lot more out of it. I've seen this training format benefit many kids in North Texas. www.ntx3v3soccer.com

btw - Kick It 3v3 is bringing another tournament here in November. www.kickit3v3.com

It's awesome for the girls, our crew of girls was together for 4-5 year, they had a blast, we travelled to Austin, Oklahoma, Florida, Missouri, Colorado etc. It was a great way to expose the girls to travelling for soccer and the skills they learned over those years are still being used by the girls on full sized soccer fields. When these 5 girls get on a field together you can see the through balls, overlaps, instincts kicking in. If I had one bad thing to say about it. I have seen some extremely dirty, cheap soccer in 3v3 over the last 3 years. Unfortunately the refs are also not always well trained on the rules and in most cases are 14-16 years old. If you're looking for wins and championships in 3v3 I would suggest bringing in an outside coach or parent that has done this before. There are tricks, tips, set plays, strategies that can really make this game a lot of fun for both the parents and the girls/boys.

Frisco Coach wrote:I'm a big fan of 3v3

I never would have guessed!

Blank77 wrote:

Frisco Coach wrote:I'm a big fan of 3v3

I never would have guessed!

I highly recommend 3v3 and wish I had given my older DD 3v3 training/experience at an early age. My younger DD has been playing 3v3 for several years and it has truly helped her develop as a big field player as well. She has improved in all areas including touches, passing, making quick decisions and seeing the field.

I love it because a good team always wins or ties. The suck teams lose.

Pushing kids into 3v3 is ridiculous given that most don't have a solid understanding of, or comfort level with,4v4 principles of play.

The current 3v3 cultural is yet another example of overbearing soccer parents.

Having my daughter now in select, and remembering her academy years, 3v3 was by far the best part of her academy years. All the tournaments, the closeness of the 3v3 group, the friends made, and the amount of great games deep in tournament brackets. The full sided teams just don't compare.

The great thing is, due to the nature of the 3v3 game, there is a ton of great games that my DD, actually each DD on her team, were intrical in the outcome.

Now, it is a slippery slope. I have seen 3v3 tear apart friends, teams, and magnify drama. I'd recommend going with a 3v3 group separately formed and managed from your full size team, or if the team is going to manage it, don't make an A and a B team. You would just be asking for the full size team to implode.