Soccer Ball Sizes and Styles Explained

Soccer balls come in a multitude of sizes and styles.  Each size and style ball serves a distinct purpose. 

Soccer Ball Sizes
Soccer balls vary in size predominately to provide younger players a smaller ball to learn the game.  It’s important that players to feel comfortable and confident with the ball they’re using.  Obviously players won’t be skilled until they’ve spent a lot of time practicing, but they should feel like they’re using a ball they’ll be capable of kicking and controlling.  If a ball is too large or too small, it’s very hard to improve or have fun.  While adults will generally always end up using the correct sized ball (size 5), it’s all too common to see young children using comically over-sized soccer balls which will have a negative impact on their development.  It’s much harder to develop touch, technique, and ball skills if the soccer ball isn’t appropriate for the child’s age group. 

The below chart provides the suggested ball size based upon a player’s age.    NOTE:  Smaller size balls (Size 1 and 2) are also often used by older players to perfect their technique, touch and ball control.  This is because a smaller ball can be harder to control than a larger ball for older players. 

Ball	Size	Ages
Size 1 and 2 “Skills Ball”	18-22 inches	3 and under & to practice ball control
Size 3	23-24 inches	4-7 years old
Size 4	25-26 inches	8-11 years old
Size 5	27-28 inches	12+ years old

Soccer Ball Styles
In addition to varying in size, soccer balls also vary in composition based upon the surface or “style” of game being played.  

Grass/Turf Style Soccer Ball

The most common soccer ball style used by the Morris United Club are are the types most often used on grass and turf pitches.   Theses balls are made using varying materials and with different levels of craftsmanship which contribute to how much the ball will cost

Professional soccer balls — premium match balls or official match footballs — use synthetic leather coated with Polyurethane, which gives them a better feel.

Cheaper soccer balls use PVC, a highly durable plastic-like material which makes them harder to play with and gives them less feel.

Practice or promotional balls use PVC or (stitched or molded) rubber in their surface.

Indoor Soccer Ball (hard surface)

Indoor soccer balls’ covers are generally made using a colored felt material, the same as what tennis balls use in their coatings.  Felt is used on smooth surfaces since it makes the ball much more controllable.

Futsal Ball (hard surface)

A Futsal ball is a low bounce ball used for the game of futsal on a hard surface (similar to a basketball court).   The main  difference between  a  Futsal ball  and a regular  soccer ball, is that the bladder is filled with foam. That makes the  ball  heavier and have less bounce for use on the hard-playing surface. The size is also different from a size 4 soccer ball to a size 4 futsal ball. A size 4 futsal ball is smaller.