Offside, instep shot, pressing: the Football ABC explains every key term beginners would otherwise trip over in our guides, in plain language.
## Introduction What exactly is a "Vollspann" (instep shot)? And why does the coach keep shouting "Abseits" (offside) when you didn't even do anything wrong? If you're just starting out with football, our guides throw a lot of jargon at you that everyone else seems to already know. That's exactly what we're clearing up here – in plain, friendly language, with everyday comparisons. Read through this once, and every guide will suddenly make sense.
The ball: Footballs come in sizes – kids usually play with size 3 or 4, and from around age 13 the standard is size 5, the adult standard. For focused technique work, many players also use a smaller "skills ball" (size 1) – like practicing with a table tennis ball instead of a medicine ball, forcing extra precision.
Studs (Stollen) & Nubs (Nocken): The small spikes under your football boots. FG (Firm Ground) means long studs for real grass, AG (Artificial Ground) means shorter, more densely packed studs for artificial turf. Wear the wrong type and you'll slide around like on ice – so the choice always matters.
Shin guards (Schienbeinschoner): The plastic shell you wear under your socks. Mandatory in every match – it protects your shin from kicks that would otherwise really hurt.
Cones (Hütchen): The small marker discs used in training to mark out zones, dribbling courses, or mini "passing gates." Basically standard inventory at every football session.
Rebound wall (Prallwand): A solid wall or rebounder you pass and control against on your own. Your most patient training partner – it reliably sends every ball back to you.
Offside (Abseits): Football's most famous rule – and the most argued-about. Simplified: you're offside if, at the moment your teammate plays the ball, you're closer to the opponent's goal than the second-to-last defender. Picture an invisible line that moves with the defender – if you're ahead of it when the pass is played, the referee blows the whistle.
Penalty (Elfmeter): A shot from 11 meters out, straight at goal, with only the goalkeeper allowed to stop you. It's awarded for a foul inside the team's own penalty box – arguably the best scoring chance in the entire match.
Free kick (Freistoß): The set piece after a foul outside the penalty box. A direct free kick lets you shoot straight at goal; an indirect one requires the ball to touch a second player first.
Corner kick (Eckball/Ecke): Awarded when a defender is the last to touch the ball before it crosses their own goal line. The ball is then played from the corner arc on the side it went out – often a dangerous set-piece situation for the attacking team.
Throw-in (Einwurf): When the ball leaves the field over the sideline, you throw it back into play with both hands over your head. Sounds simple, but has strict rules: both feet on the ground, ball released with both hands from behind and over the head.
Penalty box (Strafraum): The large rectangle in front of each goal. It's the only zone where the goalkeeper is allowed to touch the ball with their hands, and the only place where a foul results in a penalty kick.
Foul & cards: A foul (Foul) is an illegal challenge against an opponent. Depending on severity, the referee shows a yellow card (Gelbe Karte) as a warning, or – for especially serious offenses – a straight red card (Rote Karte), meaning you're sent off immediately.
First touch (Ballannahme): Your very first contact with an incoming ball. A good first touch doesn't just "kill" the ball dead – it redirects it straight into your next intended movement, like a driver who steers while parking instead of stopping first and then turning the wheel.
Inside-of-the-foot pass (Innenseitstoß): Football's default pass, played with the broad inside of your foot. It's the safest, most precise passing technique – which is exactly why you drill this one first, before anything fancier.
Instep shot (Vollspann): The hard bony area on top of your foot, roughly where your shoelaces sit. It's what you use for the most powerful shots on goal. Unlike passing, the priority here isn't precision but raw power.
Outside of the foot (Außenrist): The outer edge of your foot, around the area of your little toe. Used for passes or dribbles where you want the ball to curve slightly – essentially your "trick foot."
Standing leg & kicking leg (Standbein & Spielbein): Your standing leg is the one you balance on while passing or shooting – it determines your balance and direction. Your kicking leg (or shooting leg) is the one that actually strikes the ball.
Two-footedness (Beidfüßigkeit): The ability to play equally well with both feet. A player who only uses their strong foot is easy for defenders to read – like a boxer who only ever throws right hooks.
Dribbling & feint (Finte): Dribbling means guiding the ball tightly at your feet through tight spaces. A feint is a deceptive move within that – a quick body or ball movement that briefly wrong-foots the defender.
Shoulder check (Schulterblick / scanning): The quick glance over your shoulder just before the ball reaches you – like checking your mirror before changing lanes. It shows you where teammates, opponents, and open space are before you've even touched the ball.
Shielding (Abschirmen): You put your body between the ball and the opponent to protect it – like standing in a queue with your back to someone trying to cut in front of you. Allowed, as long as you don't actively push the opponent away.
Jockeying: Instead of rushing straight into a duel, a defender patiently holds their distance and steers the opponent toward a less dangerous direction – buying time with a plan, until support arrives.
Pressing & counter-pressing (Gegenpressing): Pressing means the whole team immediately attacks whoever has the ball, putting them under time pressure. Counter-pressing is the intensified version right after losing the ball – instead of retreating, the team attacks again immediately, while the opponent is still unorganized.
Transition (Umschaltspiel): The moment possession changes hands – switching from attack to defense or vice versa. Most goals happen in exactly these few seconds, because both teams are briefly disorganized.
## Pro tip Remember one single trick and 80% of this jargon suddenly makes sense: almost every technical term describes either where on your foot you strike the ball (inside, instep, outside) or when an action happens within the flow of play (transition, pressing, shoulder check). Sort any new term into one of these two drawers, and hardly anything stays cryptic for long.
### What is offside in football? You're offside if, at the moment a teammate plays the ball, you're closer to the opponent's goal than the second-to-last defender and the ball – usually that's the goalkeeper plus one outfield player. The referee stops play once you actively get involved from that position. The rule exists to stop attackers simply camping in front of the goal.
### What is an instep shot (Vollspann) in football? The instep shot uses the hard, bony part of the top of your foot, roughly where your shoelaces sit. It produces the most powerful shots on goal because that surface is very firm and absorbs little energy. Unlike the precise inside-of-the-foot pass, the instep shot is all about raw power over accuracy.
### What does "scanning" or shoulder check mean in football? A shoulder check is the quick glance over your shoulder just before the ball arrives at your feet. It shows you where teammates, opponents, and open space are located before you've even touched the ball. Top players do this every few seconds – it's the foundation for fast, smart decisions under pressure.
### What's the difference between pressing and counter-pressing? Pressing generally describes a team's coordinated attack on whoever has the ball, putting them under time pressure. Counter-pressing is the specific variant right after losing possession: instead of retreating, the team immediately attacks again while the opponent is still disorganized and barely had time to process winning the ball.
### Why do football boots have different types of studs? The playing surface determines the right boot. FG boots (Firm Ground) have long, firm studs for real grass, while AG boots (Artificial Ground) have shorter, more densely packed studs for artificial turf. Wearing the wrong type on the wrong surface means drastically less grip – and a much higher risk of slipping during sprints or direction changes.