Outside-Foot Pass: Soccer technique, drills and fixes

A short or medium pass played with the outside of your foot, on the outer laces, instead of the inside. It lets you pass toward your kicking-foot side without opening up your body, which England Football describes as deceptive and quick, though it takes plenty of practice. You can play it straight, bent, or as a quick flick; it comes off with less pace than a laces kick, so it's a passing tool, not a power shot (the long bending shot is the Trivela Shot lesson).

Set up

See your target before the ball arrives and pick the outside foot on that side. The outside of your right foot sends the ball to your right, the outside of your left foot to your left.

Look, then pick the foot.

Plant your standing foot beside the ball, a little wider than for a push pass: about 8 to 10 in (20 to 25 cm) to the side. Point its toes at your target and keep the knee slightly bent.

Plant a bit wider than usual.

Lean forward a little over the ball, head down and eyes on it. Hold the arm opposite your kicking leg out from your body and keep the other arm nearer your side.

Over the ball, opposite arm out.

Strike

Swing from the hip, like a laces kick, with your heel rising toward your backside on the backswing. Don't swing the lower leg out sideways with the sole flat. That's an inside-foot pass done backwards and it won't work.

Laces-style swing, heel up.

On the downswing, point your toes down and turn the foot in so your little toe angles toward the ground. Lock your ankle.

Little toe down, ankle firm.

Strike with the outside of your instep: just outside the laces, toward the toes. Not the bony side edge of the boot.

Outer laces on the ball.

Pick your contact for the pass you want. Straight and firm: through the middle of the ball, ankle locked. Bent: the half of the ball nearer your standing foot, which puts side spin on it so it swerves. Hit at or a little above the middle height to keep it on the ground; below the middle makes it rise.

Middle for straight, inner half for bend.

Follow through

Keep your toes pointing down through the follow-through. For the bent pass, bring your kicking leg across your midline and slightly upward, with your opposite arm coming across your chest.

Toes stay down.

Keep your head down and steady until the ball has gone, then look up.

Head still, then look.

Short flick

For a very short, quick pass, use the flick instead. Plant alongside the ball, arms and upper body balanced, and strike around the middle height on the side of the ball nearer you with the long outside surface of the foot.

Short and quick.

Flick the foot out from the ankle. This is the one outside-foot pass where the ankle moves. Your toes come up after contact and point roughly toward the target. Use it for short range only; for anything longer, go back to the locked-ankle pass.

Snap from the ankle, toes to target.

Feel it

Your foot turns in so your little toe points at the grass and the ball comes off the outer laces with a firm contact. You barely open your body, yet the ball goes out to your kicking-foot side. It feels a little softer than a laces pass, which is normal for this surface. On the straight pass the ball rolls true with little spin. On the bent pass you feel the contact slightly off the centre of the ball and see it swerve.

Fix-its

Lower leg swung out sideways, sole flat You're treating it as the opposite of the inside-foot pass. Swing from the hip like a laces kick and turn the foot in, little toe down.
Pass doesn't reach your teammate The foot isn't turned in enough, so the outer laces miss the ball. Point the toes down and roll the little toe toward the ground before contact.
Unwanted spin or curve on a straight pass Usually the ankle wasn't locked, or you struck off-centre. Lock the ankle and hit through the middle of the ball. Save off-centre contact for when you want it to bend.
You land on your kicking foot, or lose balance Landing on the kicking foot means the plant was too close. An awkward swing or tipping over means it was too far. Start about 8 to 10 in (20 to 25 cm) beside the ball.
Ball bobbles or pops up Lean forward over the ball and strike at or a little above its middle height. Leaning back or hitting under the middle lifts it.

Drill

Warm up first. Pairs, short range: pass back and forth with the outside of the foot, ball stopped before each pass. Check the contact point on your boot. Both feet.
Triangles: three cones in a triangle with 15-yard sides and a cone in the middle. Dribble and pass with the outside of your right foot to the player on your right, then reverse direction and use your left foot.
Give-and-go around a cone 'defender': feint slightly away from your teammate, pass firmly to their feet with the outside of your foot, sprint past the cone and get it back. About six passes one way, then reverse and switch roles.
Make it live: swap the cone for a passive defender, then an active one allowed only one or two steps at first. Add distance if it's too easy.
Once the straight pass is clean, add bend: strike the inner half of the ball and swerve a medium pass around a cone to your partner. Then play 2v2 to 4v4 in a 15x20 or 25x40 yard grid with small goals outside the grid, scoring only with a pass.

By position

Any position: it's most useful in tight spaces and in give-and-goes near a defender, where you can play the ball to your kicking-foot side without turning your body. When you need pace or distance, the inside foot or laces are more reliable. Learn the push pass and the laces kick first; US Youth Soccer introduces the outside-of-foot pass around U12 and bending passes around U14.

Sources

Last checked 2026-10-30.