Three 3v3 pitches next to each other was chaos with balls everywhere

Question

First festival we had three small pitches side by side and balls were constantly rolling into the next game. Kids were chasing the wrong ball and one game stopped because another ball ended up in the goal. Has anyone found a simple setup that works better? More space between pitches, barriers, adults on the outside, or just accept that this is part of it?

Verified Coach · Accepted Answer

A bit of chaos is normal, but I would still change the setup if stray balls are stopping games constantly.

If you have the space, leave a sensible gap between pitches rather than squeezing them together because you technically can. Put spare balls beside each pitch so nobody needs to chase the one that has travelled into another game, and have an adult or helper on the outside who can return stray balls.

I would not use anything that creates a safety issue around the pitch just to act as a barrier.

The important thing is ball-in-play time. If three pitches side by side are creating more stoppages than football, spread them out.

You do not get bonus points for fitting the maximum number of pitches into the smallest possible area.

Three 3v3 pitches next to each other was chaos with balls everywhere

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