Football Field Dimensions For Different Levels of Play

In North America, football is a game where the male players are wearing helmets and pads and the field has goal posts on opposite ends. The official or regulation dimensions of a football field may vary depending on the levels of play.
Here are the dimensions of football field in different levels:

National Football League (NFL) or Professional

Outside Dimension:
Length - 120 yards or 360'
Width - 53 and 1/3 yards or 160'
End Zone:
End zones are ten yards deep.
End line:
The end line border is 6'and it marks the end zone's back.
Team Benches:
Team benches are set next to the restraining line which is between the 30 yard markers.
Field Numbers:
NFL field numbers are about 6' in length and 4' in width.
Restraining Line:
All NFL fields have a 6' restraining line next to the side lines. These lines mark the closest area non-players can be to the football field.
Hash Marks:
The hash marks of NFL are the thinnest among all of the levels of football game. It measure about 70' and 9" from the side lines and are about 18' and 6" in width.
Goal Posts:
The goal post of NFL is about 10' in length and 18' and 6" in width.
NCAA or College
Outside Dimension:
Length - 120 yards or 360'
Width - 53 and 1/3 yards or 160'
End Zone:
An NCAA end zone is ten yards deep.
End line:
The end line border is 6'.
Team Benches:
Team benches are also set next to the restraining line which is between the 30 yard markers.
Field Numbers:
The field numbers of NCAA are about 6' in length and 4' in width.
Restraining Line:
All college fields have a 6' restraining line next to the side lines.
Hash Marks:
The hash marks of NCAA measure about 60' from the side lines and are about 40' wide. These are wider than the NFL's hash marks.
Goal Posts:
College or NCAA goal post is about 10' in length and 18' and 6" in width which is the same as NFL.
High School
Outside Dimension:
Length - 120 yards or 360'
Width - 53 and 1/3 yards or 160'
End Zone:
End zones are ten yards deep.
End line:
The end line border is 6' and it marks the end zone's back.
Team Benches:
Team benches are set next to the restraining line which is between the 30 yard markers.
Field Numbers:
The side line field numbers are about 6' in length and 4' in width which marks the ten yard line mark.
Restraining Line:
All high school football fields have a 6' restraining line next to the side lines.
Hash Marks:
The hash marks of high school are the widest among all of the levels of football game. It measure about 53' and 4" wide and the distance is the same from the border of the side lines.
Goal Posts:
The goal posts of high school measure about 10' in length and 23' and 4" in width. These are wider compare to the NFL and college level.
Canadian Football League (CFL) Football
Outside Dimension:
Length - 150 yards or 450'
Width - 65 yards or 195'
End Zone:
End zones are 20 yards deep.
Dead Line:
The end zone's back marks the dead line.
Field Numbers:
The field numbers of CFL are about 6' in length and 4' in width.
Hash Marks:
The hash marks of CFL is designated 24 yards from the sidelines of the playing field, thus, its width is 17 yards or 51'.
Goal Posts:
The goal post of CFL is about 10' in length and 18' and 6" in width.
All fields have the same outside dimensions except for CFL. The hash marks are different for all levels. Also, the goal posts for high school are different from the other levels.

Goal Keeping-How to Catch a Football

Catch a football?! That's easy, you say. You just stick your hands up and grab the football out of the air, right? Not so fast! All that matters in the end is that you catch the football right? Well, not exactly. If you want to be a good receiver, you need to learn how to not only catch the football, but also the proper techniques for catching it. Here is why. If you catch the football using proper technique, it will be easier to tuck it away for running. Not getting the football tucked could result in a fumble. Not only that, but if you use improper technique for catching the football, you will not consistently make catches. You will drop a lot of passes that should have been caught.
Here are a few tips for catching a football correctly.
#1 - If you are facing the ball as it is approaching you above waist height, form a triangle with your two hands, palms out, placing the tips of your thumbs on opposing hands together and the tips of your index fingers on opposing hands together. Your pinkies and other fingers should be slightly spread out, but pointed in the direction of the football. Reach your hands out towards the ball and catch it with your fingers away from your body. Be sure to use your fingers and not your palms. A football that is thrown hard, will often bounce right off of your palms. As the ball makes contact with your body, squeeze the ball and in one swift motion, tuck it under your arm. Preferably you will want to tuck it under the arm that is closest to the sideline and away from defenders who will be trying to strip it from you. Yes, there is a proper way to tuck the ball also. More on that in a later post.
#2 - If the ball was thrown low and you will have to make the catch below waist height, your pinkies should go together, palms up, with your thumbs facing outward. Again, squeeze the ball and tuck it.
#3 - If you are catching the ball on the run and it is coming over your shoulder, reach both hands out, palms up with your pinkies touching, thumbs out, and other fingers extended. Squeeze and tuck the ball as soon as possible.
#4 - Always watch the ball all the way into your hands. When you can see a defender coming with your peripheral vision or hear footsteps, it is tempting to look away, but you must force yourself to concentrate on making the catch. You cannot run with the ball if you do not first catch it.
#5 - Always use two hands whenever possible. Sometimes the only way to make a catch is by diving or using one hand. Most of the time, however it is possible to get two hands on the football. Don't try to be the hero by making a one handed grab when it was possible to use two hands. No one will think you are the hero, if you drop a catchable pass.
#6 - Be aware of the sidelines. You don't have to take your eyes off the ball to do this. Just know where you are in relation to the sidelines. The more you play, the better feel you will get for this.
#7 - Practice, practice, practice. You know what they say...practice makes perfect. No. Perfect practice makes perfect. Get your Dad to throw you some passes. Ask him to make sure you are catching the ball using correct form. The more passes you catch, the better you will get. As you get better, have him throw the ball just out of reach, so you can practice diving for it. Have him throw it to you from different angles and at different velocities. If you really want to get good, have your Dad or a friend throw you 200 - 300 passes a day, every day.

Football Kicking Drills

Often football games come down to the bitter end. It's not uncommon for a game to be decided in the last few minutes and often the game comes down to a field goal. A made or a missed field anytime during a game could decide the outcome of that game. However, a made or a missed field goal near the end of the game will almost certainly mean the difference between losing and winning. Making field goals is very important to every team. So, football kicking drills that help a kicker improve are equally important.

No Step Kicking

Proper body position and technique are critical in kicking the ball for distance. In order to build-up strength and develop proper form, all kickers should perform No Step Kicking as one of their football kicking drills.

As the name suggests, this drill simply asks a kicker to kick the ball without running up to it. The kicker should just stand over the ball, with the plant foot (non-kicking foot) a football's length from the ball and the toe even with the ball. Then the kicker should kick the ball. The toes on the plant foot need to be even with the ball so that the drill will work properly. Obviously a kicker doesn't want to plant his/her foot here when actually kicking field goals.

At first the ball will not fly very far. However, the kicker should concentrate on proper body position, proper contact, and proper follow through and slowly the kicks will get better. The kicker will also notice a difference in accuracy and length after leaving the drill to kick actual field goals.

One Step Kicking

This drill builds from the other drill but the kicker takes one step.

To start this drill the kicker should kick a regular field goal. Then he should see where his last step, just before kicking the ball, was from. That should be where each subsequent kick begins. From that spot the kicker should take a step and kick the ball while concentrating on all the same things as in the One Step Kicking Drill.

Across the Field Kicking

Most kickers don't aim to put the ball between the uprights, they actually aim to kick the ball on an imaginary line. That's why Across the Field Kicking is another one of the great football kicking drills.

For this drill, the kicker kicks the balls across the field from sideline to sideline. The kicker will place the ball on a line (a tee or a holder can be used). Then the kicker will try to kick the ball (in the air) across the field while keeping it even with the line where the ball was originally placed.

Bad Hold Kicking

Inevitably something will go wrong when kicking one or more extra points and field goals. Either there will be a bad snap or a bobble by the holder that results in a bad hold. For these times, there is a football kicking drill that can be practiced.

For the Bad Hold Kicking Drill, the kicker uses a tee and practices kicking the ball from several different odd positions. This will give the kicker some idea where and how to kick a ball when the hold is bad.

In the End All That Counts

Kickers have to be mentally tough because of the pressure they are put under at the end of games. A kicker often sits for most of a game and is then asked to win the game for the team. If the kicker is mentally strong and he practices the right football kicking drills then he should be able to nail that game-winning field goal.

Origin of Soccer

Although it may be impossible to accurately state when and where the game of soccer originated, history has shown us glimpses of a game similar to our present day version being played for over 3000 years.
Around the 2nd or 3rd Century BC, it was documented that the Chinese military during the Han Dynasty played a game involving kicking a ball into a small net.
A game similar to soccer was played by the ancient Greeks and Romans but their game could include up to 27 players on a side compared to the modern day game of 11 players to a side.
Soccer became one of the most popular sports of the masses due to its popularity as a war game. A game of "football" which the British called it, was played in the east of England during the 8th Century where the head of a defeated Danish Prince was used as the ball.
During medieval times, villages and towns were pitted against each other in game battles that could take all day. There were no structured rules to abide by and kicking, biting, gouging and punching turned the game into a virtual battle of survival. These matches became so violent that the English authorities made many attempts to have soccer banned.
King Edward III from England passed laws in 1331 to abolish the game and Queen Elizabeth I had a law passed that provided a one week jail sentence for anyone caught playing soccer.
Despite these efforts, the game of soccer became so popular in England over the next few centuries that it evolved as the most popular sport of its time.
At this point, the only shortcoming of the sport was its lack of rules or standards. In 1815, Eton College, a famous English school, established a set of rules to be implemented by other schools, colleges and universities.
A standardized version of these rules were later adopted in 1848 by most of England's colleges and universities that were known as the Cambridge Rules.
Unfortunately, at this point, there were still two different sets of rules being used. Some colleges favored the Rugby Rules which allowed carrying the ball with your hands, tripping and kicking to the shins. which were contrary to the Cambridge Rules.
In 1863, The Football Association was created by eleven English soccer clubs and schools to establish a single set of rules to be enforced when they played against each other.
The supporters of the Rugby School rules objected to the changes and the two groups split apart. The Football Association later changed the rules in 1869 where they forbade the use of hands, except by the goalie, which led us to the game of soccer as we know it today.
The English still called it a game of "football" because the ball was played primarily with the feet but in the late 18th Century, the word, "soccer", was first used by a student of Oxford University by the name of Charles Wreford Brown. The students at Oxford were known for using slang where they added "er" to the end of words that they intentionally shortened. The game of Rugby was called "rugger". Brown shortened the word "association" and added "er" and the term "soccer" was born.
Since the 19th Century the game has evolved to where it is today. It is the World's Game that is played by more people than any other sport and is universally recognized as the most popular game in sports history.
The World Cup which is held every four years to crown a World Champion draws millions of spectators to the 32 games played and is watched by billions of fans from around the globe thanks to modern day satellite television technology.
The popularity of soccer continues to grow as organized youth soccer programs are getting a young fan base involved at an early age which will fuel its growth for years to come.

Ronaldinho

As the soccer world cup approaches every fan is looking forward to watching the genius knowns as Ronaldinho the soccer player.
Every young boy dreams to be as good as Ronaldinho the soccer player. Ronaldinho is the best player in the world and plays soccer with a smile on his face !
Ronaldinho the soccer player is known as the best soccer player in the world. Ronaldinho video clips and soccer tricks are being sent online as soccer fans marvel at his skills.
History of Ronaldinho
Ronaldinho the soccer player became known as " little Ronaldo " in Portugese in order to distinguish himself from the other famous Brazilian, Ronaldo. Ronaldinho's real name is actually Ronaldo de Assis Moreira and he is widely known as Ronaldinho Gaúcho in his native Brazil.
In his childhood Ronaldinho the soccer player was a star at Futsol and beach soccer and he then moved onto Brazilian club Gremio before moving to Paris SG.
His performance as part of the winning Brazil World cup squad in 2002 attracted the interest of bigger clubs and he moved on to FC Barcelona for £18 million.
Ronaldinho Profile
Club Awards
Spanish La Liga: 2004-05 , 2005-06
Champions League 2005-06
Spanish Super Cup: 2005-06 with Barcelona
International Awards
Under-17 World Cup 1996-97
Copa America: 1998-99 2004-05
FIFA World Cup: 2002
Confederations Cup: 2004-05
Ronaldinho has also won many individual awards including World player of the year and European footballer of the year.
When you watch Ronaldinho movie and video clips you will be amazed at the skill, even his official adverts for Nike are a joy to watch !
Some soccer players earn the respect of opposition fans and Ronaldinho scored two brilliant individual goals for Barcelona away to their closest rivals Real Madrid and the Madrid fans saluted Ronaldinho with a standing ovation despite Real Madrid suffering a 3-0 defeat.
The profile of Ronaldinho is impressive and there is no doubt that Ronaldinho the soccer player will be regarded as one of the greatest ever.