Flicking a ball over your head is pretty cool!
And super DIFFICULT to achieve too.
It doesn’t have to be, if you follow the right steps…
…and grasp the proper technique behind the rainbow flick.
In this article and video, I am going to tell you what those steps are… and how to flick a soccer ball over your head when you receive a pass or when you’re standing still.
Introduction
One of the coolest tricks you can see on the soccer field is the rainbow flick.
Whether you are attempting to use it in game, impress your teammates and coaches, or just looking to learn more about how to flick a soccer ball over your head when you receive a pass, this is the place to be.
This move can help you create space in order to stave off defenders, and it can allow you to look like one of the best players on the field as well.
What Is the Rainbow Flick?
Before we get started, let’s define what a rainbow flick is.
A rainbow flick is a move used to get the ball into the air.
It goes from your heel over the top of your head and then lands either in front of or on top of your feet so that you can advance the ball.
(“Rainbow Flick” is just a cutesy term coined to describe the flick over the head soccer trick.)
Many times, you will also want the flick to go over the head of your opponent.
It takes a lot of skill and practice to do, and some are quicker than others at learning it.
Who Should do It?
Here is the biggest question, in my opinion.
While it looks very nice, and you’d love to impress people by doing it, you also have to be very careful with it.
Overdoing it is bound to get you injured, and you shouldn’t just concentrate on this move.
I suggest that only older, more skilled players should use it.
But please know that this is much more of a showoff type of move.
The number of chances to do this in a game are very minimal, and I can count on one hand the number of times I have seen this employed in a professional match.
Remember, the better the opposition, the worse the outcome will be!
Understanding the Rainbow Flick Technique
One of the reasons I think that only older players should be doing the rainbow flick is because it does take quite a lot of power in order to accomplish.
Since the technique requires that you take just one step (with very little momentum), you need to have power and strength.
Keep this in mind when trying to do it.
Most players around ten years old and under simply don’t have this, unless they have played soccer their entire lives.
How to Kick a Soccer Ball Over Your Head: Step by Step
Here are the steps you need to follow to do the rainbow flick.
- Take the soccer ball and wedge it in between your dominant foot and the back of your supporting foot.If you are right-footed, for example, take the football in between your foot and your left foot’s heel. Raise your right foot up a bit off the ground and just hold the ball there. This is the beginning of the move.
- Now, use the dominant foot to roll the ball up. Remember, you have to do it with quickness and power in order to get it up and not just drop it straight down to the ground.
- Now, follow through. Like everything in life, the “follow through” is key. Don’t stop your momentum. Allow the ball to hit your heel (the back part of your supporting foot).Because the heel is so solid, it is the strongest place you can kick the football with allowing it to be propelled over your head.
- Next, repeat steps 1 to 3 but this time doing while you’re moving and right after receiving a pass from a teammate. It’s almost the same thing. You just need to have a firm grip of the ball before rolling it up your supporting leg.
TIP: Always go forward with this move. Lean forward, never back, and make sure you are putting weight into the knees and thighs, rather than in the back of your legs.
How to do the Rainbow Flick
Images are better than words and moving images are even better!
Watch how to do the rainbow flick in the following short video by Freestyle Factory:
Rainbow Flick Practicing Drills
While it may not be all that useful in a match, it’s actually easier to pull off the rainbow while playing and moving around.
To do this, you can dribble the soccer ball out in front of you, run onto it, and then flick it up and over your head.
For many people, this is much easier to do than just simply mastering it while it is on the ground.
Drill 1: Flicking It Over Your Opponent
What you need: Our first drill involves you and either another player or possibly a cutout or dummy.
You don’t even have to have either of those, but it would be helpful so that you can get a sense of how hard the move is.
How to:
- Simply dribble the football forward, wait until you are a couple of yards (meters) from your defender, and then go for the flick.
- Remember, you need to know which side you are going to.
TIP: A defender has every right to hold their ground. This trick will be useless if you simply bulldoze your opponent and give away a foul!
Drill 2: Flicking a Soccer Ball over Your Head when You Receive a Pass
Our first drill was a little bit lax, but this one will be the real test.
How to:
- First, have your partner pass you the ball.
- They need to mix up their speeds so that you can get a grasp on how to do it in various situations.
- With the football rolling toward you and them closing you down, you are now under much more pressure and in a game-type situation.
Drill 3: Flicking a Ball Coming from Different Angles
This is the ultimate test for this move.
How to:
- Find a third person, and have them pass the ball to you from different angles, rather than coming from straight ahead.
This is by far the hardest way to do this, and usually only the very best players are able to pull this off because the soccer ball is coming from the side and it is difficult to steer against that momentum.
But if you can pull it off, you will be much better for it!
Conclusion
One of the very first lessons I had to learn when playing at a higher level was that sometimes you just have to try things.
That is the best way that I can explain how to learn to do tricks, flicks, and juggling!
A good footballer is able to take a situation and then improvise to find the right solution quickly and efficiently with little to no thought.
Sometimes moves done on the pitch would seem impossible to do if you sat down and thought about them.
But, oftentimes, if you just put your mind to it and do it, they can be accomplished and get you the end result that you wanted.
The rainbow flick is one of those moves, and you, too, can learn to do it in time with hard work and dedication!
Thanks for reading our article on how to flick a soccer ball over your head (when you receive a pass). I hope it has helped you!
