Football tennis rules
Football tennis is tennis played with a football: no hands, over a net or a line, with your feet, head and chest. It's a warm-up favourite and a great game when there are too few for a match. This is the version most people play.
By Squadcard. Last updated .
In short
- Two sides of a net or a line, singles, doubles or teams of three.
- Use any part of your body except your hands and arms to get the ball back over.
- Most versions allow one bounce per side and up to three touches, shared by the team.
- A point is lost when the ball bounces twice, goes out, or goes into the net or under it.
- Play to 11 or 21, swapping serve every few points.
Setting up
Any net works: a badminton or tennis net, a bench, or a line of cones on the floor for beginners. Mark out a court on each side; a 5-a-side pitch split across the middle is plenty.
The rules most people play
As an organised sport it has its own name and rules: footvolley on sand, or footnet (also called nohejbal) in central Europe. For a training warm-up, the rules above are enough.
- Serve: drop the ball and kick it over from behind your back line. It must land in the other court.
- Bounces: one bounce allowed on each side before it must go back over. Strict versions allow none.
- Touches: up to three per side (shared across the team in doubles), and one player can't touch it twice in a row.
- No hands or arms, ever.
- Points: you lose the point if the ball bounces twice, lands out, or hits the net and stays on your side. Play to 11 or 21.
Other games for when there aren't enough for a match
3 and in, headers and volleys and rush goalie all work with a few players. When enough turn up, the team generator makes two fair sides.
Questions
How many touches are allowed in football tennis?
Usually up to three per side, with no player touching it twice in a row. Make it two to make it harder.
How many bounces are allowed in football tennis?
Most games allow one bounce on each side. Experienced players often play with none.
What is football tennis called as a sport?
Footvolley when it's played on sand, and footnet or nohejbal in central Europe, each with its own rules.