Foosball Tips For Beginners

Foosball tables seem to be everywhere these days - even my apartment complex has one by the swimming pool! But just because you’ve seen one of the tables doesn’t mean that you know how to play, let alone how to play foosball like a champ. So, if you’re new to playing foosball, let us here at Foosball Revolution give you a few tips that will help you have a successful game. Who knows, you might even win!

Foosball Shooting Tips

One mistake that a lot of rookies make is stepping up to the table and giving the handles a death grip. Don’t do this. Instead, keep a sort of loose grip on the handles because you need to be able to quickly and easily change which rod your using and if your grip is too tight then it will take longer. This way, you will have more speed when you need to make those quick changes.

Not sure if you’re gripping it too tight? Well, you definitely shouldn’t be wrapping your hand completely around the handle. Instead, you should have a bit of a gap between the handle and that part of your hand between the thumb and index finger. Once you have this grip correct, you are ready for optimal speed when shooting.

They key to a good shot is all in the wrist. If you can turn the wrist quickly, you’ll end up with a good shot where the rod spins about 180 degrees and gives you some nice speed. But, if your wrist only turns about a quarter of the way, then you end up with a weak shot due to lack of speed. And you get the hang of it, you can even turn the handle on your wrist in an open-hand shot. This gives you the maximum speed when making a shot.

Foosball Serving Tips

You should know that official foosball rules of play do not allow you to serve yourself the ball on the drop. And no one likes a rule breaker (or a cheater), so don’t do this when you play. But serving is your chance at getting immediate possession of the ball.

Like any fair game, do a coin toss with your opponent to see who gets to serve first. After this initial serve, the team that was just scored upon gets to serve.

Now, when it is your time to serve, your goal should be to spin that ball to your 5-man midfielder rod to gain possession of the ball. Yes, this is a perfectly legal play and what all the experienced players do. Otherwise, you risk giving possession of the ball to your opponent.

This type of serve takes a little practice to get the technique just right. But, it is definitely worth perfecting if you have the time. Now, here’s how to achieve this awesome serve:

• Put the ball in your right hand and cover the serving hole with your left.
• Put the ball in the serving hole while keeping your thumb on it in the eleven o’clock position.
• Now, use your left hand to grab your 5-man rod.
• Use your thumb to spin the ball counter clockwise.

You can see this serve in action in the video below.

These basic tips should help you get off to the right start on your first time playing foosball.