Sydney FC: Embedding individual challenges in team training - FIFA Training Centre

In the third part of this series, we explore a practical example from Sydney FC U13 Head Coach Alex Watson, illustrating how the club’s game-based philosophy translates into concrete training design.

Academy sessions follow a simple structure: an activation phase followed by two 40-minute blocks of gameplay — a medium-team game and a large-team game. The example highlighted here is a large-team 9v9 game, designed to develop key “Team DNA” actions within a fully representative, competitive environment.

9v9 representative game (Sydney FC U13)

Rather than focusing purely on goals scored, the game uses a bonus-point scoring system to balance team success with individual development. Players and teams are rewarded for specific actions that reflect Sydney FC’s playing identity:

Give-and-go – 1 point
Come-around – 2 points
Shot on goal – 5 points
Goal – 10 points

The team with the highest total score wins. This means players are constantly encouraged to pursue both the outcome of the game and the quality of their individual contributions. A goal still matters most, but it is built on a series of behaviours that the club wants to see repeated: combination play, intelligent movement, and purposeful attacking actions.

What stands out in this practice is how naturally these incentives shape behaviour. The game remains fast, competitive and realistic, yet players actively search for opportunities to express the team DNA. Individual learning objectives are embedded directly into the game, without breaking its flow — demonstrating how development and performance can coexist within the same competitive framework.

The following breakdown presents one representative example of how a game-based exercise is structured within Sydney FC’s methodology.

While structures remain flexible, the core learning principles are consistent:

Repeated rounds of competition shaped by bonus-point scoring.
Short reflective tasks during breaks.
Minimal coaching intervention during gameplay.

The screenshots below break down each phase, illustrating how this structure is applied on the pitch.

Phase 1: Introduction

The coach explains the game format, objectives, and scoring system. Individual actions are connected to the scoring framework, with specific behaviours earning points that contribute to the team’s overall score, ensuring individual development remains embedded within the collective game.

Phase 2: Competition (Round 1)

Players begin competing, with direction, opposition, transitions, and consequences present. Learning emerges through the realism of the game, while the coach offers minimal interruption and provides “voice-over” feedback to recognise and reinforce key behaviours.

Phase 3: Break

The coach uses the 'long' break to facilitate reflection, encouraging players to review bonus point actions, decision-making and team scores. Through guided questioning rather than instruction, players take ownership of identifying what worked well and what could improve.

Phase 4: Competition (Round 2)

Players return to the game to apply their reflections within the same representative conditions. The continuity of the practice allows learning to be immediately applied in context.

Phase 5: Competition (Round 3)

The coach introduces individual scoring to place greater emphasis on personal development and to separate individual performance from the team result. Players now track their own “Team DNA” actions, reinforcing accountability and keeping individual learning central within the collective game.

Phase 6: Final reflection

The session concludes with peer reflection, where players discuss individual scores, actions, and key learning moments. This dialogue reinforces ownership and accountability.

Individual development within Sydney FC’s game-based model is further reinforced through position-specific challenges. In the video example below, Head Coach Alex Watson layers positional targets into the same game format, ensuring players focus on behaviours most relevant to their role within the team structure.

The coach supports these targets by providing performance context. Midfielders, for example, are informed that many goals originate from passes played in behind defensive lines. Successful line-breaking passes are therefore rewarded with five individual points, aligning positional targets with match-relevant outcomes.

Position-specific challenges now layered into the 9v9 game

The effectiveness of Sydney FC’s game-based methodology is most evident on match day. The following clips showcase how “Team DNA” actions developed in training emerge in competitive play across the academy.

"Give and go" actions transferring from training to match play.

Representative games create realistic learning environments.
Individual challenges can be embedded within team practice and tailored by position through position-specific targets.
Scoring systems incentivise key behaviours aligned to the club's game model.
Minimal coaching intervention during gameplay maximises learning.
Player-led reflection reinforces ownership and understanding.
Game-based design enables learning to transfer into match performance.

Learning at Sydney FC also extends beyond the pitch. In part 4 of this series, we enter the classroom, where players reflect on selected match clips in a team meeting, alongside an individual player review that connects learning back to the club's “Team DNA” principles.