Guides · Updated 7 October 2026
How to draw football tactics
A tactics board turns an idea about how a team should play into something everyone can see. This guide explains the four drawing tools in Starting XI, then walks through eight classic patterns you can sketch in a minute.
The four drawing tools
Select Draw tactics above the pitch to open the toolbar. While drawing is on, players stay put, so you can draw over them without moving anyone. Select Done drawing to go back to arranging players.
- Pass. A solid straight arrow. Press where the pass starts and drag to where it ends.
- Run. A dashed arrow that follows your finger or mouse, so it can curve. Use it for movement without the ball.
- Line. A plain line with no arrow head, for shapes, defensive lines and the distance between players.
- Zone. A shaded circle. Press the centre of the area and drag outwards to set its size.
There are three colours: white, yellow and red. Undo removes the last thing you drew and Clear removes every drawing. Drawings are saved with the lineup and included when you share a link.
Drawing conventions coaches use
Coaches have used the same shorthand on whiteboards for decades, and following it makes your board easy to read:
- A solid line means the ball moves. A dashed line means a player moves without the ball. That is why the Pass tool is solid and the Run tool is dashed.
- Number the steps in your head and draw them in order: first pass, then the run it sets up, then the next pass. If a move needs more than four or five arrows, split it into two boards.
- Use one colour per idea. For example, white for the attacking move, yellow for the pressing triggers, and red for the danger you are trying to stop.
Eight patterns to draw
1. The overlap
The winger receives the ball and dribbles inside. As they do, the full-back sprints around the outside into the space the winger left. The opposing full-back now has to choose between two attackers.
How to draw it: a Pass from the centre-back or midfielder to the winger, then a curved Run from the full-back looping outside the winger towards the corner flag.
2. The underlap
The reverse of the overlap. The winger stays wide and holds the ball, and a midfielder or full-back runs through the inside channel, between the opposing full-back and centre-back. Teams with wingers who love to hug the touchline use it to attack the half-space.
How to draw it: a Run inside the winger towards the edge of the penalty area, and a Pass from the winger into the path of that run.
3. The third-man run
Player A passes to player B, who lays the ball off first time to player C, who has been running into space all along. The defence watches the ball go from A to B and loses track of C. Guardiola's Barcelona built much of their passing game on this idea.
How to draw it: a short Pass from A to B, a Pass from B back into space, and a Run from C that arrives exactly where that second pass ends.
4. Switching the play
When the opponent shifts across to crowd one side of the pitch, a long diagonal pass to the far side catches them out of position, often leaving a winger or full-back one against one.
How to draw it: a few players and a red Zone around the crowded side, then one long Pass to a player on the opposite touchline.
5. The high press
Without the ball, the forwards press the opposing defenders as soon as they receive it, while the midfield pushes up to cut off short passing options. The aim is to win the ball near the opponent's goal. Klopp's Liverpool and Guardiola's Manchester City made pressing like this a defining part of their style.
How to draw it: yellow Runs from each forward towards the nearest defender, curving so that they block the pass back to the goalkeeper, and a yellow Zone where you want to trap the ball, usually near a touchline.
6. The offside trap and defensive line
A team that defends high keeps its back four in a straight line and steps up together, leaving attackers offside. The line has to move as one; a single defender who drops deep plays everyone onside.
How to draw it: a Line across the back four, and a second Line further up the pitch to show where the defence steps up to.
7. The counter-attack
The moment a team wins the ball deep in its own half, the fastest players sprint forward before the opponent can recover its shape. The first pass forward is the most important, because it must go past the opposition's midfield.
How to draw it: a red Zone where the ball is won, a long Pass forward to a striker or winger, and two or three Runs from attackers racing towards goal.
8. Corner kicks
Set pieces are one of the best uses of a tactics board, because every player has a fixed job. A typical attacking corner has players attacking the near post, the far post and the penalty spot, with one player blocking the goalkeeper and others waiting at the edge of the box for clearances.
How to draw it: drag players into the box, draw a Pass from the corner flag to the target area, then Runs showing each attacker's path to the near post, far post and penalty spot. Mark the target area with a Zone.
Tips for a clear tactics board
- Start from a real formation. Set the formation first, then drag players to where they would be at the moment the move starts. See the formations guide for each shape.
- One idea per board. If you want to show both how you attack and how you defend, share two links.
- Name the board. The lineup name at the top is included in the shared link, so call it something like "Overlap on the left" rather than "My XI".
- Leave space around the ball. Short arrows drawn on top of player markers are hard to see. Move players a little apart if you need room.