We just want to play!
Walk Soccer is a fantastic way to improve conditioning, enhance ball skills, and aid in recovery from injury. It’s slower paced than traditional soccer but don’t be fooled, it’s not strolling or moseying soccer! BWS doesn’t allow contact, heading, high balls or line-drive balls but we DO allow for lots of fun!
Walk Soccer Clinics!
We had a fun time putting on two clinics for the City of Seattle Parks and Recreation’s Lifelong Program at Magnuson Park in May. The classes were full, allowing us to introduce the beautiful game to as many people as we could!
Basics of Walking Soccer Video
Benefits of Walking Soccer
Virginia Gleason
Walking soccer offers low-impact physical activity, improved balance and coordination, mental health benefits, and strong social connections—making it ideal for older adults or anyone with mobility limitations.
– Physical Health Benefits
- Low-impact exercise: Walking soccer reduces joint strain, making it safer for older adults or those recovering from injury.
- Cardiovascular fitness: Regular play helps improve heart health and circulation.
- Muscle Strength, balance and coordination: The sport reinforces pivoting, reacting to ball movement, and maintaining stability, which helps maintain strength and helps to prevent falls.
– Social and Emotional Well-being
- Improved sleep: Regular physical activity, like walking soccer, is linked to better sleep quality.
- Boosted self-esteem: Participants may feel more confident and empowered through regular play.
- Social connection: Walking soccer fosters camaraderie, teamwork, and bonding—especially valuable for older adults who may feel isolated.
- Inclusivity: It’s accessible to people of all ages and fitness levels, including those with physical limitations.
– Joint and Injury Protection
- Meniscus health: Staying active helps protect the cartilage in the knees, reducing the risk of tears and arthritis flare-ups.
- Lower injury risk: Compared to traditional soccer, walking soccer has fewer high-impact movements, though players should still be cautious of falls or sprains
Australian Study on Walking soccer
“This pilot study provides initial evidence that 6-weeks of walking football promotes positive experiences, including increased confidence in physical abilities, social connectedness and support, and perceived cognitive and psychological benefits in a rural population of older adults. Quantifiable small-to-large magnitude improvements were observed in assessments of walking capacity, agility and upper and lower body muscular strength, and the data should be used to power appropriately controlled studies that also explore differences between genders to determine the efficacy of walking football to improve the health and well-being of rural older adults.”