Football Positions Guide: Football Positions Explained

Football is often considered a simple game – 22 players surrounding a singular leather ball, aiming to kick it in between two goalposts. Seems easy enough.

Despite the minimalist nature of the rules, understanding why different players take up a variety of positions on the field can however be quite tough to comprehend. As such, below is a complete guide to the different positions on a football pitch, and what is expected from each player.

What are the meanings of the 11 positions in football?

1. Goalkeeper

The goalkeeper’s main role is to stop the opposing team from scoring. With this duty, they are the only players on the pitch who are permitted to use their hands when contacting the ball, as long as they remain in their own penalty box.

You can only have one goalkeeper on each side at any given time.

2. Full-back

The left-back and the right-back, collectively referred to as the full-backs, are the defenders stationed at either side of the centre-backs to provide protection from wide players. They often have to defend against the opponent’s wide players and stop any threat from their side of the pitch.

3. Wing-back

Wing-backs are very similar to full-backs except they are given more of an emphasis to attack their opponent’s goal. The term is a combination of the ‘full-back’ and ‘winger’ positions, implying the wing-back will often find himself further forward, though similar in width, to those other two positions.

4. Centre-back

The primary position of defence. Each team usually has two centre-backs, with their main job to block and keep out the opposition attack.

5. Sweeper

The sweeper occupies a similar position to the centre-back, but is encouraged to “sweep up” the ball if the opponent manages to breach the defensive line. Generally, they play a tad deeper than their centre-back partner.

6. Defensive midfielder

A defensive midfielder is a similarly placed central midfielder who is however stationed in front of the defenders to provide more defensive protection. They act as a deeper player than the traditional central midfielder. The defensive midfielder adds a layer of protection to the defence, but is also important for starting attacks on the ball.

8. Central midfielder

The central midfielder provides an important link between defence and attack, fulfilling a number of responsibilities and operating mainly in the middle of the pitch. Their central position enables them to have an all-round view and impact on the match. Since most of the action takes place in and around their area of the pitch, midfielders often exert the greatest degree of control over how a fixture turns out.

10. Attacking midfielder

An attacking midfielder is a midfield player who is positioned in an advanced midfield position, usually between central midfield and the team’s forwards, and who has a primarily offensive role compared to the other midfielders. The attacking midfielder is an important position that requires the player to possess superior technical abilities in terms of passing and dribbling, as well as a good sense of creativity.

7. Winger

Wingers are wide midfield players who are stationed on either flank, with the main job of providing attacking threat. Wingers are characteristically quick, in order to be able to beat their full-back physically, and good technicians, particularly with dribbling and crossing.

9. Striker

Strikers are players who are positioned nearest to the opposing team’s goal. The primary responsibility of strikers is to score goals and to create scoring chances for other players. Each team tends to line up with either one or two strikers.

11. Forward

A forward has the key task of scoring goals and for this reason acts as the focal point of the majority of attacking play by a team. As such, how well a striker is performing tends to be measured purely on goals scored despite the fact that they may be contributing in other ways to a team’s success. A traditional centre forward was required to be tall in height and physically strong.

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What’s the meaning behind football shirt numbers?

Squad numbers are used in association football to identify and distinguish players that are on the field. Numbers are a way to also indicate position, with starting players being assigned numbers 1–11. The first use of squad numbers date back to as early as 1911.

Football Positions FAQ

What position is the best in football?

There is no ‘best’ position in football, but often players receive the most gratification from scoring goals and helping their team win games. In this sense, being a striker is an often rewarding position in football, as there is a higher chance you will receive goal-scoring opportunities.

What is the easiest position in football?

This is another subjective question with no set answer, but it’s often joked amongst pundits that players in the full-back position are there as a result of being ‘failed wingers or failed centre-backs’. Whilst the modern day demands of an elite full-back are increasingly tough, at a lower-level you may find the weakest player on each team assuming a full-back role.

What is the hardest position in football?

Centre midfield is often considered the hardest position in football, simply because of the diverse range of qualities needed to succeed. As well as incorporating attacking and defensive technical qualities, a centre midfielder needs to be incredibly physically fit to make sure the game doesn’t bypass him or her completely.

What position shall I play in height and weight?

At lower level – the big and heavy players are often instructed to play in defence in order to provide good protection to the team’s goal. Meanwhile, smaller and skinnier players are considered better dribblers because of their agility, and may be encouraged to play on the wings or upfront to make use of their technical ability.

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