Doodle football

Doodle01:000Bun

Beat Bun!

Bun likes long, friendly rallies.

Wins: 0
Goals: 0
Super shots: 0

Paused

You win!

5–3

One goal each, one ball and a lot of bouncing. Doodle runs, jumps for headers and kicks the ball at the goal on the right, while his rival tries to put it in his. Hold kick to wind up a power shot, and when the super meter glows, fire a super shot that flies like a rocket. Four rivals are waiting, and Bolt the champion reads every bounce: a real match for grown-ups too.

How to play

Run and jump.
Run with the arrows and jump to head the ball. Doodle defends the goal on the left.
Kick it in!
Kick when the ball is at Doodle’s foot. Hold kick to wind up a harder shot: it lets fly when the ball comes.
Fire a super shot!
Every touch fills the super meter. When it glows, press Super and kick: the ball flies like a rocket.

Controls

Touch: The arrows on the left run. On the right: Kick (hold it to wind up), Jump, and Super when it glows.
Mouse: Hold the button on the picture to wind up a kick, and let go to kick. Use the keys to run.
Keyboard: ← → or A D run, ↑ or W jumps, Space or J kicks (hold to wind up), ↓, S or K arms the super shot. P or Esc pauses; Space skips a replay.
Two players: Doodle: A D run, W jumps, Space kicks, S super. Friend: the arrows, Enter kicks, ↓ super.

Moves to learn

Header. Jump into a ball in the air: Doodle heads it toward the goal.
Power shot. Hold kick early. A full wind-up kicks far harder, all by itself when the ball arrives.
Lob. Hold away from the goal as you kick: the ball goes up and over.
Low drive. Hold toward the goal as you kick: flat and fast.
Super shot. When the meter glows, press Super, then kick. Doodle’s rocket knocks a goalkeeper over.

Four rivals

Bun: Easy, at the park. Slow on her feet, never shoots a super, and leaves room to score. 1 minute.
Kiki: Medium, at the beach. Jumps for headers, winds up now and then, and has a curling super shot. 90 seconds.
Bruno: Hard, at the snowy field. Fast, strong and always back in his goal in time. His rocket super knocks you over. 90 seconds.
Bolt: Champion, at the big stadium. Reads every bounce, lobs you, and curls a super shot over your head. 2 minutes.

First to 5 goals wins at once; a tie when time is up goes to a golden goal. Auto-kick is on against Bun; switch it on the start card. Each rival you beat gets a trophy.

Tips for big players

Stay goal-side. Keep between the ball and your own goal, so it’s always in front of your foot.
Never chase it from behind. Run into the ball from the wrong side and you push it toward your own goal. Jump over it instead.
Wind up, then keep it low. A full wind-up sails over the bar from far out. Hold toward the goal as you kick and it flies in flat and fast.
Use the walls. The ball bounces off the walls and the crossbar: read the bounce and get there first.
Save your super. Fire it close to the goal, with the ball in front of you.

What kids practice

Timing. Jumping and kicking just as the ball arrives.
Reading a bounce. Guessing where the ball goes after the wall, the bar or a head.
Playing fair. Sharing one screen with a friend, and cheering a good goal either way.

For grown-ups

Doodle football has no ads, no accounts and no trackers. Wins, goals and super shots are saved only in this browser on this device. Sound stays off until your child turns it on with the speaker button. Against Bun the game runs at three quarters of full speed and Doodle kicks by himself; against Bolt it runs a little faster than full speed, so it grows with your child.

Every goal gets a slow-motion replay, which a tap or the space bar skips. With reduced motion turned on in the device’s settings, replays, shakes and slow motion are left out.

Questions

Is Doodle football free?

Yes. All four rivals and the two-player game are free to play in the browser, with no ads, no sign-up and nothing to download.

Can a young child play it?

Yes. Against Bun the game runs slower, Doodle kicks by himself whenever the ball reaches his foot (auto-kick), and Bun is slow and never uses a super shot. Children only need to run and jump. A match lasts one minute, or until someone scores five.

Can two people play?

Yes. Pick “A friend” on the start card. On one keyboard, Doodle plays with A, D, W, Space and S, and the friend with the arrows and Enter. On a tablet, each player has a set of buttons in their own corner.

How hard is the champion?

Very. Bolt reacts in under a tenth of a second, reads every bounce off the walls and the crossbar, lobs you when you stand close, drives it low when you don’t, and curls its super shot over your head. The game runs faster, your foot has to be close to the ball, and the match lasts two minutes.