traditional soccer positions by the numbers

German sportswear giant adidas still produce runs of No.5 Beckenbauer shirts to this very day. Each player on the field has a specific position and traditionally these positions can be aligned with a corresponding number, which are essential to the team's overall strategy and structure. This includes how far back or forward and how far left or right their territory spans. Each position has a specific area of the field that they cover. The general positions are forward, midfielder, defender, and goalkeeper. The No.5 jersey, for example, is synonymous in German football with 1970s icon Franz Beckenbauer - the archetypal sweeper and one of the world’s all-time greats. Soccer, or Fottball,as it is better known around the world, features two teams of 11 players each. The positions in soccer are one of the basic fundamentals to know, whether you are a seasoned player or just starting out. Over time, numbers became associated with certain roles and players. In soccer, a traditional Number 9 is a striker or centre-forward, positioned at the top end of the pitch and depended upon by their.

Traditionally, numbers and roles in German soccer corresponded in the following fashion: Each position on the pitch is traditionally associated with a different number 1 for goalkeepers, 3 for left backs, 8 for central midfielders, and so on and for centre-forwards, its the iconic Number 9. Introduced to the German game at the start of the 1948/49 season, soccer jersey numbers were originally created to identify certain positions in a tactical formation at a time when player names were not used on the back of shirts.Īs there were 11 players on the field, numbers went from 1 to 11, with substitutes starting at No.12, and players assigned the jersey number that tallied with their position.

Traditional soccer positions by the numbers