Free soccer games

What would you say if, instead of the now discounted Solitaire of cards, during the next break you had fun with free football games ? Nowadays on the Internet there are plenty of them, some of which are really noteworthy. Try to take a look at the ones I’m about to tell you: there are football simulations, managerial titles and other games that are definitely worth a try.

How do you say? Don’t want to waste time downloading and installing heavy video games on your PC? Well, nobody told you you have to do this. Indeed, among the titles I’m about to tell you there are many that can be played directly online: just use any browser with Flash Player support. Many of these games also include a fun multiplayer mode that allows you to challenge your friends (on Facebook, but not only).

What if I told you that there are also beautiful games to download directly to smartphones and tablets? Whether you have an Android device, an iPhone, an iPad or a Windows Phone I assure you that you will find a great football game to suit your tastes. You just have to take a look at all the games listed below and – why not? – try them all. It won’t cost you a penny… although many of the games in question – this must be specified to be fair – include in-app purchases to unlock extra features and items.

New Star Soccer (Windows / Mac)

Among the free soccer games that I recommend you try there is also New Star Soccer . It is a free-to-play title for Windows and Mac that puts the player in the shoes of a boy who tries to break into the world of football, has a well-made 2D graphics and various very original ideas. In the game you have to not only take the field and give 100% but also train hard, manage relations with the press and friends, follow the market and more.

New Star Soccer is free but has limitations: you can only play 3 games per day (plus 5 matches available for each new user) and you must have an Internet connection that is always active. Limitations that disappear in the paid version of the video game which costs 14.99 euros.

To download the game on your computer, connect to its official website and click on the Download button for the operating system on your PC (Windows or Mac). Once the download is complete, if you are using a Windows PC, open the Install_NSS5.exe  file  you just downloaded and click in sequence on  Yes , OK , Next  four consecutive times, Install  and  Finish to complete the NSS installation process.

Then start the game, select Italian  from the language choice menu and press the New career button  . Create a profile for your virtual footballer, click on  √ and complete the New Star Soccer registration form by typing in your email address and the password you want to use to access your account. If you don’t have an activation key for the game yet, leave the field blank and go on.

Finally, reconfirm your player’s profile, press  √ , log in with the data you have previously chosen and start your first game of New Star Soccer by performing the 7 training challenges provided by the game.

If you use a Mac , to install New Star Soccer all you have to do is drag the game into the Applications folder  of OS X and start it by right clicking on its icon and selecting the Open item  from the menu that appears.

Throw In (Windows)

Now let’s move on to  Throw In , a soccer game for Windows. It was born as a tribute to Kick Off 2, the historic football title of the 90’s and has very nice 3D graphics (almost in cartoon style). The gameplay? Clearly inspired by that of Kick Off, with some slight variations on the theme.

The game has not been updated for some time and, therefore, even the squads of the teams are “dated”. However, this is a minor flaw in such a title, where realism certainly does not dominate.

To download it to your PC, all you have to do is click on this link . When the download is complete, double-click on it, open the file you just downloaded ( ThrowIn0.85.exe ) and, in the window that opens, click on Browse first to select the folder in which to extract the game and then on Install to complete the operation.

Then, open the folder where you copied the ThrowIn files, start the Throw In – Beta 0.86.exe program and start having fun: by clicking on the Friendly match item you can play a friendly match, by selecting  Championship league you can participate in a tournament, while by clicking on  Practice you can practice some of the game controls.

After starting a game you have to choose the teams, the controllers to use (joypad or keyboard) by pressing the left arrow for the first player and the right arrow for the second player and set the formations. That’s all!

Note:  As mentioned, Throw In has not been updated for some time. Its place was taken by Active Soccer 2 , a new football title for Windows, iPhone / iPad, Android and Windows Phone. It has much more elaborate 3D graphics than Throw In’s and significantly more elaborate gameplay, but it’s not free. It costs 9.99 euros on PCs and around 4 euros on portable devices.

Top Eleven (Web / Android / iOS / Windows Phone)

If you prefer managerial titles to real football games, try  Top Eleven 11 . It is a free video game that can be played directly online ( via Facebook ) or on portable devices equipped with Android and iOS . It even supports Apple Watch!

Its operation is extremely intuitive. After logging into the game, just name your team and type in the name of your city of origin. After that, you get $ 5.6 million as an initial budget and 40 coins to start your business as a manager.

To start a game just click on the display above and press the Prepare team button  . You then have the opportunity to follow the match in real time (in text format) and to give orders to your team. To command strategies and tactics to be adopted in the field, click on the Give orders button   and select the icons that appear on the right side of the screen. In this way you will be able to decide what kind of pressing to make the team implement, whether to maintain a balanced attitude, whether to adopt an offensive or defensive one and whether to mark in the zone or in the man.

In short, you will be a real English manager with full power on the technical choices, but also on the market of the team. You will therefore have to be good at increasing your budget (by winning league and cup challenges) and investing it in buying good players.

Of course, the online multiplayer component is not missing, which allows you to challenge the teams of your Facebook friends or the gaming networks of Apple and Google (if you decide to play from a portable device).

Other online soccer games

If you want to try free football games that work directly online, the wisest thing you can do is point your browser to Kongregate , one of the most popular Flash game sites in the world. Inside you can find dozens of football titles suitable to satisfy all tastes: from 2D / 3D football simulations to penalty-based challenges through games that, although inspired by the so-called “soccer”, have very little sporting in the gameplay (eg zombie duels and other such oddities).

All you have to do to start a game is to visit Kongregate in a browser with Flash Player support and click on the image of the game you want to start. The upload will take a few moments. If you want to use titles with multiplayer support and / or want to keep track of your scores you must create a free account on the site by clicking on the Register item (located at the top) and filling out the form that is proposed to you later.

Speaking of multiplayer … if you are a member of  Facebook  you can find a lot of football games to use directly from your browser in the social network ‘s App Center . Among these there are simulations in which to challenge the teams of other users and managerial titles, such as the aforementioned Top Eleven, in which to test your aptitudes as a sports manager. Here are some of the most interesting.

• Golden Manager- very well done management title with an interesting online multiplayer component.
• Kamicat Football- a title that combines the managerial aspect with that of playing on the pitch. The aim is to guide your team towards success in the league by deciding, from time to time, whether to face the matches from the bench (as a coach) or on the pitch (directly controlling the players). It has 3D graphics done quite well. Attention: it requires the publication of posts on the user’s wall: obstacle that can be circumvented by setting the privacy level to “Only me”.
• Soccer Stars- a very special game, and also a lot of fun. It is a sort of mix between football and billiards in which you have to push the ball into the goal with pawns to “throw” with the mouse.
• Puppet Soccer Champions- very nice title in which you play 1vs1 and you have to score in the opponent’s goal. Its strong point is the cartoon-style graphics in which the features of all the greatest champions of world football are faithfully reproduced.
• I Love Calcio- another managerial title to take into consideration, even if lower than the others mentioned above.
• Penalty Shootout- game based on penalties. It only includes national teams and its cartoonish graphics are barely acceptable, however it is fun to spend 5 minutes relaxing. It is played only with the mouse.

Other football games for smartphones and tablets

If you love to play on the go, here are some free titles for Android, iPhone / iPad and Windows Phone that are just waiting to be downloaded.

• FIFA Ultimate Team– the mobile transposition of the football simulation par excellence. It combines the management aspect with the game on the pitch, and has excellent 3D graphics. It is free to download and use, however real money must be spent to get the points needed to purchase the game content. It is available for Android , iOS and Windows Phone .
• PES Club Manager– the historical rival of FIFA. In this mobile transposition it focuses very strongly on the managerial component, without forgetting the games played on the pitch, which are really very beautiful to see. It’s free, but with in-app purchases. It can only be downloaded on Android and iOS .
• Dream League Soccer– football game with 3D graphics. It’s not as complete as FIFA or PES, but it’s definitely worth checking out. Free with in-app purchases. It is compatible with  Android ,  iOS and Windows Phone .
• Stickman Soccer– a very funny soccer game with 3D graphics in which the protagonists are the famous stickman, the men drawn with black lines instead of legs and arms. Only for Android and iOS .
• Head Soccer– another very funny, but extremely atypical title, in which football is merged with the fighting game. It is played 1vs1 and there are spectacular moves to score in your opponent’s goal. The 2D cartoon graphics, then, are made in a fantastic way. It is compatible with Android , iOS and Windows Phone .