The best goalkeeper gloves for most children are a cheap, well-fitting pair with a palm that survives the surface they play on. A child taking a turn in goal every few weeks needs something different from a child who has made the position their own, and neither needs a top-of-the-range junior pair at £50.
Get the size right before choosing a brand. A glove that is too big leaves the fingertips empty, so the ball hits loose material instead of a hand, and the glove moves on the hand as they catch. The sizing section below covers how to measure, because the age charts on the packet disagree with each other.
Prices below are what Amazon listed when we checked in early November 2026, and they move with size and colour.
Quick Picks: Goalkeeper Gloves for Kids
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What Size Goalkeeper Gloves Does My Child Need?
Children's goalkeeper gloves are sized by number, usually from 3 to 7, with adult sizes running 8 and up. Many ranges include half sizes. The number is what you buy, but the age printed beside it is only a rough guide, and different brands and retailers put the same age on different sizes.
As a rough starting point, most charts put children around these sizes:
- Ages 5 to 6: size 3 or 4
- Ages 7 to 8: size 4 or 5
- Ages 9 to 10: size 5 or 6
- Ages 11 to 12: size 6 or 7
- Ages 13 to 14: size 7 or 8
The overlap in each line is the real situation. One retailer's chart has an 8-year-old in a size 4 and another has them in a 5. T1TAN labels its junior size 5 for 7 to 8 years, a year younger than some other charts. Reusch tends to run slightly small and Uhlsport slightly large, so the same child can be a different number in each.
How to measure your child's hand
Brands use one of two measurements, so check which one the size chart you are reading uses:
- Round the hand. Wrap a tape measure round the widest part of the palm, across the knuckles below the fingers, leaving the thumb out. Measure both hands and use the larger measurement.
- Length of the hand. Measure from the tip of the middle finger to the bottom of the palm where it meets the wrist.
Take the measurement to the chart for the brand you are buying, not a general one. If your child falls between two sizes, go up half a size. A glove that is slightly long in the fingers still works; one that is tight across the knuckles stops the hand closing round the ball.
What a good fit looks like
With the gloves on, your child's fingertips should sit close to the ends without touching them, with no more than a few millimetres spare. Ask them to make a fist and spread their fingers. The palm should not bunch up when the hand closes, and the strap should fasten without the cuff twisting.
Children's hands grow quickly, so check the size again every six months or so. A glove bought in September for a 7-year-old can be tight by the following spring.
Latex, Foam and 3G Pitches
The palm is where a goalkeeper glove succeeds or fails. Most junior gloves use one of two materials:
- Soft latex. The grippy, slightly sticky palm on match gloves. It catches well, especially in the wet, but it wears quickly, and the softest latex can start to wear from the first game.
- Harder training latex or synthetic foam. Less grip, but much more durable. Some goalkeeper retailers recommend this for children up to about 14, and only moving to soft match latex once a keeper is older and playing at a higher level.
3G and other artificial pitches are hard on latex. Every dive and every time a keeper puts a hand down to get up rubs the palm across the rubber crumb and the fibres. The fingertips and the heel of the palm usually go first. The same pair can wear through noticeably faster on 3G than it would on grass.
That is why many keepers use two pairs: an older or harder-wearing pair for training, and a newer pair kept for matches. For a child who only plays in goal now and then, one cheap pair is enough.
A worn palm is a good sign the gloves have been used properly. Once the latex is gone from the fingertips, the glove has lost most of its grip where the ball first lands, and it is time for a new pair.
Glove Cuts: Flat, Roll and Negative
The cut is how the palm is stitched to the rest of the glove. It mostly changes how the glove fits. The main types:
- Flat palm. One flat piece of latex with the stitching on the outside. The loosest fit, comfortable and easy to get on. Two of the picks above, the adidas and the Precision, use this cut.
- Roll finger. The latex wraps round each finger with no side panels, so more latex touches the ball. A snugger fit than a flat palm.
- Negative cut. The stitching is on the inside, which gives the tightest fit. It suits long, slim hands, and it is the cut where getting the size right matters most.
- Hybrid. A mix, for example a flat palm with rolled fingertips. The name changes from brand to brand.
For a young child who is still learning to catch, a flat palm with a wide opening and a strap is the easiest to live with. They can get it on and off without help, and on a cold morning that matters. A child with slim hands who finds flat-cut gloves baggy may suit a roll or negative cut once they are playing in goal regularly.
Trust the process. Track the progress.
Track their goals and assists, log their progress and keep coach feedback in one place, season after season.
Start free trialFinger Protection for Young Keepers
Finger protection gloves, sometimes called fingersaves, have stiff plastic spines in the back of the fingers. They stop the fingers bending backwards when a hard shot hits the tips.
Goalkeeping specialists disagree on whether children should use them. One view is that they stiffen the hand and reduce feel for the ball, and that young keepers should learn to set their hands properly without them. Some retailers advise against them for children under 10 to 12. The other view is that they give a nervous young keeper the confidence to put their hands in the way of a shot.
A sensible middle ground:
- Under about 10: gloves without finger protection are usually fine for a child taking turns in goal, and a flexible glove makes it easier to learn to shape the hands round the ball.
- A child who has already hurt a finger, or is facing older or stronger shooters: finger protection is worth trying, and a cheap pair is a low-risk way to see whether your child likes it.
- Training vs matches: some goalkeeper coaches suggest training without finger protection and only wearing it for matches.
If your child has hurt a finger in goal and it is still swollen or painful days later, get it checked rather than relying on a glove to protect it.
Does Your Child Need Their Own Pair?
Plenty of grassroots teams rotate the goalkeeper, so every child takes a turn. In a mini-soccer team that aims for equal playing time across positions, a child might play in goal for one quarter every few weeks. Whether they need their own gloves depends on how often that happens and whether they enjoy it.
A few signs your child would benefit from a pair of their own:
- They ask to go in goal. A child who volunteers is worth backing with a pair that fits, rather than a team pair sized for an older player.
- They play or train on 3G in winter. Cold, wet hands on an artificial pitch are miserable, and gloves help with the cold as well as the ball.
- They are getting hurt. Scraped palms from diving on 3G are common for children in goal without gloves.
If they do play in goal on cold mornings, they will feel it more than the outfield players, because they stand still for long spells. Our guide to football base layers for kids covers the leggings and long sleeve thermals that keepers use.
For outfield players, winter training gloves are a better buy than a goalkeeper pair, which is too bulky to play outfield in.
Goalkeeper gloves also make a good present for a child who has taken to the position. Our Christmas football gifts for kids has more ideas, and a garden goal turns shooting practice into goalkeeping practice. The best football goals for kids covers which size to buy.
Looking After Goalkeeper Gloves
Latex wears out faster when it is left dirty or dried badly, so a little care makes a cheap pair last noticeably longer. Reusch's own care instructions and those from other goalkeeper brands cover the same points:
- Rinse new gloves before the first use. Warm water washes off residue left from manufacture, and the palm grips better afterwards.
- Dampen the palms before playing. Most latex grips best when slightly damp. A splash from a water bottle before kick-off is enough.
- Wash by hand after playing. Use lukewarm water and a little mild soap, then rinse. Reusch's instructions say hand wash only, never the washing machine.
- Dry them naturally. Leave them to air dry at room temperature, away from radiators, tumble dryers and direct sun. Heat makes latex brittle and it cracks.
- Store them dry and out of the sun, not screwed up in the bottom of a kit bag with wet boots. Strong sunlight degrades latex too.
The most common mistake is the radiator. Gloves left on a hot radiator overnight to be ready for the morning can come off with a hard, cracked palm that has lost much of its grip.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the best goalie gloves for kids?
A pair in the right size with a palm suited to the surface. For a child taking turns in goal, a cheap junior pair with a wrist strap, like the adidas Copa Club Junior, is enough. For a child in goal every week on 3G, a harder-wearing palm such as the Reusch Attrakt Solid Junior lasts longer. Look for junior or kids in the product name, which means the glove is cut for a child's hand.
What size goalkeeper gloves for a 7 year old?
Usually a size 4, sometimes a 5 for a bigger hand or a brand that runs small. A 10-year-old is usually a 5 or 6. Measure round the knuckles or along the hand and check the brand's own chart, because charts from different brands put the same age a size apart.
Does my child have to wear goalkeeper gloves?
No. The Laws of the Game list gloves as permitted equipment, not required equipment, so a child can play in goal without them. Most children are more willing to dive and catch with gloves on, especially on artificial pitches and in winter.
How long should goalkeeper gloves last?
It depends on the palm, the surface and how often they are used. A soft latex pair used every week on 3G may wear through at the fingertips within a few months. A harder training palm used on grass can last a season or more. A child who only plays in goal occasionally will usually outgrow a pair before wearing it out.
Are expensive goalkeeper gloves better for kids?
Not usually. The most expensive junior gloves have softer match latex, which grips better but wears faster. A young keeper gets more from a correct size and a durable palm than from top-grade latex, and a cheaper pair can be replaced when they grow.
Can my child use adult goalkeeper gloves?
Only once their hand measures up to an adult size, usually around size 7 or 8 in the early teens. Adult gloves in a small size are cut for adult hand proportions, so on a child they are often long in the fingers and loose at the wrist. Gloves with junior in the product name are cut for children's hands.