How do you play Ragdoll Football?

Run into the ball and kick it into the opposite goal. Use A and D to move, W to jump and S to kick. The first player to five goals wins.

What are the controls on a keyboard?

Player 1 uses A, D, W and S. Player 2 uses the arrow keys with Down to kick. R restarts the match.

How do you kick the ball high?

Jump first and press kick near the top of the jump. The ball leaves your foot at a steeper angle than a ground kick, which is how you chip a defender or score over a crowd.

How many players can play?

One player against the CPU, or two players locally on the same keyboard. Press the player switch above the pitch to change mode.

Is there a header button?

No. A jumping kick behaves like a header: if the ball is at head height when you kick mid-air, it is launched away from your body.

How long does a match take?

A match is first to five goals, which usually takes two to three minutes. There is no clock.

Can I play on mobile?

Yes. Four touch buttons replace the keyboard, and the pitch resizes to fit the screen.

How to Play Ragdoll Football – Controls, Rules and Tips

Controls at a glance

There are four actions in the whole game: run left, run right, jump and kick. Everything else is timing.

Player 1 — A / D to run, W to jump, S to kick
Player 2 — Left / Right arrows to run, Up to jump, Down to kick
R — restart the match
Mobile — left, right, jump and kick buttons below the pitch

The rules of a match

Two ragdolls, one ball, two goals. Kick the ball into the goal at the opposite end to score. There are no fouls, no offside, no throw-ins and no out-of-bounds — the pitch has walls.

The first player to five goals wins. After each goal the ball returns to the centre and both ragdolls respawn, so there is no long celebration to sit through.

Kicking: the only skill that matters

The game does not use an aim cursor. When you press kick, it finds your foot closest to the ball and sends the ball away from that foot. Your body position is your aim.

That means the best shot is almost always a moving one: run at the ball from behind, press kick as your front foot reaches it, and the ball leaves low and fast. Standing still next to the ball produces a weak nudge.

For height, jump first and kick near the top of the jump. This is also how you head a high ball — the game treats a jumping kick as an aerial challenge, not a separate header button.

Defending without giving away goals

Do not chase the ball into the corner. If you follow it there, your ragdoll ends up facing the wall and takes a second to turn around, which is long enough for a shot.

Instead, stand between the ball and your own goal, slightly off the direct line. Most goals in ragdoll football come from a rebound, and rebounds go to whoever is already in front of the net.

Jumping is a legitimate defensive tool. A jump blocks low shots with your legs and puts you above the ball for the clearance.

Common mistakes

The three habits below cost more goals than any lack of skill. Fix them first and the CPU stops being a problem.

Kicking a bouncing ball at head height — it goes straight up, often into your own goal.
Holding the run key while kicking — the extra momentum pushes the ball wide.
Both players chasing the same ball — one of you has to cover the goal.
Restarting with R in the middle of a good run — it resets the score as well as the positions.

Mobile controls

On a phone or tablet, four buttons appear under the pitch. Hold left or right to run, tap jump for a hop, and tap kick when the ball is near your feet.

The pitch is scaled to the screen but the physics do not change, so the timing you learn on a laptop transfers directly to mobile.

How to Play Ragdoll Football