Uploaded July 2021 | Updated September 2026, 3 hours ago
In high school physics there are many opportunities to use soccer to spark students’ interest in studying the laws of energy and motion. Projectile motion, conservation of energy, Newtons laws of motion, and the Magnus effect are just a few of the topics that soccer players unknowingly use while plying their craft.
In today’s video we examine how to solve two different problems when the launch angle and distance are given:
(1) What initial velocity is needed to hit the center circle from the top of the goalie’s box?, and
(2) What initial velocity is needed to hit the crossbar from the edge of the center circle? See diagram below.
In both cases there are two unknowns, the time in the air t and the initial velocity vi, therefore we will need two equations to solve these problems. The first equation comes from deconstructing the initial velocity vector into its x and y components. The second equation is one of our favorite kinematic equations.
How many chances will it take for Sam to hit the crossbar and how do we calculate the initial velocity of his kick? Watch the video and find out!
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Blog: stepbystepscience.com/blog
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Support my channel by doing all of the following:
(1) Subscribe to get all my excellent physics, chemistry and math videos.
(2) Click the notifications bell so you don’t miss any of our amazing content.
(3) Give me a thumbs up for this video.
(4) Leave me a nice positive comment.
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Chapters:
0:00 fun with Fußball and Physics
00:45 Hitting the Center Circle
06:40 Hitting the Crossbar
11:50 Penalty Kicks Shootout
In high school physics there are many opportunities to use soccer to spark students’ interest in studying the laws of energy and motion. Projectile motion, conservation of energy, Newtons laws of motion, and the Magnus effect are just a few of the topics that soccer players unknowingly use while plying their craft.
In today’s video we examine how to solve two different problems when the launch angle and distance are given:
(1) What initial velocity is needed to hit the center circle from the top of the goalie’s box?, and
(2) What initial velocity is needed to hit the crossbar from the edge of the center circle? See diagram below.
In both cases there are two unknowns, the time in the air t and the initial velocity vi, therefore we will need two equations to solve these problems. The first equation comes from deconstructing the initial velocity vector into its x and y components. The second equation is one of our favorite kinematic equations.
How many chances will it take for Sam to hit the crossbar and how do we calculate the initial velocity of his kick? Watch the video and find out!
Social Media for Step by Step Science:
Teacher Pay Teachers Store: tinyurl.com/y6d2cdfj
Instagram: instagram.com/stepbystepscience101
Website: stepbystepscience.com
Blog: stepbystepscience.com/blog
Link Tree: https://linktr.ee/stepbystepscience
Support my channel by doing all of the following:
(1) Subscribe to get all my excellent physics, chemistry and math videos.
(2) Click the notifications bell so you don’t miss any of our amazing content.
(3) Give me a thumbs up for this video.
(4) Leave me a nice positive comment.
(5) Share this video with all of your friends.
Chapters:
0:00 fun with Fußball and Physics
00:45 Hitting the Center Circle
06:40 Hitting the Crossbar
11:50 Penalty Kicks Shootout
