From Academy Football ⚽ to World Records at 11 Years Old: A Legend In The Making..? 🏆

Scrolling and searching eventually led James to the discovery of the Fagerli Brothers.

“This really blew my mind and made me understand what true freestyle is,” James says.

This was something else entirely. A different world. A sport built around the exact thing that had been missing: creativity without limits. From there, it became simple. Watch. Try. Fail. Repeat.

James spent hours at home, learning from videos and copying the movements, slowly building control. Soon, a realisation dawned upon him: freestyle wasn’t just something on the side anymore. It was becoming more enjoyable than football itself.

So a decision had to be made.

James ultimately decided to quit academy football to focus on freestyle.

He said: “it was taking up lots of time due to training three nights per week and then having matches on the weekend”, to focus on freestyle.

At that age, a decision like that is huge. Especially when it’s thousands of kids’ dreams to pursue that path to try and become a professional footballer.

However looking back now, James is confident he made the right choice.

Progress in freestyle isn’t linear. It’s messy and frustrating, full of failed attempts that no one ever sees. But sometimes, things start to click.

Breaking his first Guinness World Record at just 11 years old (Record for the most football shoulder rolls in one minute, 77), which he achieved at a half time show at Cardiff City Stadium! Talk about being under pressure. Then another record came. And another. Now at just 14, James has achieved a total of five records, an extraordinary achievement for someone so young.

Competitions followed too. First wins, and moments that start to build something bigger:

These are big achievements. Definitely the kind that people notice. But interestingly, that’s not what stands out the most.

James says, “The biggest achievement is probably landing PATW (a triple around the world) at 13.”

Freestyle football isn’t always about medals, sometimes it’s about just one trick, or a single goal you set yourself, or one moment you’ve imagined over and over again.

And in that moment, everything feels worth it.

April 2026, James stunned the freestyle community by landing his first TRIPLE Around the World at 13 years old, the second youngest to land a 3 revolution trick in UK history. The official name of this trick is PATW out (Palle Around the World [outside variation]), named after Swedish legend, Palle, who was the first to land the trick. Check out this magic moment for yourself below!

From the outside, freestyle can look clean, controlled, and almost easy sometimes.

It’s not.

“I think you can go through so many emotions when learning new skills — frustration, annoyance, feeling like you want to give up — but then also feeling determined, excited and absolute happiness once you get it,” James explains.

That feeling of wanting to quit, thinking it’s not working and questioning whether you’re even improving can be painful, but through growth, failure stops feeling like the end of something and starts feeling like part of the process. Each missed attempt is actually moving you forward, even if it doesn’t feel like it at the moment. This mindset is so critical to all walks of life, not just in freestyle, but in everything, and developing this path of resistance and perseverance at such a young age is one of the most powerful things that sports such as freestyle develop in people.

The community aspect has also played a huge role in James’ development, with support coming from everywhere: messages, advice and guidance from experienced athletes in the sport, and encouragement from people across the world who understand exactly what he’s trying to do.

There’s another side to this story that’s easy to overlook. James has just turned 14. Which means school, exams coming soon, responsibilities that don’t stop just because you’ve got competitions or training sessions. Especially as you’re no longer in a sport that has the facilities and systems to support developing student-athletes.

Trying to balance responsibilities with freestyle isn’t always easy, especially at such a young age. There’s always that thought in the background “what if there’s not enough time?” But freestyle isn’t something you just drop, Not when the athletes put so much time and effort into it.

In freestyle, the goals never really stop; once you achieve something, it almost immediately creates the next target.

Landing PATW leads to chasing more 3-rev tricks. Small goals stacking into bigger ones. Constant progression. The whole progress is very addictive once you get over the initial hardships.

But beyond the tricks in freestyle, there’s something deeper - a desire to build a style. Freestyle footballers yearn to be known not just for difficulty, but for creativity. For doing things differently. And maybe, one day, to inspire someone else the same way those first videos did.

To be the reason someone picks up a ball and starts trying.

Freestyle football feels like an ever evolving sport currently, everyday the community unlocks new potential and new ambitions.

Even in a short space of time, the level has increased massively. Tricks that once felt impossible, like 4 revolution tricks even, are becoming more common.

It’s hard to predict the future of freestyle. As discussed in our IMPCT Weekly article titled “Did This Sport Kill Off It's Best Athletes? ❌” there are many doubts with where freestyle is at the moment and how it will progress. Be sure to read more behind Matko’s story in that article and what led to him quitting the sport despite being a young prodigy himself.

The hope is that the sport continues to inspire a new generation, attracting talented athletes like James Taylor, through its creativity, limits and sense of community.

**Parental permission was granted for the writing and publication of this article featuring 14-year-old freestyle footballer James Taylor.

Where to Watch?

“Flair20TV” is your absolute go to for years of battle content

“WFFA” for official association competitions

“Real Lowers” for a mix of personality as well as tricks

“@iamafreestyler” for short clips from around the globe

“@impctfreestyle” for edited clips

See when and where upcoming events are around the world

Want to Try Yourself?

(DM me on Instagram @alejandrosymons if you’re local to London/Hertfordshire)

Learn simple stalls and control first!

Don’t rush into crazy tricks! Balance and consistency matter more.

Any ball/football will do.

Find some flat space outdoors (or indoors if you’re careful!)

You’ll drop the ball constantly. That’s normal, everybody does!

Using the references above on where to watch and try and copy what they’re doing. This should be fun and exciting to explore!

Every 10-15 mins a day makes a difference. It’s about consistency, not long burnout sessions.

Find and message any freestylers or groups on Instagram. If you’re from the UK, @uk.freestylers is a great account to start.