I’ve Got Your Number
I've Got Your Number
A Fun Youth Group Game
Watch the Tutorial Video
I’ve Got Your Number is a fast-paced team game that combines soccer, dodgeball, rugby, and Frisbee-style gameplay into one competition. The unique team-building method makes it especially effective for large group activities.
Overview
Ideal # of Participants: 8 to 40
Where to Play: Indoor
Age of Participants: Elementary School / Middle School / High School
Approximate Time to Play: 15 to 45 Minutes
Materials Needed: Dodgeball or kickball, Exercise ball (optional), Frisbee (optional)
How to Play I've Got Your Number
The key to making I’ve Got Your Number work is having fair teams. Fortunately, there’s a specific way to create balanced teams that works much better than simply picking captains.
Create Balanced Teams
Have everyone in your group pair up with someone they think is approximately the same skill level as them at sports.
Once everyone has a partner, the leader assigns each pair a number. Every pair then plays a single round of Rock Paper Scissors against another pair.
All of the winners become one team, and all of the losers become the other team.
Everyone holds onto their assigned number for the rest of the game.
What you end up with is two balanced rosters, where every number represents two players who are approximately the same size, age, and/or athletic ability.
This makes for much more balanced youth group games than simply choosing team captains and letting them pick players.
Set Up the Playing Area
You’ll need a large indoor space with high ceilings and two walls approximately 60 feet (20 meters) apart.
A full-sized basketball court works particularly well if you play across the width of the court rather than its length.
Place a dodgeball or other sport ball in the center of the playing area. Both teams start lined up along the same sideline.
The goal is to get the ball to hit anywhere on the back wall of the opposing team.
Start the Match
The leader begins each round by calling out the number of one of the pairs.
For example, the leader might call out:
“3!”
Both players who have been assigned number 3 sprint onto the court. Now it’s a 1-on-1 matchup.
Using soccer rules — meaning players can only use their feet to kick the ball — both players try to control, juke, and ultimately shoot the ball toward the opposing team’s wall.
The first player to successfully hit the opposing wall earns a point for their team.
Then everything resets and the leader calls another number.
Call Multiple Numbers
Here’s where I’ve Got Your Number gets really exciting.
The leader can call as many numbers at once as they want.
For example, they could call:
“Four! Seven! Two!”
Now you’ve got a 3-on-3 scramble for the ball.
Every round can create a completely different matchup. Sometimes you’ll have a 1-on-1 battle, while other rounds might turn into a chaotic 4-on-4 or 5-on-5 competition.
This keeps the game unpredictable and creates the kind of fast-paced group activity that gets the entire group energized.
Game Variations
Round 2: Exercise Ball
Once your group understands the basic game, you can swap out the dodgeball for a completely different object.
For the second round, bring out an exercise ball — the bigger, the better.
Because the exercise ball is much larger and harder to control, you can remove the kicking-only rule.
Players can move the ball however they want. They can kick it, headbutt it, shove it, punch it, or even pick it up and run with it.
The scoring remains exactly the same: get the ball to hit the opposing team’s wall.
The result is a game that feels much less like soccer and much more like a rugby scrum. It’s amazing how much one simple change can completely change the strategy of the game.
Round 3: Frisbee
For the third round, replace the ball with a frisbee.
This time, players are not allowed to move while holding the disc, meaning your team will need to rely heavily on passing and communication.
However, you’ll want to add one additional rule for safety:
A frisbee thrown as hard as possible at chest height isn’t something you want flying around a room full of young people. To prevent this, the Frisbee must hit the upper portion of the wall to score.
Choose an obvious boundary based on your playing space. For example:
- Above the windows
- The third brick from the top or higher
- Above the top edge of a banner
The exact boundary doesn’t matter as much as making sure everyone can easily tell where the scoring area begins. You don’t want players arguing about whether a throw was high enough.
Tips
- Pair players based on approximate athletic ability to keep the teams balanced.
- Make sure everyone remembers their assigned number before starting.
- Start with one number at a time so your group can learn the basic rules.
- Once everyone understands the game, call multiple numbers to increase the intensity.
- Clearly mark the scoring boundary when using the Frisbee variation.
- Use a large, open playing area with plenty of room for students to move safely.
- If you’re using an exercise ball, make sure your playing area is free of obstacles.
Lesson Handout
Want to make this easy to share with your volunteers or students? Download the “I’ve Got Your Number” Lesson Handout (PDF) below!
Where Games Meet God's Word...
Most leaders just look for games to play, but miss their true value. When used well, games help teach your lesson, because experiential learning is by far the most effective way to teach a lesson that sticks.
If you want to see this principle in action, check out Uplift, our FREE youth group lesson that is built for engagement. It contains a fun game, but then your students’ experience from the game ties into the Christ-centered message you’ll teach.
