The ability to play a game at an advanced level involves the constant selection of appropriate if not optimal responses and the accurate execution of those responses in relation to an ever-changing competitive environment. In essence, the learner needs to acquire and refine both tactical skills, which is the ability to make decisions to achieve a particular immediate goal, and technical skills; the ability to execute a particular response to become able to play the game. Much debate and research has occurred over the past 20-years regarding how best to teach these requirements of games in physical education (e.g. Bunker & Thorpe, 1982; Griffin, Mitchell & Oslin, 1997). Play Practice is a recent addition to this debate that emphasises the need to teach ‘through the game and in the game'. Teaching through the game refers to the process of conditioning practice environments to shape specific elements of successful performance. Teaching in the game refers to the process of focusing play to highlight specific game requirements and to make connections between previous practices and the game (Launder, 2001). Hence, effective teaching in the game is a vital means of promoting the transfer of learning from practice to game and guiding the skilful performance of tactical responses in the target setting. However, the important practice of teaching in the game has had sparse research attention and is little understood. Many sports coaches have appreciated the benefits of instructing within the game and its potential to produce rapid gains in performance. For example, the English Football Association (the F.A.) have developed and refined a highly structured, logical and systematic process of instruction within the game of soccer which forms the foundation of their renowned coach education programme. The purpose of this paper is to examine what it means to teach in the game using the F.A.'s model for soccer as a framework. Further, it is to clarify some misconceptions and to state what teaching in the game is not. A simplification of this process will be suggested for the application to teaching in the game within physical education. It is intended that this paper will be of interest to practitioners, researchers and teacher educators and a catalyst for future discussion and research to enhance the teaching and learning of games activities within physical education. Keyword(s): coaching, youth sports