KickTrix: Lewis Hamilton's dad invents smart keepy-uppy football game [Photos]

What do you do next when after years of fatherly sacrifice, resourcefulness and dedication you’ve helped your son achieve his dream of becoming Formula 1 champion?

Simple ... you invent an electronic keepy-uppy machine.

Anthony Hamilton, who supported son Lewis from his earliest days to his three championship victories, has created the KickTrix, a device that helps youngsters hone soccer skills indoors without smashing the furniture.

It consists of a football tethered to a console which keeps track of the number of times the player has kicked the ball upwards without letting it hit the floor. The tether has enough slack to give the ball freedom of movement while preventing it from damaging the surroundings.

Mr Hamilton said he had his brainwave after visiting a friend’s house. “She has three boys who love football. They haven’t got a big front room and were knocking a football about.

“The ball was going everywhere and breaking things as they were trying to do keepy-uppies. It gave me the idea of coming up with something to help them train and improve their ball control without fear of breaking anything.”