Zonal marking is a defensive tactic that is used in the sport of football in which the defenders take care or cover a certain area of the pitch instead of making a certain opponent. Zonal marking is in many ways contrasting to man marking. The defender covers a certain area of the pitch and when the opponent(s) moves into that area, he is supposed to clear the danger from that area.
Zonal marking is now commonly used. The best thing about zonal marking is that it is flexible. In this type of defending, the defenders do not have to keep following a specific opponent but take care of a certain area of the pitch. But communication among the defenders in this type of defending has to be very efficient and clear as zonal marking depends on teamwork and coherence.