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Futsal
is the official five-a-side indoor soccer game and the only indoor
soccer recognized by FIFA. Futsal
is beginning to take the country by storm as more and more soccer
players, coaches, clubs and associations discover the unique and
positive qualities of Futsal. It
is a game played around the world as many of today’s world stars
began their youth soccer by playing Futsal. The Brazilians attribute
their world soccer success to Futsal.
Pele, Zico, Socrates, Ronaldo and Bebeto grew up playing
Futsal and credit Futsal with developing their skills.
Futsal
is a small-sided game (5v5 including the goalkeepers) played on a
small field roughly the size of a basketball court.
The game does not
require the use of dasher boards.
It is played with the
touchline boundaries with no walls to bang the ball against.
The official ball is
a special low bounce ball that is heavier and smaller than an
official size 5 soccer ball.
The ball forces a
player to use their skill rather than the ball’s bounce to propel
it.
It is a complete
skill game.
Futsal develops the
overall fundamentals of soccer more effectively.
It has been proven
that youth players develop quicker reflexes, faster thinking and
pinpoint passing.
It is a superior game
in terms of establishing players’ touch and technique.
As
compared to the American indoor game where a player relies on
utilizing the walls, Futsal forces a player to think two or three
steps ahead without using the walls.
One touch passing is
essential in maintaining ball possession on a smaller surface.
Therefore, an
individual’s overall ball handling skills and off the ball
movement enhance considerably. When a player gets in trouble with
the ball, there is no whacking it off the wall.
Their split second
thinking improves automatically as one learns how to maintain
possession and distribute the ball quickly. Shots must be more
accurate, since a shot off target will not produce a rebound.
More shots are also
taken during the course of a game, which will enhance a player’s
confidence, by taking on a defender and shooting quickly.
A player does not
have as much space or time to dribble with the ball.
Futsal helps to
develop tremendous close quarters footwork.
Origin
of Futsal
The
origin of Futsal can be traced back to Montevideo, Uruguay, in 1930
when Juan Carlos Ceriani devised a five-a-side version of soccer for
youth competion in YMCAs. The game is played on basketball-sized
courts, both indoors and out without the use of sidewalls.
The
term FUTSAL is the international term used for the game. It
is derived from the Spanish or Portuguese word for
"soccer", FUTbol or FUTebol, and the French
or Spanish word for "indoor", SALon or SALa.
The
game is frequently referred to as Five-A-Side. Once Ceriani got the
ball rolling, Futsal gained rapid popularity throughout South
America, particularly in Brazil. The skill developed in this game is
visible in the world-famous style the Brazilians display outdoors on
the full-sized field. Pele, Zico, Socrates, Bebeto and other
Brazilian superstars developed their skill playing Futsal. While
Brazil continues to be the Futsal hub of the world, the game is now
played, under the auspices of FIFA, all over the world, from Europe
to North and Central America and the Caribbean, South America,
Africa, and Asia and Oceania.
The
first international competition took place in 1965, when Paraguay
won the first South American Cup. Six more South American Cups were
held through 1979, with Brazil winning all of them. Brazil continued
its dominance with a victory in the first Pan American Cup in 1980
and won it again the next time it was played in 1984. A U.S. team
took part in the 1984 cup, but finished out of the running.
The
first Futsal World Championship conducted under the auspices of
FIFUSA (before its members integrated into FIFA in 1989) was held in
Sao Paulo, Brazil, in 1982, with Brazil finishing in first place.
The Brazilians repeated as champions at the second World
Championship in 1985 in Spain, but lost in the third World
Championship in 1988 in Australia to Paraguay. FIFA took over direct
sponsorship of the event in 1989 in Holland and 1992 in Hong Kong.
Brazil won both times. The U.S. Futsal (Indoor Team), finished third
in 1989 and second in 1992. The highest showing by any team from the
United States in a FIFA tournament until the U.S. Womens team won
the gold medal in China for outdoor soccer. The Third FIFA World
Futsal Championship was held November 24 through December 11, 1996,
in Spain. The Fourth FIFA Futsal World Championship was held in
Guatemala between November 18 to December 4th, 2000.
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